Adding this food, flaxseeds, to the diet of folks with heart disease and high blood pressure (peripheral artery disease-PAD) greatly lowered blood pressure by 10 mm of HG systolic (top number) and 7 mm of HG diastolic (diastolic) after 6 months. One small group even had their blood pressure lowered more, equivalent to taking medication.
“This is the largest decrease in blood pressure ever shown by any dietary intervention,” said Dr Delfin Rodriguez speaking to the American Heart Association from the University Hospital Holguin, Cuba. This is yet another example of just how powerful healthy foods can be.
These improvements in blood pressure, by consuming 2 tablespoons of flaxseeds daily, would decrease the incidence of stroke by 50% and of heart attacks by 30%. (Presented at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2012)
But everything has a shadow side, even flaxseeds. These seeds contain a substance, linatine, that can competitively bind with vitamin B6, and block it’s action. When regularly adding flaxseeds to your diet, make sure you take a back-up B complex.