Flax

Linum spp

Other Names:

Linseed, Common Flax, Flax, Chih-ma, Flax Weed, Lint Bells, Toad Flax, Uma, Winterlien

Benefits

Anti-inflammatory
Antioxidant
Antitumor
Heptoprotective

Flaxseed is a product of the flax plant (Linum spp), which includes close to 300 species of annual or perennial flowering herbs. Flax seeds are a rich source of fiber (soluble and insoluble), alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) (an omega-3 fatty acid), protein, and phytoestrogens (a type of lignan). Flaxseed often acts like a laxative because of its fiber and mucilage content. Omega 3 fatty acids are very important in the development and maintenance of a healthy brain, liver, heart, and immune system for all animals, including poultry. Specific applications studied in poultry include:

Antitumor: A reduction in the severity of ovarian adenocarcinomas was found in laying hens fed a flaxseed-enriched diet. Hens also had more early stage ovarian tumors which were still confined to the ovary. Feeding hens a daily diet of enriched flaxseed reduces the severity and incidence of ovarian cancer in hens.

Poultry Specific Studies

Type	Plant Part	Dosage	Specific use	Results	Ref
Hens	seed oil	10% of diet	antitumor, ovarian cancer	Significantly reduced the progression and severity of ovarian cancer.	K Ansenberger et al., 2010
Hens	seed oil	10% of diet	antitumor, ovarian cancer	Significantly reduced size and growth of late stage ovarian tumors	E Eilati et al., 2013
Chickens			heptoprotective, Fatty liver hemorrhage syndrome	Improved hepatic ?-3 PUFA enrichment in hens with fatty liver disease.	J Davis et al., 2016
Hens	sprouts		Egg quality	Reduced plasma and egg cholesterol.	S Mattioli et al., 2016
Hens		40 g/d diet	antioxidant	Decreased cholesterol by 8.7%, increased other antioxidants	M Alagawany et al., 2020
Broilers	oil	50 g/kg of diet	ascites	Reduced the incidence of right ventricular hypertrophy.	J Walton et al., 1999
Chickens	seed oil	0.1-0.2 ml/kg PO	renal disease	mix 1:4 with corn oil prior to dosing for renal disease	Clinical Avian Medicine