By
MiguelPublished on
In this article, we will examine the potential benefits of this flaxseed oil for men. Some guys take their health and fitness as a serious thing, and that is, of course, a very wise thing to do. Many men though go through life without as much as a second thought to what they eat or what exercise they take. Two things can hugely improve the male lifestyle are:
Now I am not suggesting for a second that every guy is going to turn into a super health-conscious person. The reality is that you don’t have to. If you eat sensibly and do a little daily exercise, then that is all that is required.
Before we investigate in more detail about what flaxseed is, it is interesting to look at some initial research that has been completed, specifically on and for men. There have been quite a few studies done over the last ten years. These have clearly demonstrated that the element Omega 3 has a positive overall health influence.
Omega 3 is not something that men (or women) can produce naturally, so it actually has to be fed into the body in some manner. That is probably the single most important thing to understand, that there is no natural production of fatty acids in the body, and therefore some type of supplement is required.
As a natural consequence of this search for fatty acids, people went in search of anything that would contain Omega 3. They quickly discovered that one of the key suppliers of this necessary element was found in abundance in fish.
If you eat fish regularly then you will probably be getting enough Omega into your diet. If not then flaxseed oil is a great way of getting this. There are many other flaxseed oil benefits for men which I will discuss here.
All that said, the recommended intake of fish by the leading medical institutions recommend no more than two intakes of fish a week. There are a variety of reasons for this, mainly the risk of contamination, or pollution of the water. It is a complex area, but if we follow these guidelines then we need to supplement our intake of Omega 3.
Flaxseed Oil Benefits For Men
There is a huge and quite divisive debate as to the extent of contamination that is found in fish. The Natural Resources Defense Council, have done extensive research into this area.
Needless to say, if there are health risks, from eating fish that contain high levels of mercury, then I would not want to eat that.
I do also know that Omega 3 is extremely good for us, so I would want to supplement this by an alternative method.
Below I have included a short video that explains about fish contamination and why you may want to consider an alternative form of Omega 3. Quite often it is better to be safe than sorry when you are trying to eat safe foods. The video is certainly worth just a few minutes of your time.
I think it is worth pointing out that it is not actually flaxseed oil, that has many health benefits for men. It is the fact that this oil contains the important fatty acid Omega 3, That then gives us the real health benefits. Omega 3 is also present in fish oil but personally I hate the taste of that.
It is also present in foods like fresh fruit, vegetables, olive oil, garlic and even in my favorite food of all, wine! You will also notice that this type of diet is found all across the Mediterranean. These types of foods are regularly on offer on menus all over Italy, Spain, and countries similar to those.
Skin Condition
Research has demonstrated that Omega 3 can reduce the risk of skin blemishes, irritations, and any skin tumors. in both men and women. The only case studies that I could find on this was that it had been tested on mice. As a result of that that mice who had been fed flax as part of their diet, reduced the risk of melanoma by some 63%.
Heart and Cholesterol Levels
The main benefit though is that it greatly helps the cardiovascular system. In simple terms, the health of our heart is vastly improved. It does this in a number of ways by helping reduce cholesterol, and by reducing high blood pressure.
Hypertension
This is also known as having high blood pressure. In today’s modern society it is something that is on the increase. According to different surveys around 1 in 3 USA males suffer from this problem. There has been quite a number of researched articles published around this subject. One in particular from the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition stated that:
Results: Supplementation with ALA resulted in significantly lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels compared with LA (P=0.016 and P=0.011, respectively, from analysis of variance (ANOVA) for repeated measures).
Conclusions: We observed a hypotensive effect of ALA, which may constitute another mechanism accounting in part for the apparent cardioprotective effect of this n-3 fatty aci
To paraphrase that they tested two groups of men over 12 weeks. The group that took flaxseed showed significant reductions in men who had high blood pressure problems.
Other reports also agreed that many men reported that they feel less sleepy. Almost all of them reported a marked increase in energy levels. They also reported that they slept much better at night. Those are the views that you can pick up when you read the various forums on the Internet and look at the case studies that are available.
Depression
Thankfully these days this is something that some men will simply recognize that they suffer from. In days gone past that was seldom the case. It is a little known fact that a good diet can really help a lot to both prevent and help remedy depression. It would be unfair to say that Flax can cure depression, but it does improve the overall health of the body.
There have been limited studies done in this area. Those that do exists a state that men suffering from depression have certain acidic properties at very low levels. By taking flaxseed these acid levels will naturally increase and as a result that will help.
Prostate Cancer
This is one thing that strikes horror in the minds of every man. I have read some utter nonsense about how flaxseed can help prevent and cure the prostate problem. The real answer is that it might but no-one actually knows if this is the case. Some studies suggest that prostate cancer risk is linked to diet.
According to the Oncology Nutrition website:
Health experts don’t yet understand exactly how flaxseeds and lignans are related to prostate cancer. Observational studies—the type of study in which researchers ask people what they are eating, and then follow them over time to see who develops cancer—generally suggest that lignans in the diet do not protect against prostate cancer.
Despite what you may read, you will find that no extensive research has been completed where you can see the results of any controlled testing by medical researchers. The general theme running through all the various places where you can find information about this is that men who take this oil, generally feel that it does them some good.
The general sense was that men felt a lot better when they were taking some form of flaxseed oil or fish oil as a supplement.
Flaxseed oil comes straight from the flax plant. The seeds when crushed produce an oil rich in Omega 3. This Omega 3 element is actually called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). The body can not naturally produce this essential acid. Therefore somehow we need to have an intake. This will balance the body’s system and improve health.
Some other associated flaxseed oil benefits for men include the improvement of dry hair. It also has an impact on dry skin and varicose veins. From my own research of the various health forums, it becomes clear that a leading benefit for men is that it will lower cholesterol.
This helps the heart and lowers blood pressure. When all of those are combined they may reduce the risk of cancer.
Many single men eat a lot of processed or tinned foods. Those who do are prone to irritable bowel syndrome which can be painful and disconcerting. Constipation is also a symptom of eating too much of this type of food. Flaxseed oil is good for ensuring that this does not happen.
Finally, many sport’s men and people attending the gym are very aware of how important it is to have this Omega element in your diet. They now regularly take a flaxseed oil supplement as part of their daily routine.