Flaxseeds: properties and applications

Published on March 13, 2015 - Food Recipes

Flaxseed, or Linum usitatissimum L., belongs to the Linaceae family and has been cultivated since 5000 B.C., first by the Mesopotamian peoples and then by the Egyptians, thus constituting one of the oldest crop plants.

The plant is an annual herbaceous plant, glabrous, of varying height, which changes depending on its use: the tall plant, up to a meter high, is the species cultivated for fiber use (ropes, nets, sacks, cloth straps, but also surgical thread), while the low species is destined for seed use, hence oil production.

The stems are slender, the leaves narrow and entire, while the flowers are collected in terminal corymbs. The sepals are oval, acute, and the petals are blue; there are ten stamens, five of which are very short and sterile, and five carpels, each containing two ovules and forming a lodge, divided in half along the long side by a false septum, thus resulting in ten lodges, each with a seed.

The drug is represented by the seeds, which have an elongated ovoid shape, are flattened, 5 to 6 mm long, 2 to 2.5 mm wide, with thin margins, shiny, and gray-brown in color. They are odorless when whole, but once crushed, they have an unpleasant odor; it is recommended to consume them within 24 hours of crushing to prevent rancidity. The taste is sweetish and mucilaginous.

In water, especially warm, they are covered with dense and viscous mucilage, which agglutinates them together.

The seeds also contain a lot of oil and do not contain starch. Flaxseed oil consists of fatty oil (30-45%), proteins (25%), phosphatides and sterol glucosides, and, as mentioned earlier, mucilages (about 3-6%), located in the epidermis of the seed coat. The laxative action of flaxseeds, whole or crushed, is mainly due to the presence of mucilages, along with a protective action on the mucosa. Due to the need for volume increase, it is necessary to associate an adequate intake of liquids.

The flour is used externally to make resolving, revulsive, and plaster poultices useful against skin conditions, boils, or ulcerations. The emollient action of mucilages and oil is exploited in folk medicine for the treatment of airways and gastritis, in the form of flaxseed flour poultices and decoctions for seeds.

Flaxseed oil consists of saturated fatty glycerides (linoleic, linolenic, oleic) that confer properties suitable for treating dermatitis.

The word liniment derives from flax and its emollient properties, indicating a pharmaceutical preparation, liquid or semi-liquid, intended for topical application, that is, solutions, dispersions, emulsions, or suspensions.

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS:

INTERNAL USE:

– Infusion: 10-20 grams of seeds per liter of water, infused for 5 minutes, to be consumed from two to three cups a day. They help fight gastritis, enteritis, cystitis, and coughs.

– Decoction: acts as a mild purgative.

– Crushed seeds: a tablespoon in a glass of water in the morning and evening is an excellent laxative.

– Oil extracted from the seeds is a laxative when used orally or with an enema.

EXTERNAL USE:

– Poultice with flaxseed flour: dissolve fresh flour (that is, freshly ground) in cold water until a semi-pasty consistency is obtained; heat gently, pour between two clean gauzes, and apply to the affected area. This poultice is used in painful and itchy skin conditions, bruises, and inflamed sores.

– Mustard poultice: used in acute respiratory tract conditions by sprinkling the flaxseed “mash,” whose temperature should not exceed 45°C, with mustard flour.

– Baths with Flaxseed and Marshmallow: provide relief to patients with persistent itching and are prepared with a strong decoction using 100 grams of Marshmallow root and 50 grams of Flaxseed, making the skin softer, smoother, and cooler.

To aid in constipation, you can eat bread prepared in this way: