Cold-pressed linseed oil is rich in ω-3, which belongs to "essential unsaturated fatty acids" and is extremely important to human body. However, it cannot be synthesized by itself and must be ingested in vitro to meet the important substances needed by human body. ω-3 is rich in marine animals and plants such as seals, deep-sea cold-water fish, seaweed, flax plants and walnuts. Linseed oil is the vegetable oil with the highest ω-3 content on land, and it is called "liquid gold" because of its importance to the body. Eating walnuts can nourish the brain, precisely because walnuts are rich in omega-3 and its metabolites. Eating walnuts to supplement omega -3 is far from the amount of omega -3 recommended by experts for pregnant women.

The World Health Organization recommends that pregnant women take 1300mg daily. Supplementing 1300mg ω-3 is equivalent to eating 17kg walnuts every day! Linseed oil only needs 20 ml a day to supplement enough omega-3!

The functional components in fish oil are mainly DHA and EPA, which also have the function of strengthening the brain and improving eyesight. But the difference is that ω-3 in linseed oil metabolizes proper amount of DHA and EPA in our body according to our own needs, so as to meet the needs of the body, and the balance effect of ω-3 cannot be achieved by simply supplementing fish oil. In addition, fish oil also contains a lot of cholesterol that is harmful to our health.

The content of ω-3 in cold-pressed virgin linseed oil reaches 33%-53%, which is much higher than that of common cold-pressed linseed oil, and it is a veritable plant "liquid gold".

EPA and DHA are very important intermediate metabolites in α -linolenic acid metabolism, which play a very important physiological role in human life activities.

There is a misunderstanding that DHA supplementation is better than α -linolenic acid supplementation. In fact, this is incorrect, mainly due to people's lack of understanding of α -linolenic acid.

After α -linolenic acid enters the human body, EPA and DHA are generated in turn under the action of enzymes. This process is irreversible, that is to say, α -linolenic acid is more effective and comprehensive than DHA. Moreover, when α -linolenic acid enters the human body, the human body can metabolize it reasonably according to its own needs. As long as the amount of α -linolenic acid is sufficient and the human body needs DHA, the excess α -linolenic acid can be metabolized into EPA and other substances to complete other physiological functions. DHA does not have such characteristics, and excessive supplementation of DHA will bring negative effects, such as low immunity.

Therefore, supplementing α -linolenic acid with vegetable oil as carrier is more comprehensive, safer and more scientific than directly supplementing DHA.

Effects on pregnant women, fetuses and infants

Modern life science research has proved that ω-3 is the core substance of human cells. Pregnant women pass through the placenta, and pregnant women pass the ingested ω-3 and metabolites DHA and EPA to the fetus or baby through milk.

The development of the brain is mainly completed before birth, especially in the third trimester of pregnancy and the first few weeks after birth, which is the period of rapid synthesis of brain tissue. Therefore, during this period, pregnant women and lying-in women consume enough ω-3, and the brain nerve cells and optic nerve cells of the fetus or baby develop well, with a large number and strong functions.

ω-3 can also promote the physical function and physical development of fetuses and infants, especially for fetuses and premature infants with developmental retardation, and can promote the functional development to a normal level. In addition, it is certified by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that ω-3 has the following functions: 1 to prevent fetal malformation and congenital dysplasia;

2, reduce pregnancy reaction and reduce stretch marks;

3. Promote lactation and improve the nutritional quality of milk;

4. Prevent gestational diabetes and constipation;

5. Prevent postpartum depression;

6. Enhance the physical resistance of pregnant women;

7. Control the weight of pregnant women and promote the recovery of postpartum skin and body shape.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that women must take enough omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy and lactation.

If pregnant women lack omega-3, then babies will have symptoms such as brain retardation, mental impairment, slow physical development, poor eyesight and rough skin.

Maternal nutrition knowledge

1) α -linolenic acid improves baby's intelligence

α -linolenic acid has been identified by the World Health Organization as an essential fatty acid for human body. α -linolenic acid has 16 effects on pregnant women, among which the most important ones are: controlling gene expression, optimizing genetic genes, transporting cellular substances, controlling nutrients entering cells, and affecting the growth and development of fetal brain cells.

Function: Promote brain development, improve nervous system function, improve IQ, enhance eyesight and promote physical growth.

Insufficient time: fetal brain development is slow, intelligence is impaired, body development is slow, and vision is poor.

Supplement: daily 1000mg.

2) α -linolenic acid is an important raw material of fetal brain.

Modern life science research has confirmed that α -linolenic acid is the core substance of human cells. After α -linolenic acid is ingested by mothers and fetuses, it is metabolized into DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) through the liver under the action of various enzymes. Brain differentiation is mainly completed before birth, especially in the third trimester of pregnancy and the first few weeks after birth, which is a period of rapid synthesis of brain tissue, and 80% ~ 90% of cognitive ability depends on the development before birth. During the rapid growth and development of fetal brain, α -linolenic acid absorbed by fetus or baby from mother changes rapidly through the rapid extension and infiltration of desaturated carbon chain, and penetrates into phospholipids for normal development of brain. Therefore, it is very important to ensure the intake of α -linolenic acid during pregnancy and lactation to promote the development of fetal brain. 3) The important role of α -linolenic acid in fetus and infant.

The world medical community has recognized the important role of α -linolenic acid. Pregnant women can get enough α -linolenic acid, and fetal brain neurons are well developed and powerful, so the baby's brain glial cells are more and grow well. If the newborn baby lacks α -linolenic acid, the DHA content in phospholipids in retina will be reduced by half, and the gray matter in brain will be reduced by 1/4, which will seriously affect the baby's vision. α -linolenic acid can also promote the function and physical development of fetuses and infants, especially stunted and premature infants, and can promote their functional development to a normal level, which also has an important impact on the postpartum body shape of pregnant women.

Prevention of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases

A large number of basic research, epidemiological investigation, animal experiments and clinical observations show that α -linolenic acid has the following three physiological functions, which are recognized by the international medical and nutritional circles:

1) prevention of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases: due to thrombosis and blood vessel blockage, tissues and cells can't get oxygen supplement and nutrition supply, which eventually leads to death. The coronary arteries and cerebral vessels of the heart are prone to thrombosis, causing myocardial infarction and cerebral infarction. It is known that an important factor leading to thrombosis is the platelet aggregation process. α -linolenic acid can change the fluidity of platelet membrane, thus changing the reactivity of platelet to stimulation and the number of platelet surface receptors. Therefore, the formation of thrombus can be effectively prevented.

2) Hypolipidemic: Metabolites of α -linolenic acid have moderate regulating effect on blood lipid metabolism, and can promote the conversion of plasma low-density lipoprotein (LDL) to high-density lipoprotein (HDL), thus reducing blood lipid and preventing atherosclerosis.

3) Reduce critical hypertension: The blood pressure between 145/90 mmHg and 160/95 mmHg is called critical hypertension, and it is initial hypertension. If you use antihypertensive drugs for a long time, it will easily cause many adverse reactions. Metabolites of α -linolenic acid can dilate blood vessels and enhance their elasticity, thus lowering blood pressure.

Regulating gout, rheumatism and rheumatoid diseases

Gout is a chronic metabolic disorder disease, which is characterized by excessive urate production in the body or decreased uric acid excretion by the kidney, thus causing the concentration of urate in the blood to increase, which is clinically called hyperuricemia. Uric acid is the final product of purine metabolism, and purine is produced by catabolism of human cells. When blood uric acid rises to a certain extent, it will be deposited in tissues, especially joints and kidneys, thus causing repeated attacks of arthritis. In severe cases, it will cause joint movement disorder or deformity, which is clinically called gouty arthritis. Uric acid forms uric acid kidney calculi and renal parenchyma damage after renal deposition, which is clinically called uric acid nephropathy, also known as gouty nephropathy. It can cause renal colic, hematuria, hydronephrosis and renal function damage, and in severe cases, renal failure and uremia, which is one of the main causes of death of gout patients. Gout favors men because estrogen in women can promote uric acid excretion and inhibit the onset of arthritis. Men like drinking, going to parties and eating foods rich in purine and protein, which increases uric acid and reduces excretion. According to the statistics of doctors, 30% people suffer from frequent banquets, and people who eat hot pot often get sick. This is because the raw materials of hot pot are mainly animal viscera, shrimp, shellfish and seafood, and drinking beer will naturally add fuel to the fire. The survey shows that the intake of purine in hot pot is 10 times or even dozens of times that of dinner. A beer can double uric acid. The possibility of gout in patients with hypertension will increase by 10 times. Gout is a lifelong disease like diabetes. The key is to control your diet, eat more alkaline foods with low purine content, such as fruits and vegetables, and eat less acidic foods such as meat and fish, so that the diet is light, low in fat and sugar, and drink more water to facilitate uric acid excretion in the body. "It's true that drugs are toxic in three ways", and the main efficacy of drugs is often accompanied by its side effects. When choosing drugs to treat diseases, you must follow the doctor's advice, not take them casually, and try to take drugs with small side effects. In addition, dietotherapy is a healthy treatment method with no side effects. For diseases that can be treated by dietotherapy, it is best to choose dietotherapy. Why can linseed oil regulate gout and rheumatism? Because linolenic acid rich in linseed oil can reduce the synthesis of uric acid, it is not easy to precipitate in joints and inflammation, which can prevent gout and reduce the frequency and degree of gout attacks. (α -linolenic acid is a polyunsaturated fatty acid and an essential fatty acid. α -linolenic acid is the core substance of life, an important component of human brain cells and tissue cells, and a nutrient needed every day in human life. α -linolenic acid cannot be synthesized by the human body itself, nor can it be synthesized by other nutrients. Must be obtained through diet. α -linolenic acid is not a medicine, but an essential fat for human body. It is food when it exists in edible oil. α -linolenic acid mainly exists in linseed oil. )

Anticancer effect

Anti-cancer component of linseed oil: omega-3 fatty acids that are easily lacking in food. It can reduce the influence of harmful biochemical substances produced during stress. Conducive to stabilizing emotions and keeping calm. Prevent depression and insomnia. It also helps to reduce allergic reactions. It plays a great role in the treatment and prevention of arthritis. It can break down cholesterol. Balance blood pressure and prevent blood coagulation. Prevent stroke and heart disease. It can also speed up metabolism. Improve the ability of the immune system. It has the effect of inhibiting some cancer cells.

Lignans, a kind of cellulose absorbed into the intestine, will be transformed into anticancer compounds by beneficial bacteria contained in the body, thus achieving the effect of preventing cancer. It can also regulate the hormone content in the body, relieve some uncomfortable symptoms caused by menopause, inhibit the synthesis of ovarian estrogen and reduce the probability of breast cancer.

Inhibition of thrombotic diseases

Due to the formation of thrombus and the blockage of blood vessels, oxygen and nutrients cannot move forward from here, and cells are damaged, that is, they are in an infarct state. The coronary arteries and cerebral vessels of the heart are prone to thrombosis, leading to myocardial infarction and cerebral infarction. It has always been thought that cholesterol in food is regarded as an enemy because cholesterol accumulates in blood vessels and forms blood clots. In fact, the more important factor contributing to thrombosis is the degree of platelet aggregation energy. The effects of α -linolenic acid feed, ω-6 series safflower oil feed and common feed on platelet aggregation were compared. The results showed that ω-3α- linolenic acid significantly inhibited platelet aggregation energy (P

The mechanism of ω-3 series α -linolenic acid inhibiting thrombosis and preventing myocardial infarction and cerebral infarction is considered as follows:

A, ω-3 series α -linolenic acid and change the fluidity of platelet membrane, thus changing the reactivity of platelet to stimulation and the number of platelet surface receptors.

B, because ω-3 series α -linolenic acid and arachidonic acid compete for cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase in cell membrane phospholipids, the metabolites change. Inhibit the production of TXα2 which causes platelet aggregation and replace it with TXα3 which has no biological activity. Increasing PGI3 will make the tendency of inhibiting platelet aggregation exceed the tendency of promoting platelet aggregation.

Highly protect eyesight

As mentioned earlier, there is a large amount of DHA in the outer layer of visual cells in the retina.

It has been reported that the recovery time of omentum reflection energy will be prolonged if vision is reduced. As soon as the omentum comes into contact with light, a chemical reaction will occur, resulting in a potential change, which will be transmitted to the brain through the optic nerve. Rats were fed ω-6 series safflower oil and α -linolenic acid for two generations, and then different intensities of light were given to produce potential changes. The magnitude (amplitude) of α -wave and B-wave of cell membrane potential diagram was compared to determine the reflection energy of omentum. The results show that the amplitude corresponds to the content of α -linolenic acid, that is, the contents of safflower oil, control group and α -linolenic acid increase in turn. Experiments with monkeys have also proved that lack of α -linolenic acid will reduce vision.

