According to registered dietitian-nutritionist Dr Keith Ayoob, there is ‘nothing negative about’ chia seeds – but, you do need to be cautious when it comes to dealing with an unusual trait they have.
These seeds, derived from the Salvia hispanica plant, can reduce blood pressure, lower cholesterol, boost your mental health, reduce inflammation, support digestive health and aid in weight management.
You don’t just have to take our word for it either, as new research conducted by boffins in Brazil has just made some huge findings about the benefits they can bring to our health.
The general consensus among experts is that if you’re not including them in your diet already, you should start, pronto.
Dr Ayoob is one of the people who shares this sentiment, as he told National Geographic that chia seeds are ‘loaded with a lot of the things people are missing’.
If this superfood is a bit out of your budget though, you could always try its cheaper alternative – which scientists say has a ‘slight advantage’ over its popular counterpart.
I’m sure you’ve got the gist of the fact that chia seeds are all singing, all dancing in the eyes of most health experts, but there is one problematic aspect of them.
A lot of people are still somehow unaware that you have to soak the seeds before you cram them into your gob.
Chia seeds are able to absorb ‘up to 12 times their weight’ when exposed to a liquid (via Healthline).
Explaining the consequences of eating them without soaking them first, Dr Ayoob said: “They’re going to swell up somewhere down the gastrointestinal tract.”
So, to avoid this happening, he recommends combining a quarter of a cup of chia seeds with a portion of liquid, before allowing this to sit for at least ten minutes.
The nutritionist, who is a professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, joked: “Measure these over the sink, because if they spill, you will never stop finding them, even in other rooms.”
If you skip the very important soaking step, you could end up like this young man once had a gel-like mass lodged in his food pipe after eating chia seeds due to all of the absorbed water.
Dr Rebecca Rawl, the doctor who treated the patient, told Time that it’s comparable to a ‘Play-Doh-like consistency’. The case was published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology in 2014.
To ease yourself into the chia seed lifestyle gently, Dr Ayoob suggests ‘adding them gradually to your diet to get your system used to them’ because they are so high in fibre.