Chia Seeds: facts, thoughts, questions
Chia seeds seem to be the newest “buzz food” in the health community. You hear about them in the context of raw foods, low-carb foods, omega-3 rich foods and more. So are these tiny little seeds a “real food” or not? More to the point are they a nutritious addition to our diets?
What Are They?
Yes, they are the same chia as those used for the chia pet. They were once a staple of the Incan, Maya and Aztec cultures. They are tiny little blackish gray or white seeds that are extremely hydrophilic, meaning they absorb a lot of water or liquid. If you have ever soaked flax seeds you know that they produce a gel when mixed with water, which is what chia seeds do. You can make a tapioca-like pudding out of them when mixed with milk or cream, coconut milk or almond milk. They have a pretty neutral flavor, unlike flax seeds, which means they take on the flavor of whatever you combine them with.
Chia’s Nutrient Profile
- Fatty Acid Profile – They have an omega-3 to omega-6 ratio of about 5:1.5, containing alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) and linoleic acid (LA). ALA is what some consider an omega-3, but it is actually the precursor to EPA and DHA, which is the good fat we find in fish oils. Unfortunately it has been found that our bodies do not easily convert ALA to EPA and DHA. Therefore we can not rely on ALA (generally the plant version of omega-3s) to get the essential fatty acids EPA and DHA. I suppose in this regard chia seeds are neutral.
- Protein – 4 grams/oz.
- Vitamin &Mineral Content – They contain a good amount of manganese, phosphorous, and calcium per ounce.
- Carbohydrate & Fiber Content – Per ounce chia seeds contain 12 grams of carbohydrate and 11 grams of fiber, making them a low carbohydrate food. This is good for keeping insulin levels even and avoiding blood sugar problems.
My Thoughts
In my research I contacted Sally Fallen Morrell, who is the founder of the Weston A Price foundation. She said that she was not an expert on chia, but thought you would need to soak it or sprout it in order to obtain the nutrients.
Here are a few of my thoughts:
- I probably wouldn’t want to grind them or they would lose their nutrients. (maybe I’m wrong?)
- I probably wouldn’t want to heat them up or again they would lose their nutrients. (maybe I’m wrong?)
- Chia’s history sounds a bit like quinoa, which I feed my family knowing it is nutritious.
- I tried a sample of them from the bulk section of the health food store and found them to make a very tasty pudding of sorts.
- I love that 1/3 cup of chia seeds is mixed with 2 cups of liquid to produce the chia “gel”.
Generally my litmus test of a real food is whether I can grow it/raise it in my own backyard. It appears as though if I were to live in the right area, I could, in fact, grow chia and harvest the seeds:
Chia is native to western North America…. Flowers bloom in late spring or early summer, from March through June in California. As the season progresses, the blossoms dry and turn from clear blue to golden, and remain dry upon their stems. The tiny seeds disperse by shaking out of the dry blossoms. (source)
Of course I don’t see us moving to California any time in the near future. Instead I’ll have to settle for purchasing them here.
Overall they appear to be a very nutritious addition to a good diet. So why am I so skeptical? Have I just been jaded by all of the other “new” ideas and research on the health food front?
I’d love to hear from you all. What do you think about chia seeds?
i have read about them on some other sites and I am not rushing off to buy them. I just don’t think that I *need* them. And more than that, I really don’t see my family eating them either. so, maybe I am skeptical too.
We love chia seeds. We mix them with water and lime juice and take bottles of the stuff hiking with us. Kind of like a homemade energy drink, though it looks more like pond water with fish eggs.
I use chia (also to make a power drink) every once in awhile, but not on a regular basis (if I feel like I need a little pick me up I’ll get some in, I have a whole jar of them in my fridge 🙂
Overall I like them, I need more Omega-3’s anyway, especially since I’ve been slacking on my cod liver oil intake.
ok, I just read the post again and about the conversion of ALA to EPA and DHA in regards to plant food-I guess I need that cod liver oil after all.
my kids and I put a bit in water every morning and stir, then let sit for 10 minutes to gel. They love it and call it “MONSTER SLIME” ! 🙂
I would *love* to hear more ideas on how to successfully incorporate chia seeds into the diet. Does anyone have any pudding ideas or other beverage ideas? Or have you successfully made smoothies out of them? What have you soaked them in? Thanks for any ideas! 🙂
I understand the real food litmus test but mine would also have to include – Does it taste good??? I’ve spent enough time eating things that were “healthy’ but tasted so bad. Not going back there again.