Highly enhanced intelligence

The refined feed of safflower oil, soybean oil and α -linolenic acid was given during breastfeeding. They mate about 1 1 week, and then two generations are fed the same feed. When young rats were 1 1 week old, males were taken for intelligence test. During this period, there was no abnormality in appearance and growth speed, but the positive reaction rate of α -linolenic acid food group was significantly higher than that of the other two groups in the lightness recognition learning ability experiment. The similar learning ability experiment was repeated seven times in hypertensive rats, normotensive rats, Donryu rats and SprAgue-Dawley rats, and very good repeatable results were obtained. In the learning energy elimination experiment, that is, after the above-mentioned 30-day experiment, the conditions of giving food light and dark light were reversed, and the days of original memory elimination were measured. The result is still that safflower oil, soybean oil and α -linolenic acid increase in turn. The water maze test and Y maze test also obtained the same results. Because docosahexaenoic acid from α -linolenic acid is rich in brain and retina, the development of brain from fetus to lactation is very important. By the time of weaning, most of the brain cell division has ended, and the number of nerve cells has not increased much since then. Therefore, from pregnancy to lactation, supplementation is very necessary. Therefore, two generations of feeding methods were used in the above experiments.

Suppress allergic reaction

In the past 30 years, pollen allergy, food allergy, specific eczema and asthma have increased exponentially.

A survey of Japanese students shows that 1 in every three students is diagnosed with specific allergy. There are more than 40% children in kindergartens. Experts believe that there are two reasons, one is the increase of allergens; Second, the body is excited. When allergies occur, mast cells and neutrophils in the body play an important role. As soon as the allergen enters the human body, it will combine with [〔LT〕] mast cells, which will stimulate and release histamine and leukotrienes. In addition, neutrophils release platelet activating factor. All these have caused various symptoms of allergy, such as dyspnea, increased secretion, rhinitis and so on.

Experiments show that the high reactivity of constitution is caused by the change of the proportion of essential fatty acids in food. Because the LT produced by arachidonic acid produced by linoleic acid is a 4-series substance, and the LT produced by α -linolenic acid is a 5-series substance, the activity of the former is several times to hundreds of times that of the latter. Rats were fed two generations of high α -linolenic acid and high linoleic acid (safflower oil) feed. Inject glycogen into abdominal cavity, aggregate neutrophils, stimulate them to release LT substance, and then quantify it. Although the total amount of LTB discharged is very different, the ratio of B4 with strong activity to B5 with weak activity is also very different. Leukocyte migration α -linolenic acid is weak. In addition, it shows that bronchi can be measured. The result is high safflower oil. Regarding the release of platelet activating factor (PAF) in allergic inflammation, α -linolenic acid can be used as a stimulant. Epidemiological investigation also found that the bronchial asthma reaction of Eskimos was 1/25 of that of Danes.

anti-inflammatory action

The α -linolenic acid ingested by human body can be incorporated into leukocytes and released when leukocytes are stimulated, which changes the fluidity of leukocytes and inhibits the chemotaxis of neutrophils and the adhesion reaction to endothelial cells. In vitro induction and stimulation experiments showed that arachidonic acid (AA) and EPA produced LTB4 and LTB5 respectively, while the activity of LTB5 in promoting leukocyte aggregation was only 65,438+00% of that of LTB4. The stereoisomerism of LTB5 is inactive. Metabolites produced by lipoxygenase and EPA with the same molar concentration as AA can reduce the price of LTB by 68%, and its inhibition mechanism may be to inhibit the activity of LTB hydrolase. In vivo experiments have also reached a similar conclusion. Payan et al. found that α -linolenic acid can increase T lymphocyte reaction, and Ziboh et al. thought that DHA might be a special cycloaddition inhibitor, which could inhibit the formation of LT4 from arachidonic acid. Epidemiological investigation found that psoriasis and bronchial asthma in Eskimos were significantly less than those in Denmark, only 1/25 and 1/9. Clinical studies also show that the pathogenesis of psoriasis is mainly caused by the metabolic disorder of arachidonic acid, and the symptoms can be alleviated after ingesting a certain amount of α -linolenic acid.

