Flax
Flax (also known as common flax or linseed) (Linum usitatissimum) is a type of flowering plant.
| Linum usitatissimum | |
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| Common Flax | |
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| Species: | L. usitatissimum
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| Linum usitatissimum | |
The fibres of flax are used to make linen. High-quality paper used in banknotes is also made from flax fibres. A Vegetable oil (linseed oil) can be made from the dried ripe flax seeds. Flax has been used for a long time in such tasks as making bows and candles.
Toxicity
Flax seed and its oil are nontoxic and are safe for human consumption.[1]
However, like many common foods, flax contains small amounts of cyanogenic glycoside.[2] This is nontoxic when eaten in normal amounts. It may be toxic when eaten in large quantities as with staple foods such as cassava.[3] The small percentage of cyanide can be removed by special processing.[4]
Flax Media
Flax being harvested by the Women's Land Army in Britain, during World War I
De vlasoogst (1904) ("The flax harvest") painting by Emile Claus, Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels, Belgium
A hackle or heckle, a tool for threshing flax and preparing the fiber
Brown Flax Seeds.
Ground Golden Flax Seeds
Bread rolls being topped with flax seeds before baking
An 18th-century heckling shop once used to prepare flax fibers. North Ayrshire, Scotland.
A flax field in bloom in North Dakota
Threshing, retting, and dressing flax at the Roscheider Hof Open Air Museum (Germany)
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References
- ↑ Cheeseman MA. GRAS Petition by Flax Canada, Agency Response Letter GRAS Notice No. GRN 000280 (24 August 2009)U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
- ↑ High alpha-linolenic acid flaxseed (Linum usitatissimum): some nutritional properties in humans. Br J Nutr 69 (2) (1993). p. 443–53. doi:10.1079/bjn19930046.
- ↑ Banea-Mayambu, JP. Geographical and seasonal association between linamarin and cyanide exposure from cassava and the upper motor neurone disease konzo in former Zaire. Trop Med Int Health 2 (12) (1997). p. 1143–51. doi:10.1046/j.1365-3156.1997.d01-215.x.
- ↑ Flaxseed: a potential source of food, feed and fiber. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 51 (3) (2011). p. 210–22. doi:10.1080/10408390903537241.
Other websites
Media related to Linum usitatissimum at Wikimedia Commons