OVERVIEW

Flaxseed is the seed from the plant Linum usitatissimum. Flaxseed oil and linseed oil are the oils that come from flaxseed. Linseed oil is usually used in manufacturing, while flaxseed oil is used to benefit nutrition. Flaxseed oil comes from ripened flaxseeds that manufacturers have cold pressed to extract the oil. Another name for flaxseed oil is linseed oil.

Flaxseed oil is commercially available in both capsule and liquid form. This oil is naturally high in anti-oxidant like tocopherols and beta-carotene, traditional. It gets easily oxidized after being extracted and purified. It contains a type of omega-3 fatty acid called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). The bioavailability of ALA is dependent on the type of flax ingested (ALA has greater bioavailability in oil than in milled seed, and has greater bioavailability in oil and milled seed than in whole seed). The body uses ALA from flaxseed oil and converts it in small amounts to other fatty acids, including docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid. Omega-3 fatty acids are vital to a person's physical and mental health.

The essential fatty acids in flaxseed oil are its keyhealing components. EFAs are particularly valuable because the body needs them to function properly, but can't manufacture them on its own. Essential fatty acids work throughout the body to protect cell membranes, keeping them efficient at admitting healthy substances while barring damaging ones. Flaxseed oil does not contain the same nutrients as the whole seed. For example, flaxseeds contain fiber, magnesium, and vitamin B, but flaxseed oil does not. Flaxseed oil is used in home-made salad dressing, drizzled on cooked vegetables, included in smoothies, and can be used in stir-frying at moderate temperatures.

APPEARANCE
Pale yellow to golden colour liquid

ODOUR
Characteristic nutty odour