Inhibit the occurrence and metastasis of cancer

α. Inhibit the generation of cancer:

If cancer is classified as a chronic disease, some people may object. However, the high incidence and mortality of cancer may be recognized. It is true that lung cancer is related to smoking, but squamous cell carcinoma in lung cancer is different from adenocarcinoma and has nothing to do with smoking. It is now clear that the incidence of lung cancer will increase if corn oil with high linoleic acid content is given to chemically carcinogenic animals in large quantities. Similarly, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, kidney cancer, pancreatic cancer and so on. It is also increased by excessive linoleic acid. When safflower oil and α -linolenic acid were given to naturally carcinogenic mice, the incidence decreased in turn. In addition, the young rats were given chemical carcinogens (DMBA, DMA). Three weeks later, they were fed safflower oil feed, soybean oil feed and α -linolenic acid respectively, and the incidence of breast cancer was measured at the 36th week. As a result, although all mice have breast cancer, each mouse has the least number of breast cancer. When rats were given safflower oil, corn oil, evening primrose oil and α -linolenic acid oil, the incidence of linseed oil was still the least.

B, inhibit the metastasis of cancer:

The most terrible thing about cancer is its metastasis. Although it is difficult for cancer to return to its original state at once, it is also a great victory if it can inhibit its metastasis. But only early resection or local use of anticancer drugs, but the effect is not obvious. However, experiments on rats with α -linolenic acid, safflower oil feed and common feed showed that ω-3 series α -linolenic acid inhibited cancer metastasis by 40% higher than the other group. α -linolenic acid can inhibit the occurrence and metastasis of cancer. Through continuous animal experiments, it is proved that the occurrence and metastasis of lung cancer, breast cancer, colorectal cancer, renal cancer, pancreatic cancer, prostate cancer, esophageal cancer and skin cancer are all related to the intake of linoleic acid series.

To sum up, it can be concluded that ω-6 series fatty acids promote the occurrence and metastasis of cancer, while α -linolenic acid inhibits the occurrence and metastasis of cancer.

Suppress aging

Human beings have ushered in aging, but it is difficult to accurately define aging. Most researchers believe that aging can be divided into pathological aging and physiological aging. In fact, it is difficult to strictly separate the two. In the cognitive learning ability experiment of aged rats, the positive reaction rate and α -linolenic acid are higher than safflower oil. Repeated memory retention experiments showed that α -linolenic acid still maintained a high positive reaction rate. Alzheimer's disease can be divided into thrombus type and Alzheimer's disease with unknown causes. According to epidemiological investigation, the former is the majority. α -linolenic acid can improve the intelligence of aged rats, which may be related to its inhibition of thrombotic diseases. As mentioned in Example 4, α -linolenic acid can not only prolong the life span of stroke rats, but also prolong the life span of ordinary rats, which is longer than safflower oil 12%.

With the increase of age, EPA and DHA in human platelet and erythrocyte lipids decreased, while arachidonic acid (AA) increased, MDA production increased and SOD activity increased, suggesting that it has anti-aging effect. There are probably not one reason why α -linolenic acid can prolong life. As mentioned above, inhibiting thrombotic diseases, inhibiting the occurrence and metastasis of cancer, maintaining normal blood pressure and inhibiting the onset of cerebral hemorrhage can all be regarded as the function of prolonging life.

Prolonging hypoglycemic effect

α -linolenic acid can promote insulin secretion by islet β cells and protect the stability of insulin in blood. It can reduce the insulin resistance of target cells.

When suffering from diabetes, the decomposition of fat in the body is accelerated, and the disorder of lipid metabolism rate causes the increase of blood lipid, which leads to complications such as arteriosclerosis, hyperlipidemia, fatty liver and hypertension. In addition, excessive decomposition of fat will produce ketone bodies. If it exceeds the utilization limit of the body and accumulates in large quantities, ketoacidosis will occur.

α -linolenic acid can regulate lipid metabolism, inhibit complications and reduce the probability of acid and ketone poisoning. At the same time, the protective effect of α -linolenic acid on human organs and nervous system is of great benefit to diabetic patients.

