Diabetes: Linseed a food you can enjoy

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In an effort to keep blood sugar levels low and stable people with diabetes and prediabetes often find their a lot of their foods off the menu.  Linseed is a healthy food you can add to your diet and enjoy. 

For incorporating this delicious healthy food into your breakfast, lunches, dinners and snacks read on.  And if have any favourite linseed/flax recipes suitable for diabetic diets you would like to share please send them to us here.

Linseed is the same as flax; it is a healthy food for people with diabetes as it helps blood sugar levels down

Ground Linseed Meal  l  Whole Linseeds  l  Cold-pressed Linseed Oil  l  Linseed Oil Capsules

Ground Linseed Meal - also called flax meal - is a cereal like food to eat but almost carbohydrate-free

Ground Linseed Meal

  • Good source of Soluble Fibre
  • Rich in Insoluble Fibre
  • Rich in Protein
  • Good Source of Omega-3
  • Low GI: Low Glycemic Load
  • Very Low Carbohydrate
  • Sustaining: Keeps you feeling fuller for longer

This is also called flax meal; it is well known as a low GI food with which can be very beneficial for the digestion and hormone balance.  It has a sweet taste about it but is completely sugar-free.  It seems a bit like a lovely comfort food when you eat it but is actually almost completely carbohydrate-free.  Think of ground linseed meal as something tasty and filling  you can add to foods as a healthy alternative to some of the naughtier foods. Breads and cereals raise blood sugar levels; linseed helps keep blood sugar lower.  Studies have shown that eating ground linseed meal with carbohydrate can keep blood sugar levels down.  If you suffer from gastroparesis then mix the linseed meal into food and allow to soak in liquid before consuming.

  • Stir Flax Farm Linseed Meal into cooked apple or rhubarb instead of making a crumble - and the linseed helps make the fruit creamy so you won't need cream or custard either!
  • Quick and easy to make. Flax (or Linseed) Crackers are absolutely delicious, can be made in many varieties and are a virtually carb-free,alternative to bread or crispbread.
  • At lunch or dinner have flax crackers instead of bread or toast with cheese or pâté . click here for recipe
  • Instead of having a bread roll with your soup; to Stir two heaped dessertspoons into soup to give it more body and make it more filling .
  • Replace two heaped dessertspoons of your usual cereal with Flax Farm Linseed Meal for more sustaining but lower GI/lower glycemic load and healthier breakfast.
  • Eat smaller portions of fruit - fresh or cooked - and add a a couple of heaped dessertspoons of linseed meal to make the fruit "go further" and keep your blood sugar lower. Great for losing weight.
  • In baking replace 30% of flour with Flax Farm ground Linseed Meal for a lower GI bread or cake. For some cakes you can replace all of the flour with linseed meal or a 50/50 mix of ground almonds and linseed meal.
  • Add two dessertspoons to a salad to "make more of a meal of it"
  • For an almost completely carb-free bread try: 2 tablespoons Flax Farm freshly ground linseed meal, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1 egg + sweetener, spices or cheese as desired, mix and bake in a muffin-shaped mould in the microwave for 2 minutes or a hottish oven for 10 minutes.
  • For a low carb American-style pancake use the above mix with a little milk or water added and cook in a not too hot frying pan. 

Whole Linseed or Flaxseed are a low carb snack for diabetic diet

Whole Linseeds

  • Source of soluble fibre
  • High in Insoluble Fibre
  • Low GI/Low Glycemic Load
  • Virtually Carbohydrate-free

Whole linseeds are fun to eat,   They can be dry roasted in a covered pan.  They are suitable for grinding at home.  Whole, they are not as beneficial as the ground seed as they tend to stay whole and are not properly broken down or digested so they you  don't get the full nutritional benefits. As they are so low in available carbohydrate they can be eaten freely. If you suffer from gastroparesis you should use the ground linseed meal pre-moistened instead of whole linseeds.

  • Enjoy them as a snack to to nibble on 
  • Add to breakfast cereals 
  • Sprinkle over salad

 

Cold-pressed linseed oil or flax oil is rich in omega-3, cholesterol-free and carb free

Flax Farm Cold-Pressed Linseed Oil

  • Very Rich Source of Omega-3
  • Good Fat: Healthy Fat
  • Carbohydrate-free
  • Cholesterol-free
  • Great Flavour

Linseed Oil, which is also known as flaxseed oil, is completely sugar-free and carbohydrate-free, it is also cholesterol-free. Linseed Oil is nature's richest source of omega-3 which is essential in a healthy balanced diet and important for the health of people with diabetes.
Linseed Oil is often referred to as a good fat or healthy fat because we don't get enough of it in the diet and increasing it often helps to improve health.
Syndrome X or metabolic syndrome, diabetes and insulin resistant pre-diabetic conditions, are associated with an imbalance of fats, which means too much of the omega-6 fatty acid (that comes from almost all other vegetable oils, and meats such as chicken and pork) and not enough omega-3; it is compounded by too much saturated fat and too much sugar and refined carbohydrates. Nutritionists and naturopaths helping people to reverse these conditions recommend people to use cold-pressed linseed oil instead of other oils for increasing the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6. This boosts the metabolism; increases the level of leptin, the weight loss hormone, which encourages the body to burn of excess calories and helps to improve the body's response to its insulin which gets sugar levels lower. Cold-pressed linseed oil, which is also known as flax seed oil, is an excellent rich source of omega-3. Being rich in omega-3 linseed oil also helps the body develop lean muscle in response to exercise and improving your lean muscle to fat ration also improves your cells' insulin response. Linseed oil is considered so beneficial in this respect that serious body builders recommend its use. 

  • Use Flax Farm Cold-Pressed Linseed Oil instead of olive oil in salad dressings
  • Use Flax Farm Cold-Pressed Linseed Oil with fat-free quark or cottage cheese instead of cream.
  • Use Flax Farm Cold-Pressed Linseed Oil with fat-free yoghurt instead of creme fraiche.
  • Drizzle Flax Farm Cold-Pressed Linseed Oil over green vegetables instead of butter
  • Instead of frying off vegetables at the start of cooking add Flax Farm Cold-Pressed Linseed Oil to the dish at the end of cooking.
  • Add a swirl of Flax Farm Cold-Pressed Linseed Oil to soup instead of cream.

Cold-pressed Linseed Oil or Flax Oil is an omega-3 supplement.

 

Cold-pressed Linseed Oil Capsules

These aren't exactly a food but are a convenient way of getting the essential omega-3 into your diet. Can be useful if you are travelling or when you aren't cooking.

  • Very Rich Source of Omega-3
  • Good Fat: Healthy Fat
  • Carbohydrate-free
  • Cholesterol-free

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