Many people are concerned about their fat intake. Much has been reported about the dangers of transfats found in hydrogenated oil products such as margarine and vegetable oil shortening. People worry about plaque forming in their arteries and causing heart disease. There’s also a major concern about obesity and associated health risks.
Good Fats
But it’s good to know there are fats that are actually good for us. Flax seed oil is one of those fats. High in alpha-linolenic acid, a type of omega-3 fat, flax seed oil can be a good source of the healthy fatty acids our bodies need for great health. Our brains, skin, and joints all require a good supply of healthy fats for optimal functioning.
Omega-3 Plus Fibre
Adding whole flax seeds to your diet will give you the benefits of omega-3 fats with the bonus of fibre. Flax seeds gel in liquid and provide the necessary bulk for optimal intestinal function.
Flax Meal
Ground flax, sold as flax meal, can be purchased from health food stores and some grocers. But keep in mind that ground flax should be refrigerated and will not keep as well as whole flax seeds. For optimal freshness, buy whole flax seeds and grind them yourself. Whole flax seed can be dry-ground in a blender or coffee grinder.
Tips for Adding Flax to Your Diet
- Add ground flax seeds to your baking. Simply add ¼ cup to ½ cup ground flax seeds to any muffin or bread mix.
- Use ground flax seeds as an egg substitute. You can replace eggs with ground flax seeds in virtually all your baking recipes. Add 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds to your liquids for every egg the recipe calls for. So if your snack cake requires 2 eggs, simply blend 2 tablespoons flax seeds with the liquids the recipe calls for. The end product may be a little more dense than if you’d used the eggs, but flax meal makes a great and economical egg substitute in comparison with expensive commercially produced egg substitutes.
- Add ground flax seeds to your cereal. Ground flax seeds are a nice, crunchy addition to hot and cold cereals.
- Sprinkle flax meal over your salad. Shake together a mixture of flax meal and vegetable-seasoned sea salt (such as Herbamare) and top your salad with it.
- Blend with a smoothie. Throw a tablespoon of flax meal into your blender with your smoothie ingredients.
- Add to waffles or pancake mix. Fortify your pancake or waffle batter with flax. Just add a tablespoon full or two with wet ingredients.
Ground flax seeds are easy to incorporate into any diet and provide the benefits of omega-3 fats and added fibre to your diet. Keep them in the refrigerator and use o