To sum up, it can be concluded that α -linolenic acid has a high protective effect on brain nerve function and retinal function, and also plays a vital role in human lipid metabolism. It can highly enhance intelligence, highly inhibit allergic reaction, inhibit cerebral hemorrhage, reduce blood lipid and blood pressure, and inhibit aging. At the same time, it is also found that these diseases can increase the incidence or aggravate the condition due to excessive intake of ω-6 fatty acids. α -linolenic acid is necessary to protect the normal growth of animals and maintain the normal state of skin.

Therefore, in order to prevent diseases and chronic diseases, the new fat nutrition guidelines should be:

A, control the intake of saturated fatty acids and monounsaturated fatty acids;

B, reduce the intake of linoleic acid; Increase the intake of α -linolenic acid;

Weight loss effect

Linseed oil removes as much fat as possible from our diet. Magazine articles, food vendors and even some weight loss experts are warning us that all fat is harmful to human body, and eating any type of fat will make us fat. You know, not all fats are like this. Some fats, such as omega-3 series fats, are extremely useful for health and can help you lose weight; Other fats, such as saturated fats in animal foods and transformed fats in processed foods, are harmful to human body and make people fat.

The best fats are omega fats: omega -3, omega -6 and omega -9. Some natural foods contain this fat, for example, some nuts, fish and flaxseed all contain this extremely important fat. Omega fat can suppress appetite, accelerate metabolism and promote fat consumption. At the same time, it is also extremely beneficial to health. Repeated studies have shown that this fat can reduce the risk of heart attack and some cancers. Among the three kinds of omega fats, researchers believe that omega -3 fat has the greatest effect on health, longevity and weight loss. This fat is found in fish, flaxseed and some vegetables. Omega -3 fat can be extracted from flaxseed. Linseed oil has a very magical effect. It will bring you the pleasure of enjoying delicious food.

Flaxseed oil is rich in various basic omega-3 fatty acids, which is an important fat with protective effect on the heart. It can suppress appetite and prevent fat from accumulating in the body. Omega-3 fatty acids (and several other fatty acids) stay in the stomach longer than fat-free or low-fat foods. This is because it takes more energy to digest fat than carbohydrates and protein. In this way, the working time of the stomach is correspondingly prolonged, which urges the intestine to secrete a hormone called intestinal kinesin peptide and sends a signal to the brain to stop eating. But the most amazing thing about linseed oil is that it does not accumulate in the body in the form of fat.

The human body uses omega-3 fatty acids to help maintain the cell membranes of 75 trillion cells in the whole body, keeping them intact and functioning normally. It keeps our hair, nails, joints and skin healthy. Because our bodies need it everywhere, it won't accumulate in the form of fat. Any kind of fat on the earth will not be welcomed and utilized by our bodies like omega-3 fat.

In addition, studies by Pennsylvania State University and Thomas Jefferson University also show that omega-3 fat in linseed oil can prevent hunger and make people feel full. In other words, you only need to eat a small amount of food to keep you from feeling hungry for a long time.

In addition to suppressing appetite, linseed oil is also used to activate brown fat wrapped around major organs and located deep in the human body. There is a lot of such fat in the baby's body, which makes us feel particularly warm when we hold it. Therefore, if the brown fat in the body can be activated, it will consume more fat, thus greatly accelerating metabolism.

Lu di Jian nao food

The main components of human brain tissue are lipids, of which about 20% are ω-3 unsaturated fatty acids. About 40% of lipids in human retina are ω-3 unsaturated fatty acids. Severe lack of omega-3 unsaturated fatty acids will affect memory and thinking ability, and affect the intellectual development of infants, which may cause diseases such as brain atrophy, mental retardation, Alzheimer's disease, cranial nerve dysplasia, and even mild symptoms such as depression, brain fatigue, retinal aging, and decreased learning and working ability.

Flaxseed oil is rich in ω-3 unsaturated fatty acids, with the content as high as 57%, which is one of the plants with the highest ω-3 unsaturated fatty acids on land. Therefore, flaxseed oil is considered to be the most brain-nourishing natural food on land, which plays an important role in infants' intellectual development, improving teenagers' memory, strengthening the brains of middle-aged and elderly people and preventing Alzheimer's disease.

Prevention of Alzheimer's disease with vegetables

For the elderly, in order to prevent cerebrovascular diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and hyperlipidemia, a few spoonfuls of linseed oil can be used when cooking.

