Chia seed is quickly becoming known as a "super food" for the five very important reason below. Most information on the Internet is totally INCORRECT or just a marketing ploy to sell you their own Chia or Chia seed product. Here are 5 quick facts about Chia seed:
- Chia seed or its latin name "Salvia hispanica" usually comes from Southern Mexico or South America. There are over 200 different Chia plants and only several plants are used for human comsumption. Yes, one type of chia seed is used for the famous "Chia Pet" but the seeds you consume are from different chia plant varieties.
- Chia seed contains a huge amount of nutrients packed into one small super seed. On average, 2 table spoons of Chia seed contain almost 6 grams of fiber(65% insoluble and 35% soluble fiber), 3 grams of omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, 4 grams of protein containing 18 amino acids including the 10 essential amino acids. Chia seed has the most amount per serving of protein of any seed discovered.
- Chia seed has more calcium per serving than milk and more omega 3 essential fatty acids than salmon!
- Chia has a slightly nutty taste and can be eaten by itself, mixed with food or liquid or even baked with.
- Chia seed also contains a relatively high amount of antioxidants as well which offers additional health benefits.
As good as Chia seed sounds, it is not without certain challenges for the consumer to buy the right type of Chia product as there are several variations on the market including ground chia, milled chia and of course Chia seed.
Each type of chia offers some benefits as well as some substantial drawbacks which we will discuss in a future post.
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