Also, had to giggle – can you see people harvesting greens from their Cha-Cha-Cha-Chia Heads???
I use chia a lot. Apparently, unlike flax, the omegas are absorbable directly from the whole seeds, so the chia “pudding” is a great, nutritious food. I’d think you might lose some antioxidants/vitamins if you grind them, but it would be minimal if you ate them right away. I wouldn’t heat them directly, though apparently they aren’t harmed if used as an egg substitute (I use them that way instead of ground flax on occasion). And I also love the way they taste!
I thought you’d find this new take on omega-3s interesting: http://www.prevention.com/cda/article/the-vanishing-youth-nutrient/6dec72fe5deb2210VgnVCM10000030281eac____/news.voices/in.the.magazine/september.2009.issue/0/0/1
Guess Sally must have since changed her opinion, as I read a comment from Sally not so long ago that mentioned a rule about nuts and seeds – anything smaller than your fingernail doesn’t need soaking, sprouting etc (the rule was from tribes in the WAP study).
I heard that they can keep you hydrated because they hold so much water.
We bought some chia “meal” (freshly ground chia seeds) from a local farmer’s market, and sprinkle it on lots of stuff – yogurt, eggs, beans, kefir, steamed veggies, meat, etc.
It doesn’t have much of a taste, so add it just like you might add ground pepper or salt.
I live on the Tennessee – Kentucky line. A few years ago I bought some chia seeds and planted them. I never found out how to harvest them so I just let them grow wild. If anyone knows when and how to harvest them I would love to hear about it!
Great post and comments. I stumbled upon this post as I was googling Chia and Omega 3’s. (Not sure of ‘googling’ is recognized as a word YET but if it isn’t it will be and that makes me a pioneer)
First, let me get it out of the way that I am a distributor of a proprietary blend of Chia by a Company called Lifemax. That being said, I just wanted to make a few comments from what I know of Chia based solely on what I NOW know from learning my product.
As far as growing Chia, you probably can grow it here in the US but as for the nutrients, it grows best within 23 deg. north and south of the equator.
As far as grinding it like flax, it will lose some nutrients in a grinding process.
It does hold, I believe, 13x its weight in water and for that reason – and the fiber content, it works well as an appetite suppressant to aid in weight loss.
It does have amazing powers as an anti-inflammatory and cholesterol reduction (these I have personally experienced — in addition to more energy and better sleep)
And a certain Company does sell Chia that doesn’t need to be ground or made into a gel due to a proprietary method of splitting the seed. This makes it easy to put into a drink or sprinkle on any food.
My kids enjoy it blended with their chocolate milk and/or orange juice and drink it EVERY day. They’re 4 and 5 YOA and refer to it as their ‘healthy drink’
Have a great day!
This might be just humor for you, but months ago I was having a study-fest on chia via internet, and bought some seeds and ground seeds. I had a vivid dream a few nights later that this small dark woman, using a kind of uglyish ‘oven’ looked like of clay very close to the ground, was showing me what SHE did with chia, I felt she was a south american native. She had this hunk of animal flesh and some soaked chia, and she took the ‘goop’ and spread it thickly all over the meat, and then put that in the ‘oven’ and sealed it up with rocks. To this day I haven’t got around to trying cooking a meat like this — I’m just wildly guessing the seeds would gradually dry out completely and either be a shell or just fall off, but perhaps it makes the meat more moist, or in that kind of oven would keep more humidity in the cooking area.
PJ
When the flowers dry up and turn yellow they should be ready…just shake seeds in the flowers out and into container
That was supposed to be a reply for Eva from tennessee
I soak chia seeds overnight. They will swell into gel. Add coconut milk, honey or stevia and vanilla. Mix well, refrigerate for several hours. Stir and top with fresh fruit. Yummy and easy to make. High in Omega 3 and fiber. I have black chia seeds so the pudding is a bit grayish. The black seeds don’t taste any different than the white seeds. Looks like tapioca pudding.