Linseed oil is rich in linolenic acid (up to 57%). Linolenic acid can be oxidized into DHA, which dominates the operation of the brain and provides sufficient nutrition for the brain. If the body lacks linolenic acid, it will easily lead to the imbalance of omega-3 fatty acid intake, which will lead to brain atrophy. For the elderly, the lack of linolenic acid will also increase the incidence of Alzheimer's disease. Linolenic acid also has a good inhibitory effect on hyperlipidemia.

"Linseed oil is best eaten raw." Ximu said that the nutrients of linseed oil are very easy to be destroyed at high temperature, so it is best to choose organic cold pressing, and it is best to mix cold salad and soup when eating, and never use it for cooking. The elderly should consume 2~6 tablespoons of flaxseed oil every day, and it is best to mix flaxseed oil with light vegetables, which can better play a health care role.

King of lignans

About 650 BC, Hippocrates, the father of ancient Greek medicine, recorded the medical use of flaxseed. In recent 20 years, flaxseed has attracted the attention of medical circles. First, it was found to be rich in omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, and then it was found to contain lignans, which is the highest content in known foods. Therefore, linseed oil is known as the king of lignans, and therefore, the National Cancer Institute (nci) of the United States regards linseed as one of the research objects of six anticancer plants. 20 13 flaxseed has become a hot resource for developing functional nutritious food.

1) lignans and breast cancer

It was found that lignans inhibited the synthesis of ovarian estrogen through the comprehensive action of three estradiol synthases (3β- hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, aromatase and 17β- hydroxysteroid I oxidoreductase), thus reducing the risk of breast cancer. When the urinary enterolactone excretion value is lower than 1.5μmol/24h, the lignans excretion value of breast cancer women is lower and the risk of breast cancer is higher. People who eat less foods high in lignans have a higher risk of breast cancer (2 ~ 5 times).

2) lignans and prostate cancer

Epidemiological investigation found that prostate cancer is the most common hormone-related cancer in western men. This disease is rare in Asia, especially in the Far East where soybean consumption is high. It was found that the intestinal lactone of lignans can reduce the level of prostate-specific antibodies between human prostate cancer cells. Intestinal lactones of lignans can inhibit 5α reductase isoenzymes 1 and 2 at the same time, resulting in the decrease of the conversion of testosterone to 5α dihydrotestosterone, which will reduce the estrogen effect between prostate cancer cells and slow down the growth of prostate cancer cells [6].

3) lignans and menstrual syndrome

There are 1 10000 women in the world who are in a state of estrogen deficiency after menopause. Almost all women will have different degrees of menopausal symptoms after entering menopause. The risk of various diseases is related to sex hormones (osteoporosis, cardiovascular diseases, etc.). ) has increased significantly. In 1990s, the American College of Physicians recommended hormone replacement therapy (hrt) for premenopausal women. Studies have shown that long-term use of hrt has certain preventive benefits, but it has side effects of increasing the risk of breast cancer. Therefore, people turn to phytoestrogens that naturally exist in plants.

4) lignans and osteoporosis

Osteoporosis refers to the decrease of bone mass per unit volume, but its composition ratio remains unchanged. Female osteoporosis is especially related to menopause, because the loss of estrogen accelerates bone loss. If hormone replacement therapy is used in clinical premenopausal years, bone loss can be prevented. From 65438 to 0995, the World Health Organization conducted a survey on Japanese women over 70 years old. The results showed that the excretion of phytoestrogens in urine was more in the high bone density group, and the intake of phytoestrogens was positively correlated with the excretion of phytoestrogens in urine, indicating that the intake of phytoestrogens was also related to bone density.

In addition, animal model studies show that lignans are beneficial to diabetes, gastrointestinal tumors and coronary heart disease.

5) Development and application of lignans

Western developed countries, mainly Canada, Australia, Britain and the United States, have done a lot of work in the research and development of flaxseed as functional food. Products represented by flaxseed powder have been on the market for many years and become routine health care products for middle-aged and elderly people. High-purity, standardized lignan extract products that meet the treatment requirements have also been put on the market, and can be widely used as additives in capsules, tablets, cereal breakfasts and fast food. There are also a variety of products including omega-3 fatty acids, soluble dietary fiber, lignans, nutritional functional super concentrated emulsion, whole milk drinks and so on. However, China is still blank in this respect. Therefore, it is urgent to carry out the research and development of flaxseed functional food.