DEAR DR. BLONZ: You wrote about flax recently, and I bought some, ground it in my coffee grinder, and have been adding it to my diet on a daily basis. I have two questions and was hoping that you might be able to help. First, what is the recommended daily amount? I have found anything from 1-3 tablespoons as a guideline. I want to take enough to get the benefits, without taking too much. Secondly, and more importantly: A physician quoted online said that men should avoid flaxseed based on a study by the University of Virginia School of Medicine, which found that the oil “may promote the growth of prostate tumors in someone with prostate cancer.” Is this a valid concern? Does it apply to ground flaxseed? Is the risk worth the health benefits? -- P.P., San Jose, California

DEAR P.P.: Fats and oils represent nature’s most concentrated sources of energy. Fat is the storage material of choice in the plant world, ideal when there is a need to pack a lot of energy in a small space. Seeds tend to be light in weight and small in size, yet contain sufficient energy to fuel a plant’s initial growth until the sprout can poke out of the soil, into the sunshine, and begin to make energy on its own. Seeds need protections for this purpose. The primary defense is the seed coat, but also important are the phytochemical substances that protect the fat from various environmental, insect or microbiological elements.

Flaxseed oil is highly unsaturated: About 60 percent of the fatty acids in flax are polyunsaturates. Of concern with prostate cancer is alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid that is plentiful in flax. Research has reported a significant relationship between the intake of ALA and the risk of various aspects of prostate cancer.

A key point here is the fact that when flaxseed oil is removed from the seed and separated from its phytochemical bodyguards, the chances of the oil breaking down and causing health problems may increase. With whole flaxseed, you get the entire package of fats, fiber and the variety of phytochemical compounds and antioxidants, known as lignans, naturally present in flax. These are not normally present in flaxseed oil. You can, however, find flaxseed oil products that include these compounds along with the oil.

Whole flaxseed has not been associated with an increased risk of cancer. In fact, there is evidence that this whole food has cancer-fighting abilities.

The message here is that we need to make sure that the fats we eat are well protected by having them as a part of a whole food. Eating whole greens, vegetables, fruits and certain seeds allows those foods to bring along their full variety of healthful components.

When eating flaxseed, cracking or grinding the seeds makes sense, as the fibrous protective coats of intact seeds tend to pass through undigested. One tablespoon of ground flaxseed contains about 1.6 grams of omega-3 fatty acids, which is in the range recommended for adults by the Institute of Medicine. (If not used immediately, ground flax should be refrigerated in a tightly sealed container.) In the end, if you have concerns about prostate cancer or any other cancer, be sure to discuss your choices with your physician, or the dietitian with whom he or she works.

Send questions to: “On Nutrition,” Ed Blonz, c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO, 64106. Send email inquiries to questions@blonz.com. Due to the volume of mail, personal replies cannot be provided.

DEAR READERS: I consult the scientific literature indexed at the National Institutes of Health (tinyurl.com/472npj) when seeking information. In this week’s column, I’d like to explain the process -- involving years of planning, research and analysis -- by which information like this is prepared for public consumption.

A study’s principal investigator is like the executive chef. Funding for studies is pivotal; it governs what gets done, who will be available to do the work and, in the end, how this particular “serving” of science will progress. Researchers at colleges and universities depend on grants from federal and private sources to keep their laboratories in operation. Grants will cover equipment and material costs, along with all staff salaries connected with the research, and often include a hefty portion for the research institution.

Competition for limited research funds continues to increase, and the situation shows no sign of improving. Applications get reviewed by selected scientists, and the agencies distribute their funds according to priority scores assigned during evaluation. If an application is assigned a low priority, the scientists will have to look elsewhere for research dollars -- if “elsewhere” even exists. Many turn to industry or grant-giving foundations.

Grant-writing takes up a big chunk of scientists’ time throughout a given year. Some take courses on how to write better grants. Others form collaborations with scientists who have a good track record on securing funds. Working in a “hot” topic area can improve the odds of funding; many scientists shift their research to go where the money is.

Often looming in the wings is academic tenure: the coveted achievement of secure employment at an academic institution. The progress of each new “tenure-track” faculty member gets reviewed annually, but the formal review takes place sometime between the fourth and seventh year after joining the institution. Teaching skills and the ability to train graduate students are important, but the ability to attract funding and publish results tend to be critical elements in tenure decisions.

