Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26959052›Full record

SynthesisNutrients2016

Effect of Flaxseed Intervention on Inflammatory Marker C-Reactive Protein: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Guan-Yu Ren, Chun-Yang Chen, Guo-Chong Chen, Wei-Guo Chen, An Pan, Chen-Wei Pan, Yong-Hong Zhang, Li-Qiang Qin, Li-Hua Chen

Open access · goldAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Nutrients, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
29citing papers in PubMed, 7 pooled it
6.1field-weighted citation impact, top 3% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

29 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 92 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Review
  11. Article
  12. Impact of Dietary Fiber on Inflammation in Humans.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025
    Review
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Review
  17. Article
  18. Review
  19. Lignan Intake and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease.Journal of the American College of Cardiology · 2021
    Article
  20. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Guan-Yu RenJiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Soochow University, 199 Renai Road, Dushu Lake Higher Education Town, Suzhou 215123, China. 15850177665@163.com.
Chun-Yang ChenJiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Soochow University, 199 Renai Road, Dushu Lake Higher Education Town, Suzhou 215123, China. chen20154232027@126.com.
Guo-Chong ChenJiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Soochow University, 199 Renai Road, Dushu Lake Higher Education Town, Suzhou 215123, China. lsguorong@126.com.
Wei-Guo ChenDepartment of Urology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Soochow University, 188 Shizi street, Suzhou 215006, China. 15312172967@163.com.
An PanDepartment of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, MOE Key Lab of Environment and Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, 13 Hangkong Road, Wuhan 430030, China. panan@hust.edu.cn.
Chen-Wei PanJiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Soochow University, 199 Renai Road, Dushu Lake Higher Education Town, Suzhou 215123, China. chwpan@suda.edu.cn.
Yong-Hong ZhangJiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Soochow University, 199 Renai Road, Dushu Lake Higher Education Town, Suzhou 215123, China. yhzhang@suda.edu.cn.
Li-Qiang QinJiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Soochow University, 199 Renai Road, Dushu Lake Higher Education Town, Suzhou 215123, China. qinliqiang@suda.edu.cn.
Li-Hua ChenJiangsu Key Laboratory of Preventive and Translational Medicine for Geriatric Diseases, Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Soochow University, 199 Renai Road, Dushu Lake Higher Education Town, Suzhou 215123, China. chenlihua@suda.edu.cn.
Soochow University · CNHuazhong University of Science and Technology · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Functional food-flaxseed and its derivatives (flaxseed oil or lignans) are beneficial for human health, possibly because of their anti-inflammatory effects. C-reactive protein (CRP), a sensitive marker of inflammation was chosen to evaluate the anti-inflammatory effects of flaxseed. We searched randomized controlled trials from PubMed and the Cochrane Library in October 2015 and conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of flaxseed and its derivatives on CRP. The mean differences (net change) in CRP (mg/L) concentrations were pooled with a random- or a fixed-effects model depending on the results of heterogeneity tests. Overall, flaxseed interventions had no effects on reduction of CRP (p = 0.428). The null effects were consistent in the subgroup analysis with multiple studies and population characteristics. Significant heterogeneity was observed in most of the analyses. Meta-regression identified baseline body mass index (BMI) as a significant source of heterogeneity (P-interaction = 0.032), with a significant reduction in CRP of 0.83 mg/L (95% confidence interval -1.34 to -0.31; p = 0.002) among subjects with a BMI of ≥30 kg/m². In conclusion, our meta-analysis did not find sufficient evidence that flaxseed and its derivatives have a beneficial effect on reducing circulating CRP. However, they may significantly reduce CRP in obese populations.

Indexed as

DietFlaxSeedsAdultBiomarkersBody Mass IndexC-Reactive ProteinFemaleHumansInflammationInflammation MediatorsLignansLinseed OilMaleMiddle AgedObesityBiomarkersC-Reactive ProteinInflammation MediatorsLignansLinseed OilC-reactive proteinflaxseedmeta-analysisrandomized controlled trials

Identifiers

PMID26959052
PMCPMC4808865
OpenAlexW2291962780

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.