CHIA SEEDS!!! ANY ONE TRY IT? PLEASE SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCES...

This is awsome!

I eat them too. BUT I grind them up first because I don't think you get the omegas if you eat (or drink) them whole.

Flax seeds need to be broken up to get the oils out so chia seeds must be the same, no?

Don't water them too much. Mine grew to about 12 feet and never flowered. No flowers means no seeds.

The best Chia pet you can buy

They are delicious and very versatile. I prefer the Nutiva certified organic brand which I buy in bulk thru Amazon. I add them to my water, soups etc. They can be used to replace oil or eggs in many recipes.
Here's a great website though I am sure there are many.
[link to chiaseedshealthbenefits.com]

Another favorite is to blend 2 tblsp of hemp seed in 8 oz of water then add 2 tblsp of chia, sharke really hard and refrigerate. You'll receive all the health/nutrition benefits of both these amazing seeds. If you haven't checked out hemp seeds, you should :)
[link to www.hemp-guide.com]

Enjoy!!

I just put them in my pizza curst tonight.

When I saw the video of the flowering plant (pretty blue flowers), I thought it looked exactly like Salvia... It IS Salvia!

Maybe not the same variety of the tropical, mind bending plant, but... anybody tried chewing the leaves?

I'd better get a load of seeds before this variety becomes illegal too.

Yes it's from salvia family!

You didn't sprout green hair?

I like them in soup or stew and they are one of the seeds I add to multi grain bread. I love the texture.

EDIT: please pardon my spelling. I am on a touch screen and it just isn't worth the fight.

Simmer down, folks. Salvia is the Sage genus. You know the sage in your turkey? It is Salvia officinalis. The genus Salvia is a medium sized genus in the family Lamiaceae, the Mint family. As far as I know, S. Divinorum is the only plant in the genus with psychedelic effects. The Mint family, though, has lots of different sedatives, working in various ways on different systems. Skullcap is a well-known one. Lemon Balm works by reducing thyroid function.

Incidentally, Chia grows in desert regions at low to mid elevations, mostly in recent burns. Area natives would sometimes perform controlled burns in order to get it to thrive. Easr of LA, in the burn scars, is a very good place to look for it, along with its cousin, S. alba, the sacred White Sage.

Another point I am seeing discussed: grinding or breaking the seeds. The slime you get from soaking them is the medicine, called mucilage (mucoplysaccharides). This contains cell proliferatives and is what does the gut repairs I mentioned in an earlier post. It also is useful as a protective for folks with ulcers, though other treatment is needed.

Grinding or breaking them allows the EFAs out, yes, but also leaves their structure vulnerable to stomach acid. Absorption sites are at the very end of the gut and EFAs are very fragile, requiring many different enzymes to protect them as they move through the gut, transport them across the gut wall, carry them to the liver, and another to carry them out to where they are needed. It is the most complex absorption I am aware of, except MAYBE B vitamins.

I have client soak them for 20 min, then drink straight or add to smoothis.. or whatever. After a few weeks (gut repair is probably done) simply add to food without soaking.

Last Edited by Mycelium on 11/12/2012 03:47 PM

Another thought, though not from experience...

Those of you trying to grow it might try burning the past year's failed crop, in situ, and replanting again. My guess is that you will get great results.

When I have grown plants from the wild in my garden, I watch the weather for the area they came from and water when it rains there. Mimicing the yearly rain cycles can help greatly.

Actually no, that is why chia seeds are considered more effective in their ability to preserve omega-3 fatty acids better than flaxseed
.

My new batch chia seeds are arriving today, will let you guys know what I do with them! I've also been starting to take coconut oil again. I did it about two years ago, so may as well restart since I'm going to do chia too. For those that don't know, coconut oil is actually very healthy!! As weird as it sounds, eating this oil can also help speed up your metabolism. It also has antibacterial properties as well, and not only can you ingest it but apply it to your skin as a lotion or substitute as a conditioner (I do both). There's a bunch of positives to it, here are two articles but you can Google health benefits of coconut oil to find more.




How Coconut Oil Works Wonders in Your Body

Nearly 50 percent of the fat in coconut oil is of a type rarely found in nature called lauric acid, a "miracle" compound because of its unique health promoting properties. Your body converts lauric acid into monolaurin, which has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoa properties. (6)

Coconut oil is also nature's richest source of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), also called medium-chain triglycerides or MCTs. By contrast, most common vegetable or seed oils are comprised of long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), also known as long-chain triglycerides or LCTs.

