Flax in space

The flax plant has been used by humans for at least 30 000 years. Aside from the beauty of its flower the plant has yielded fibre for weaving, pigment for paint, and its seeds have provided food. Today we know that flax seeds are an excellent vegetarian source of omega-3 fatty acids but it is another part of the seed that is generating some fresh excitement.

It appears that flax seeds have properties that can protect any creature that eats them against the effects of radiation.

To establish these remarkable qualities researchers fed one group of mice a diet supplemented with ten per cent flax seed either three weeks before a dose of radiation or two, four, or six weeks after the radiation exposure. A control group was given the same radiation dose but did not receive flax seed in their diet.

After four months 40 per cent of the control group survived compared to 70 per cent of those that had been fed flax seed. Additionally, those who had been fed flax had less inflammation in the lungs, less fibrosis in the lungs, better oxygen levels in their blood, higher bodyweight, and lower overall levels of inflammation.

The ability to prevent lung fibrosis (stiffening) is particularly significant because although steroids can help prevent it, there is currently no treatment once the stiffening has occurred.

The researchers believe that the component of flax that is responsible for the protective effect is a lignan known as secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG) which is believed to have powerful antioxidant properties.

What makes flax really appealing as a preventative agent for radiation damage is that it can be safely given to someone who is well. Flax is a food, it is readily available, it is cheap, and it is without side-effects unless taken in absurd doses. Despite its safety, flax is powerful, so powerful in fact that NASA have a pilot study underway on the benefits of flaxseed for astronauts on extended space missions. On those long missions astronauts are required to perform extravehicular activities to perform repairs during which they face exposure to high levels of solar and galactic radiation with the added risk of breathing 100 per cent oxygen.

It genuinely seems then that as well as being an intricate part of our human heritage, flax will be an essential part of the future of humanity.

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