I take 2600mg of Flaxseed Oil and Evening Primrose Oil caps daily for peri-menopausal hot flashes and night sweats. It has come to my attention that the Flaxseed has phytoestrogen which is why my weight loss is slow and can prove dangerous to my health.

Anyone have facts to this claim?

Have you done a search on this site (using the Search icon above) to see other threads that discuss this?

Many foods have phytoestrogens but if you don't eat pounds of them, they don't have a major effect on the body and don't slow down the loss.

Actually, the fat cells release estrogens when you lose fat, so that is probably a greater amount than the flax oil etc. that you are taking.

hi Linda,

Most plant foods contain phytoestrogens of some sort or another. The thing is, not all phytoestrogens ACT like estrogen in the body. Sometimes all they do is bind to estrogen-receptor sites but they don't stimulate or trigger the receptor. So in a way, they act like estrogen blockers because if the phytoestrogen is taking up space on the receptor site, real estrogen can't get in. This is a benefit in cases of estrogen excess.

The phytoestrogens in flax are found in the lignin fiber in ground seeds, not in the oil. It's been theorized that the estrogen-blocking effect of ground flaxseed is responsible for positive benefits seen in fibrocystic breast disease and breast cancer.

You might be interested to read this article about phytoestrogens as they relate to breast disease. Phytoestrogens, some good and some bad Yikes!! coffee is on the bad list


Doreen

Coffee? Oh no! Should I stop taking the caps?

hi Linda,

I think "all things in moderation" would apply here. If we eliminated everything from our diet that some list somewhere says is "bad" for us, we'd all have to become Breatharians .. and even that's no good unless you live on a remote mountain where the air is slightly more pure

The bulk of research shows that EPO and flax oil are both beneficial, and certainly helpful for perimenopause and menopause symptoms. The article I linked to deals specifically with fibrocystic breast disease; if that's not a concern for you, then I wouldn't worry too much. I just thought it was interesting the list of common foods, herbs etc with phytoestrogens in them.

I'm curious about the study or research where you learned that the are harmful and dangerous to your health. I'm not aware of any such research?? Perhaps the information you were given was just a theory proposed by somebody and no proof that it's so?? As for interfering with your weight loss, again, the evidence points to those supplements being helpful, not a hinderance.

My 2¢ would be to continue the supps, and maybe reduce coffee intake. I understand your pain I'm cutting back to 1 cuppa myself


Doreen

Thanx. I was on www.lowcarbfriends.com last night and received an e-mail from a member with a LOT of information from Dr. John Lee on Progesterone Cream. As a matter of fact I'll try to send a link here kastadiva <kastadiva~****t> this woman has numerous excerpts from Dr. Lee's seminars and research on the subject of estrogen dominance. I think that's why I have joint pain, am depressed, and the hot flashes are taking over even with the Flaxseed & Evening Primrose Oils, and I'm taking high dosages. The sweats are drenching me.

I called my Nurse Practioner to prescribe some natural progestrone cream for me. I'm a Vet and get it far less expensive than if I ordered it online or bought it at a store.

She says it will help with everthing, but will take about 6 months to work which is fine. I'm so depressed, I can't even get myself to do my normal workouts as I've planned. I am, however, forcing myself to finish the final touches on my decorating project. Maybe the urge to exercise will kick in one day soon.

If you would like the research, use the link above and I'm sure she will be more than happy to forward the info to you. I don't know how yet.

This article was taken from Muscle Media magazine - May 2001.


Lie #5

Flax seed oil is the Crème de la crème of all fats -

The average Muscle Media reader may still be bothered by another lie about fat intake: that is, flax seed oil is the crème de la crème of all the fats and can be used exclusively as an excellent source of essential fatty acids. Well, I'm here to tell you that's just not true - at least as far as long-term health benefits go.


A lot of bodybuilders use flax oil exclusively (especially in preparation for a show or photo shoot) because it's the richest source of omega-3s known - and omega-3s can increase the metabolic rate, and hence fat burning. Unfortunately, however, flax oil is a relatively poor source of omega-6 fatty acids, which, in the long term, can lead to problems.

"I was the one who introduced flax seed oil for human consumption," says Dr. Erasmus. "That was my first oil, but I've since moved away from it because of the poor balance of omega-3s to omega-6s (about four times as much omega-3s as omega-6s). It's too rich in omega-3s, and people become omega-6 deficient if they use it exclusively for too long."

Dr. Erasmus says and omega-6 deficiency can develop in as short a time as 10 to 16 months of exclusive use of flax oil, with symptoms ranging from eczema-like skin eruptions, loss of hair, drying up of glands and susceptibility to infections - not pretty.