LCTs are large molecules, so they are difficult for your body to break down and are predominantly stored as fat.

But MCTs (7) , being smaller, are easily digested and immediately burned by your liver for energy -- like carbohydrates, but without the insulin spike. MCTs actually boost your metabolism and help your body use fat for energy, as opposed to storing it, so it can actually help you become leaner.

Back in the 1940s, farmers discovered this effect accidentally when they tried using inexpensive coconut oil to fatten their livestock.

It didn't work!

Instead, coconut oil made the animals lean, active and hungry.

Coconut oil has actually been shown to help optimize body weight, which can dramatically reduce your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes (8). Besides weight loss, boosting your metabolic rate will improve your energy, accelerate healing and improve your overall immune function.

And several studies have now shown that MCTs can enhance physical or athletic performance.(9)

And finally, as we have already discussed, coconut oil is incedibly good for your heart. The truth is this: it is unsaturated fats that are primarily involved in heart disease and too much sugar and processed foods, not the naturally occurring saturated fats, as you have been led to believe. (10)

More at [link to www.huffingtonpost.com]




Lauric Acid
Coconut oil has many health benefits which are attributed to the presence of lauric acid. When it is present in the body, lauric acid is converted into monolaurin, a compound that is highly toxic to viruses, bacteria, funguses and other microorganisms because of its ability to disrupt their lipid membranes and virtually destroy them.

Monolaurin is effective for treating candida albicans, fungal infections and athlete's foot. It also targets bacterial infections and viruses like measles, influenza, hepatitis C and even HIV. In fact, researchers from the Philippines are studying the effectiveness of lauric acid against HIV/AIDS due to its strong anti-viral properties. Moreover, lauric acid is non-toxic, making it a better alternative to modern drugs that are typically prescribed for viruses as well as fungal and bacterial infections.

Without lauric acid, monolaurin cannot be produced by the body. Breast milk is the only other source of lauric acid, which must explain the lesser incidents of infections with breast-fed infants. It has also been observed that regular consumption of coconut oil boosts immunity and reduces incidences of sickness.

More at [link to www.naturalnews.com]

Got my chia seeds yesterday. I have some soaking in water, going to make something like tapioca with them tonight!

I like to make my popcorn (pan popped, not in the microwave) with coconut oil. Its also useful with scrambled eggs because of the health benefits and it greases the pan. We use it quite a bit.

If you happen to have keratosis pilaris coconut oil is extremely helpful as a moisturizer as well.

Ya know.. Just incase someone has coconut oil laying around and has no idea what to do with it!

look for sprouted chia powder
the chia sprouts are WAY more digestible and the nutrient and enzyme content is WAY higher
they aren't easy to find, but they are available

Oh I LOVE making popcorn with coconut oil, I think that's absolutely the best way to make it!! Much better htan the stuff you get at the movie theater too :) Recently I've been making coconut oil "candy" by combining coconut oil, cocoa powder, peanut butter, and sweetener.

Interesting, I know that most other grains/seeds are supposed to be much easier to digest but I never thought to do so with chia! How does getting dried powder of sprouts differ from that of the actual live sprouts one could basically grow, are there any drawbacks to the dried powder versus fresh?

have you made your chia suprise yet, I just been mixing with the yogurt, tastes sort of fishy but the 1st time i did it got alot of energy next times not so much

Your chia has a fishy taste? Wow, it shouldn't! Where did you get them from? I don't think it's easy for them to go bad, but...? My chia seeds are tasteless when soaked in water, if taken dry they remind me of a poppy seed. I haven't done too much wtih them yet outside of making my tapioca with gel, a splash of cream and vanilla, and sweetener.

I like Chia seeds in my bubble berry slice. Damn things get stuck in your teeth though!

What is a bubble berry slice? I found this recipe last night that I may try to make, I have everything but sesame seeds so I may substitute almond flour until I can order some...

[link to ohsheglows.com]

Just made this recipe tonight, I ended up getting sesame seeds and did the recipe almost exact...i added an extra 1/4 cup chia and extra 1/4 sesame, and then decreased both the pepitas and sunflower seeds by 1/4 cup each. They turned out great and are really yummy! I ate 5 crackers with a garlic and herb spread.

Chia bump...I added some to chicken soup last night, it helped to thicken and now my kids seem to LOVE them! This morning both of my daughters begged me to make the chia seed pudding I've been making for myself, so it's kid friendly

a complete protein.............attention prepper tards!!!