Omega 3 to 6 ratio dilemma

[Jebus]

Are you confident in your ability to discern if flax has gone rancid? I know many people don't know or can't tell.
It's very possible all of your flax was already rancid when you bought it, which is why I'm hesitant to ever buy flax.

In this case my flax should be rancid because I buy in large amounts and keep it in a hot humid environment and often haven't even sealed the bag properly. However, it doesn't taste or smell strange at all. The last paragraph in that article through me off. Was the article referring to ground flax seed? I always buy whole flax seed. I don't know if that would make a difference.

[brimstoneSalad]

In this case my flax should be rancid because I buy in large amounts and keep it in a hot humid environment and often haven't even sealed the bag properly. However, it doesn't taste or smell strange at all.

It's a fair bet. Maybe you just can't smell/taste it? It's easy to become accustomed to the smell. I have a pretty keen sense for rancidity, since I avoid rancid stuff, but it's very easy to get used to it so you don't notice.

I wouldn't trust myself on that if I were you. Maybe you can get a couple other people to smell/taste it?

I keep anything with high Omega 3 in the fridge unless I'm eating it really fast (like within a couple weeks, for Walnuts). I even keep canola oil refrigerated (it will go rancid after opening too, it takes a few months).

The last paragraph in that article through me off. Was the article referring to ground flax seed? I always buy whole flax seed. I don't know if that would make a difference.

Whole flax will go rancid pretty quickly, but ground flax will rancidify almost instantly, like the oil, because of the exposed oils. The natural packaging of the seed itself helps preserve it longer. You have maybe a few days with ground flax or flaxseed oil at room temperature and with oxygen exposure, but I've never tested that.
Another important variable is how long it was on the shelf before you bought it. If you bought it straight from the farm right after harvest, you'd have a lot more time than if it's already been warm on the shelf for a few weeks or a couple months.

You could have gotten lucky with a really fresh supply. I'd definitely keep it in the freezer in the future to be safe.

[Jebus]

I just wanted to add the walnuts referred to above with the 4.5:1 6 to 3 ratio are English (Persian) walnuts. Black walnuts have a very unfavorable 6:3 ratio.

[ThunderKiss65]

I've consumed flax seeds daily for about three years now. Never buy pre bagged or packaged flax it's always spoiled! Always buy in the bulk section. A good way to tell if your flax seeds are spoiled is to soak them in water. Whatever seeds are still floating on top of the water after the seeds have adequately sprouted are spoiled and should be thrown away. Also flax seeds are almost void of nutrients until you sprout them because of their enzymes. Sprouting flax seeds does not make the flax more nutritious it makes the nutrition more bio available. Sprouted flax seed milk should be consumed 4 hours after it is made because of its high nutrition value it will turn rancid faster than any other home made milk. Also one must take note that they have made a dormant seed come a live. Sprouted flaxseed milk is not a raw foods produced but a "live food". To preserve your flaxseed milk for about four days you can curtle it with apple cider vinegar or lemon juice. I soak two tablespoons of flax seeds in a small bowl over night with about 3 dates (to soften them). In the morning I mix about one liter of water with the soaked seeds and dates and a pinch of salt.

[Jebus]

A good way to tell if your flax seeds are spoiled is to soak them in water. Whatever seeds are still floating on top of the water after the seeds have adequately sprouted are spoiled and should be thrown away.

I've never read that before. Im not saying it's untrue but please provide your sources. I always buy in bulk and no matter which batch I am using there are always some floating on top. If true, this would be unfortunate as we use the run off oil as hair gel and therefore try not to put too much water in the soak as to avoid a watery hair gel.

[ThunderKiss65]

I've never read that before. Im not saying it's untrue but please provide your sources. I always buy in bulk and no matter which batch I am using there are always some floating on top. If true, this would be unfortunate as we use the run off oil as hair gel and therefore try not to put too much water in the soak as to avoid a watery hair gel.

Personal experience plus any nut/ seed is that way. A few floaters is okay and nothing to worry about. How are you storing your flax seeds? They need to be transferred to an air tight container and kept in a stable envrioment. It's very possible that you are spoiling the seeds yourself depending on the climate you live in. It's summer time maybe they're getting too humid? Let me ask you this how do you store your flaxseeds?

[Jebus]

How are you storing your flax seeds? They need to be transferred to an air tight container and kept in a stable envrioment. It's very possible that you are spoiling the seeds yourself depending on the climate you live in. It's summer time maybe they're getting too humid? Let me ask you this how do you store your flaxseeds?

The moment I bring them home they end up in the fridge and freezer. However, prior to that they are sent from Canada to Mauritius where they are being kept outside in a humid climate before I buy them (impossible to know for how long as vendors won't be truthful).

[ThunderKiss65]

The moment I bring them home they end up in the fridge and freezer. However, prior to that they are sent from Canada to Mauritius where they are being kept outside in a humid climate before I buy them (impossible to know for how long as vendors won't be truthful).

I'd suggest storing the flaxseeds in an air tight container and keeping them in the pantry where you store your other dried goods. Flaxseeds are very sensitive to tempature control which is why they spoil easily. Taking them in and out of the fridge or freezer isn't good, they should be stored in a dry area in an air tight container. Get a mason jar and store the seeds in that if they are still spoiling buy from a different distributor.

[brimstoneSalad]

Flaxseeds are very sensitive to tempature control which is why they spoil easily. Taking them in and out of the fridge or freezer isn't good, they should be stored in a dry area in an air tight container.

They spoil more quickly with moisture. The issue with refrigeration and temperature changes is the build up of condensation.

If you have a container in the fridge, you take it out and open it, all of the warm humid air rushes in. When you close it and put it back, that air cools and the moisture in the air condensates and drips down into the flax seeds. Repeat this a few dozen times, and you have rancid flax very quickly.

Freezing is less of an issue; with that, you end up with flax seeds that have ice on them (not a really big deal).

It could be recommended that you divide the flax up into smaller containers, and only take one out at a time so you go through it faster if it's being exposed to warm wet air at any time.
You still want to keep them cold, though; rancidity through oxidation is proportional to temperature, and opening it at any time (even if it was originally air tight) exposes it to more oxygen to fuel the reaction.

Bacterial rancidity can occur without oxygen, and just needs moisture. And there IS already moisture in your flax seeds.
Their only protection is being sealed inside the shell, but if just a few shells are broken, bacteria can rancidify those seeds (good luck picking them out, since they're so small and it's hard to tell which ones are bad), and that process can generate heat and moisture which will increase the risk of other seeds going rancid and weaken the shells. It becomes a chain reaction pretty easily.

Bacterial rancidity can occur in the refrigerator (slower), but is mostly stopped when frozen.

Packing with dry nitrogen may be the best bet, since it almost eliminates oxygen, and attempts can be made to sterilize them as much as possible. I'm unsure of what processes are used, but even ground flax seeds that are packed in sealed nitrogen flushed containers seem to last a long time.

[ThunderKiss65]

Flaxseeds last the longest stored in a dry area. Stores don't keep dry flaxseeds refrigerated and neither should flaxseed consumers.