If tenure is not granted, a faculty member usually has to leave; even the best instructors are often shown the door if their research programs are not productive. Finding a new job may be a problem, as the openings usually go to those showing promise of attracting funds.

This reality of research is rarely appreciated, and it helps explain the conservative nature of mainstream science. How can one justify pursuing ideas on the fringes of science when such pursuits have a lower likelihood of funding? Consider, also, that challenges to mainstream thinking may place an individual researcher at odds with senior faculty members, who will be presiding over their tenure decision.

Even if initial research dollars are received, tackling new concepts can yield unclear results in the opening experiments. “No significant findings” translates to “no publication,” which lessens the chance for grant renewals. Scientists might design their experiments to bring forth quick results, in the interest of increasing their odds for funding. Then there are those who are forced to call it quits and shift from academia to industry, where applying for grants is no longer an issue.

If you sense that the whole system can be oppressive, you are getting the right idea. It tends to be conservative and slow-moving.

But it is not all doom and gloom. Many research programs pick up steam, flourish and take on lives of their own. As with any career, the availability of experienced mentors plays a vital role. Using graduate students and recent Ph.Ds on postdoctoral fellowships, a faculty member can increase the output of their lab while helping to train the next generation of university scientists. Every week, there are new findings in the journals; some reinforce our concept of the world, while others open the door to change.

Send questions to: “On Nutrition,” Ed Blonz, c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO, 64106. Send email inquiries to questions@blonz.com. Due to the volume of mail, personal replies cannot be provided.

DEAR DR. BLONZ: I am lactose-intolerant, so I have become a careful label-reader. I remain curious and cautious about some ingredients in bread and lunchmeat products that sound as if they might contain lactose. Two that I often see are “potassium lactate” and “sodium lactate.” Are these sources of lactose, and if so, how much (in relation to milk)? Also, seeing as it is a dairy product, is there lactose in butter? -- K.D.B., via email

DEAR K.D.B.: Lactose is the main carbohydrate (sugar) in milk and milk products; it is a double sugar made up of glucose attached to galactose.

Lactose intolerance reflects an inability to effectively separate the lactose into its constituent parts, which prevents it from being absorbed. The undigested lactose travels the length of the digestive tract, enters the large intestine and, depending on how much arrives, can cause various degrees of bloating, gas, diarrhea and nausea.

An 8-ounce glass of milk contains about 12 grams of lactose. As you have observed, there are food additives where lactose is a part of a compound. Potassium lactate and sodium lactate are just such substances; another is calcium lactate. These compounds can act as a buffer and help protect against product breakdown. Such “lactate” compounds tend to be used at milligram levels, so they should not represent a concern for any typical lactose-intolerant individual. The same can be said for butter, which is very low in lactose, containing about half a gram per serving.

If you are extremely sensitive to lactose, you will have to experiment to see how your body reacts. The University of Virginia sheet on the lactose content of various dairy foods can be found at tinyurl.com/yc7a2ywn.

DEAR DR. BLONZ: My grandson is now into bodybuilding. His high school trainer says he needs 200 grams a day of quality protein, plus a gallon of water. This seems excessive and I don’t want him to damage his kidneys. What are your thoughts? -- I.K., San Jose, California

DEAR I.K.: You did not indicate what your grandson weighs, and protein intake in athletes tends to correlate with their body weight. An average individual needs about 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. For a 176-pound (80 kg) individual, this equates to 64 grams of protein a day. A generous intake for a strength-training athlete is between 1.2 grams and 2 grams per kilogram,

which translates to 96 to 160 grams of protein per day.

There is little evidence that higher protein intakes provide any additional benefit. The flip side is whether having excess protein might cause problems. As with any caloric food, excess protein gets disassembled, the kidneys having the task of removing the amino-group nitrogen from the body. Some of protein’s amino acids can be turned into glucose if that is needed at the moment, but most gets turned into fat and packaged for storage. We know what that means.

Assuming your grandson remains well-hydrated (the gallon a day speaks well to this aspect), and the rest of his diet contains greens, grains, fruits and vegetables, there are only minimal risks from this level of protein. There is a good discussion of protein requirements for athletes at tinyurl.com/zoq668l.

Send questions to: “On Nutrition,” Ed Blonz, c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO, 64106. Send email inquiries to questions@blonz.com. Due to the volume of mail, personal replies cannot be provided.