SOS: Day 64
April 4, 2011 
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Day 64
Chia: it’s not just decor anymore.
Chia Bart by Lisa Tozzi via Flickr. Needs a haircut, yes?
Remember Chia Pets? They’re still around, in crazier iterations than ever. I visited the Chia Pets website (also home of The Clapper) and saw the most recent additions to the family: Obama and Hillary chias. I kid you not. The reason for my curiosity is that chia seeds have been in the news lately, but not because of their flair for masquerading as green hair.
Chia is getting press as a new super food. Way back in the B.C.E era, chia was a cultivated crop in Mexico. Now this Salvia (a member of the mint family) is resurging as a food source.
Four reasons chia seeds are the new superfood:
- It’s the world’s most concentrated source of omega-3 fatty acids.
- It’s the richest known whole food source of fiber, with five times the fiber of oatmeal.
- When it’s wet, as chia pet lovers know, it has a gel-like consistency. It’s hypothesized that it jellies up your belly and makes you feel full, so it can help you lose weight.
- Chia’s a source of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, manganese, copper, iron, molybdenum, niacin, and zinc.
I’ve been enjoying my first bag of seeds…I sprinkle it on a salad every night. Read more here:
Andrew Weil writes in Prevention:
“I enjoy the seeds’ nutlike flavor and consider them to be a healthful and interesting addition to my diet. You can sprinkle ground or whole chia seeds on cereal, yogurt, or salads; eat a handful of whole seeds as a snack; or grind them up and mix with flour when making muffins or other baked goods.”
eHow:
Gives you 5 easy ways to incorporate chia into your diet.
Dr. Bob Arnot writes in Men’s Journal:
“I eat two scoops on my breakfast cereal every morning and two more in an almond milk shake in the afternoon to control my weight. Just 26 grams of chia is so filling that it quashes my hunger for hours by forming a gel in the stomach which slows the absorption of food. I was able to lose seven pounds in just a month by incorporating the seed into my diet…”
SOS Month 3
What to do so far:
In case you missed a day, the reminders below are clickable.
Get in shape for the best years ahead.
Eat chia…don’t pet it.
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