The true claimant to the title of crème de la crème of EFAs, according to Dr. Erasmus may be hemp seed oil. Now, before you get any illicit ideas, that's hemp oil, not marijuana. Hemp oil produces no "high" in humans and is legal. More important for us, hemp oil appears to be nature's most perfectly balanced EFA oil.

Unlike flax, hem seed oil can be used over the long term to maintain a healthy EFA balance without leading to either EFA deficiency or imbalance. "This is because it contains omega -6 and omega-3 EFAs in a better long-term balance: 3 to 1," says Dr. Erasmus. "In addition, it contains almost 2 percent GLA, the omega-6 derivative that is the key active ingredient in evening primrose and borage oils.: (For more information on GLA, check out the sidebar "Fat-Fighting Fats.") Another plus: Hemp seed oil tastes like sunflower oil. "Most people who sampled hemp oil preferred its taste over the taste of flax oil." says Dr. Erasmus.

Bottom line? If short-term, fast fat loss is your goal (say you have a photo shoot coming up), then stick with flax oil. It's definitely the best fat for getting ride of subcutaneous fat, fast. But for the long term, hemp oil is the way to go.

Ah, Dr. John Lee.

Last year when my sister was first diagnosed with Inflammatory Breast Cancer (the fastest growing, worst possible kind), somebody gave her a copy of "What Your Doctor May Not Tell YOu About Breast Cancer". Lee has published other books on "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You .." including menopause, perimenopause, PMS and men's prostate problems. That book terrified us, and instilled such mistrust and suspicion toward everything the oncologists and cancer specialists were telling us and recommending. I did read the book from cover to cover, and there is some useful and factual information, but there's also a lot of skewed and twisted info. Just as there are many "experts" who have published books to warn the public of the dangers and certainty of clogged arteries and heart attacks from eating meat and saturated fat. They too can produce studies and research to "prove" it (translation .. a small study "suggests" a theoretical outcome).

OTOH, I have read a great deal on the benefits of progesterone cream from other resources .. in fact, I think I would benefit from using it myself. But the "horrors and harm" of phytoestrogens are not proven. In fact, their benefits aren't really proven either ... they're just natural components of many common foods that people have been consuming for centuries.

Dr. Sandra Cabot has recently re-published a book about menopause and hormones, "The Truth About HRT" (formerly titled "Smart medicine for menopause : hormone replacement therapy and its natural alternatives"). She is a proponent of progesterone cream but also has good and factual information about the holistic use of (the correct form of) estrogen too.

Hope you don't mind my skepticism ... it's just my opinion that Dr. John Lee goes way overboard with scare-mongering.


Doreen

p.s. - I ***'d the email ... as it's against forum rules

Thank you for **** the email. I received a message from the owner and know better from now on. Geez, I don't wish to compromise anyone.

Thanks for the information. I am more confused now than ever, but better armed. It just means I need to do more research and have my blood checked, buy a thermometer and do the thyroid test described in DANR for 4 days to see if there is a problem with my thyroid.

I noticed a "chilly sensitivity" for 2 days in my left leg and since I did not resume dosing with the FS & EPR Oils for a day, it's gone. I don't know if there is any correlation of the pain and the supps, but I really don't want to exascerbate something minor into a major calamity by taking unneccessary remedies for nonexistent deficiencies. It could prove dangerous.

Linda, I'd also like to point out that there is no evidence to associate MOST KINDS of fibrocystic breast disease with the development of breast cancer. The garden variety lumpiness that is generally termed "fibrocystic disease" is not a disease at all, but rather a condition that about 80% of all women have at one time or another before menopause. It does NOT pose an increased risk of breast cancer.

So just because a compound is implicated in fibrocytic disease--that in itself is meaningless with respect to breast cancer risk.

Doreen, I'm terribly sorry to hear about your sister.

The weak phytoestrogens in flax seed apparently fit the cellular estrogen receptors without activating them. Having the weak phytoestrogen attached to the estrogen receptors may prevent strong estrogens from activating those same receptors. Eating flax seed meal might prevent some of the problems supposedly associated with coffee estrogen.
It might make sense to eat som flax meal before drinking coffee, so that some of the weak phytoestrogen is already attached to the receptors before they are exposed to the strong ones.

When I started to low-carb, I ate a mixture of flax seed oil and soft cheese every day for breakfast to aid a health condition. (Quark or a similar soft cheese helps the flax oil benefits to be obtained). It energised me, and I managed to lose weight, even though I was bedridden most of the time.

A lot of women gain weight due to hormonal issues during the peri-menopause or the start of the menopause, so I think just maintaining is an achievement.