Are you old enough to remember Chia Pets being sold in drug stores for Christmas presents?
It turns out that the Chia Seeds themselves may pack a lot more nutritional punch than many people thought…
Chia Seeds Photo featuring white, black, or white and black chia seeds By Cyanocorax in 2006
Registered and Licensed Dietitians and Nutritionists have been adding chia seeds to all sorts of recipes, including their holiday baked goods!
• Shivani Sharma adds chia seeds to her kids’ home made waffles, pancakes, banana berry shake and oatmeal.
• Elizabeth DiBiase makes Chia Seed Pudding–she notes it is like tapioca pudding and she also mentions it is so much easier to prepare:
Chia Seed Pudding
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup whole chia seeds (white, black, or black and white)
- 2 cups almond milk
- Stevia or honey, and vanilla extract to taste (if it is for dessert, put more sweetness in; if it is for breakfast, put less sweetness in)
- You can also add cinnamon, chopped nuts or chopped dried fruit.
Method:
- Stir the chia seeds into the almond milk (stir well);
- Add sweetener +/or vanilla extract to taste;
- Add spices, nuts or dried fruit as desired;
- Cover & refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.
Write ups on Chia Seeds from the www:
• Cheryl Harris has a couple of write ups on chia seeds: Chia Seed: A Gluten Free Superstar ; and also Baking with Chia
• One of the American Dietetic Association Dietetic Practice Groups I belong to is the Dietitians in Integrative and Functional Medicine, which puts out several newsletters a year for members only.
The DIFM DPG Spring 2011 newsletter, Vol. 13, Issue 3, addresses some of the health benefits and uses of Chia Seeds. The cover article by Jacqueline J Zimmerman, MS, RD, is titled ” Chia: An Underappreciated Source of Omega-3 Fatty Acids.”
She comments that chia seeds are a rich source of omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) fatty acids, as well as both soluble & insoluble fiber, and finally the minerals potassium & phosphorus and also calcium.
Comparing 2 tsp by volume of chia seeds to flax seeds, chia seeds are considered to be even more nutrient dense as the chia seeds provide 1.7 g of ALA (meeting the DRI for adults), 3.6 g of fiber, 60 mg of calcium, 15 mg potassium & 89 mg phosphorus. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference.
Despite a paucity of scientific literature* to support or refute any claims about chia seeds, consumers are turning to chia seeds in response to claims for the ability of chia seeds to: treat wrinkles & dry skin; boost both cognition & memory; support bone & joint health; improve glycemic control; increase energy; improve mood; & even support weight loss.
Apparently the Aztecs also used chia seeds to treat both joint pain and various skin conditions, believing the seeds had medicinal value as well. Oral traditions of the Aztec people are said to recant tales of how chia seeds were used to sustain their warriors during days of conquests and were thus dubbed the “running food.”
Chia seeds currently are now cultivated world-wide with Australia being listed as the prime producer. The seeds apparently come from the Chia plant, botanically a flowering herb, Salvia hispanica, akin to mint, possibly native to South America. Previously the seeds were consumed it seems for centuries in not only Mexico & Guatemala, but also as far away as India.
Jacqueline notes “chia seeds are a convenient and versatile vessel to increase dietary ALA, fiber, calcium and potassium. To date, no known adverse reactions or interactions with drugs, food, herbs or supplements have been reported.”
She goes on to say: “Unlike flax seeds, which are not digestible in their whole form and must be ground, chia seeds may be consumed intact. When soaked in water, chia seeds form a gel, which may be mixed into beverages, added to prepared dishes or substituted for oil or egg in baked items.”
It seems up to 25% of the oil or egg content of a cake recipe can be successfully replaced by chia gel without adversely affecting the weight, volume or taste of a baked product; while trying substitutions at higher ratios (50 or 75%) resulted in decreased volume and lower evaluations of the baked products in terms of texture, taste and overall acceptability.
In terms of purchasing the chia seeds per se, Jacqueline mentions: “Several brands of chia seeds are available for purchase online or in stores for approximately $15 – $20 per pound. Using 2 teaspoons per day, a 1-lb bag of chia seeds should last for approximately 7 weeks.”
The article provides recipes for: Chia Fresca, Chia Quinoa, & Fruit Salad w/ Chia.
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For Further Reading:
*Jacqueline notes that human studies are “scarce” to corroborate or refute current health claims being made concerning chia seeds. She mentions several short-term studies published in 2007, 2009, & 2010 respectively using various gram doses of chia supplementation delivered in time frames never exceeding 12 weeks in various ways in amounts of: 37g + 4g/d; 50g/d; or meal doses of 0g, 7g, 15g or 24g.
For now, what can be said is that the short-term studies did indicate that in a very small sampling of individuals, chia seed supplementation at certain levels were reported to: lead to increases in circulating blood levels of ALA; positively lower systolic BP; and in the 3rd study in year 2010, some individuals were reported to have lower blood glucose levels post-prandially after consumption of varying doses of chia.
Based on those studies (which used only a selected brand of white chia seeds), further longer-term research involving a broader sampling of chia seeds with a larger subject group over time might be promising & might yield data upon which dietary recommendations could conceivably be made, but the limits of the current studies preclude any generalization to a broader population at this time.
Jacqueline Zimmerman’s article REFERENCES :
Vuksan V, Whitham D, Sievenpiper J, Jenkins A, Rogovik, et al. Supplementation of conventional therapy with the novel grain Salba (Salvia hispanica L.) improves major and emerging cardiovascular risk factors in type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2007;30:2804-2810.
Nieman DC, Cayea EJ, Austin MD, Henson DA, McAnulty SR, Jin F. Chia seed does not promote weight loss or alter disease risk factors in overweight adults. Nutr Res. 2009;414-418
Vuksan V, Jenkins AL, Dias AG, Lee AS, Jovanovski E, et al. Reduction in postprandial glucose excursion and prolongation of satiety: possible explanation of the long-term effects of wholegrain Salba (Salvia Hispanica L.). Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010;64:436–438
Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database.