Flaxseed is a featured ingredient in cereals, pasta, whole grain breads and crackers, energy bars, meatless meal products, and snack foods. Add flaxseed to a food you habitually eat. Every time you have a certain food, like oatmeal, smoothies, soup, or yogurt, stir in a couple tablespoons of ground flaxseed. Flaxseed is commonly used to improve digestive health or relieve constipation. Flaxseed may also help lower total blood cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein (LDL, or “bad”) cholesterol levels, which may help reduce the risk of heart disease. Flaxseed can be used whole or crushed, or in a powder form as meal or flour. Flaxseed oil is available in liquid and capsule form. People use flaxseed and flaxseed oil to reduce cholesterol and blood sugar and treat digestive conditions. Some people also take flaxseed to treat inflammatory diseases.