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For the first week of the study, the women made no lifestyle changes, but kept a log recording the incidence and force of their hot flashes, and how it affected their quality of life. After the first week, the authors had the hot flash sufferers add two tablespoons of crushed flaxseeds two times a day to their diet (sprinkled over cereal, yogurt or fruit, or mixed into juice).
The test subjects followed the flaxseed diet for six weeks, continuing to record their hot flashes in their log. The results of the study show that adding flaxseed to the diet reduced the daily number of hot flashes by half, and lessened the power of hot flashes by 57%. Some mild side effects were reported, including abdominal bloating and diarrhea.
Before the power of the flaxseed to reduce hot flashes is widely accepted in the medical community, larger and more comprehensive studies still have to be conducted. These preliminary findings, however, remain positive about the potential of the flaxseed.
SOURCES:
- Hitti, Miranda. “Flaxseed May Ease Hot Flashes: Menopausal Hot Flashes Halved in Preliminary Study of Ground Flaxseed.” WebMD.
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