A pilot study from the Mayo clinic, led by Dr. Pruthi, finds that adding flaxseed to the diet can reduce hot flashes in postmenopausal women who do not take estrogen replacements. The findings were published in the Journal of the Society for Integrative Oncology.

Hormone replacement therapy was commonly prescribed for hot flashes, but side effects and health concerns, including increased risk of cancer, have reduced their use. The researchers involved in this study looked at variety of herbal and dietary supplements including vitamin E, black cohosh and soy, but none decreased the frequency or severity of hot flashes other than the flaxseed.

The 29 participants did not want to take HRT due to a perceived increased risk of breast cancer. Most of them completed the six-week flaxseed trial, which involved eating 40 g of crushed flaxseed daily.

The frequency of hot flashes among the women decreased 50 percent over six weeks. Flaxseed contains lignans and omega-3 fatty acids. Lignans have weak estrogen characteristics. Dr. Pruthi cautions that this was a pilot study and further study in a large, randomized placebo-controlled study may not turn out such results.

I'm no cook. And I'll never claim a recipe is my own. Anyone who likes my taco salad should thank my friend Kim and her mom Kathy. My turkey meatballs: all credit goes to my brother-in-law's mom. The brownies I once whipped up and now have given up: kudos to Betty Crocker. And this recipe I'm about to share comes straight from the pages of the May 2007 issue of Family Circle magazine. It's such a simple recipe -- takes five minutes tops. I probably could have invented it on my own. But I didn't.

Go With The Grain

Top 1 cup whole-grain cereal with:

2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
1/2 cup each strawberries and raspberries
1 cup 1% milk

A new study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute suggests that postmenopausal women who eat healthy amounts of plant food rich in estrogen-like compounds called lignans may reduce their risk of developing breast cancer.

Lignans are found only in certain foods. Lignans only come from plant foods, such as whole grains, nuts, seeds, and beans. The best source of lignans are flax seeds.

The study, including over fifty eight thousand French women, showed that they had a 17 percent lower risk of developing breast cancer if lignans were part of their diet compared with women having the lowest dietary lignan levels.

A diet containing lots of plant food is hypothesized to offer a breast cancer prevention strategy, however, if you have already been diagnosed with estrogen receptor positive breast cancer it is best to talk to your doctor before going on any high lignan diet. The jury is still out on whether it can help with lowering the risk of recurrence and if it is safe for ER positive breast cancers.

University of South Australia researchers have good news for people trying to lose weight, or maintain a healthy weight, in improving their health and reducing their risks for diseases like cancer. With no other lifestyle changes, taking omega-3 fish oil supplements and engaging in moderate exercise helped people struggling with weight issues -- who are overweight or obese -- effectively burn off extra pounds.

The researchers used tuna oil and sunflower oil in the study, and compared the effects of the two oils with exercise to weight loss results. The participants engaged in exercise that is considered moderate exercise -- walking or running for 45 minutes -- three times a week for three months and were given either tuna fish oil or sunflower oil. The participants who were given tuna fish oil lost weight faster.

The researchers believe that fish oil, which is rich in omega-3, helps the body burn fat, and estimates that most people do not get enough omega-3 in their daily diet. Omega-3 is also found in wild salmon, flaxseed, and certain nuts and seeds.

Flaxseed, as an antioxidant believed to prevent and protect against cancer, contains alpha linolenic acid, which is an omega-3 fatty acid, and lignan, a phytoestrogen which appears to inhibit estrogen production -- a benefit for women with estrogen-positive breast cancers. For maximum nutritional value, buy whole flaxseed, and measure out the amount the seeds desired for each recipe, grinding the flaxseed in a small coffee bean grinder. Grinding breaks down the outer shell and releases the beneficial oil. Store whole flaxseed in a dry sealed container. Ground flaxseed needs to be refrigerated in an airtight container, and is good for about a month. Flaxseed oil is available, usually in the cooler section of the store, and you can purchase flaxseed oil supplements. To incorporate flaxseed into your daily diet, simply sprinkle fresh ground flaxseed on your breakfast cereal, on lunch or dinner salads, in baking goods, or as a topping for yogurt. The more you use flaxseed, the more uses you will find for it. You can substitute flaxseed oil for other oils when making salad dressings or as a butter substitute on steamed vegetables. Research is continuing to indicate that flaxseed might be a beneficial cancer prevention food for a number of cancers, including breast cancer, prostate cancer and melanoma.