Chia Seed Benefits

Tiny chia seeds are nutritional powerhouses, with lots of omega-3 fatty acids, fiber, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. Better yet, you don’t even have to cook chia seeds. Sprinkle them on top of a salad. Or add about a half-cup of warm water to a quarter-cup of chia and let them sit. They’ll naturally thicken into a gel-like porridge in about 5 minutes. Take a look at this video of me making Pumpkin Pudding with Chia Seeds. Pumpkin is great for collagen and your skin, and the chia seeds add the nutritional value your body will love you for. Plus, it tastes DELICIOUS too.

Health Benefits of Chia

Did YOU know chia seeds have:

  1. More Omega-3s than salmon
  2. More calcium than milk
  3. More iron than spinach
  4. More protein than soybeans
  5. More potassium than bananas
  6. More antioxidants than blueberries.

Like most of the metabolism-boosting foods on the Fast Metabolism Diet, chia seeds show high antioxidant activity, which means they scavenge the free radicals that can cause cell damage, inflammation and a number of diseases.

Chia seeds also contain some unusual isoflavones, like daidzin (sometimes used to help people stop drinking) and allergy-busting rosmarinic acid, and they’re made up of 15 to 25 percent easily digested high-quality protein.

Every little chia seed can contain up to 30 percent fiber, which is what makes them thicken up without cooking. (Flax seeds do the same thing.) All that fiber is part of the reason chia seeds can help regulate your blood sugar and lower your cholesterol.

Of course you can cook chia, too. Just warm the seeds and water over low heat, stirring often, until they reach the desired consistency. Then add in berries, a pinch of cocoa powder, or spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. You can also add chia seeds to oatmeal as your healthy fat on Phase 3.

And because chia seeds achieve a gelatinous quality when combined with water, they make a great pudding. Check out our recipe for this no-cook Chocolate-Chia Pudding, one of the most popular recipes on our site.

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