What are chia seeds?
Chia seed is a small grain grain plant Salvia hispanica, one type of plant mint. Chia seed color varies from black, gray, or black with white spots. Oval shape with the size of about 1-2 mm. Chia seed originating from the region of Central America and South America.
The word chia himself was from Mayan meaning strength. Initially, cultivation of staple foodstuffs as chia is only done by the tribes in Mexico and Guatemala, but this time the cultivation of chia are not limited in the USA only, but already grown to Australia and Southeast Asia.
What are the content and benefits of chia seed? Chia seed contains many substances that are beneficial to the body such as omega 3 fatty acids, fiber, antioxidants, and minerals. In 1 serving of chia seed (about 30 g) contained 138 calories, 9 grams of fat (mostly saturated fat not-healthy fat), 10 g fiber, and 6 grams of protein.
The advantages of chia seed others i.e. it does not contain gluten and is rich in antioxidants. Benefits of omega 3 fatty acids for the body include: Lowering cholesterol which then trigliserid and can help lower blood pressure and prevent heart disease Help the body cope with strep Cardioprotective (heart) and hepatoprotective (liver protecting)
Help the body cope with diabetes
Protects the body from the condition of inflammation of the joints, auto immune disease, and cancer. Fiber and omega 3 fatty acids in chia seed is very high. According to research, fiber and omega 3 fatty acids helps to reduce the risk of heart disease.
The mechanism of the respective benefits of omega 3 fatty acids mentioned above still need to be examined further. Some media claim that consumption of chia seed is also beneficial to withstand hunger, balance blood sugar, improves heart conditions, lower cholesterol, trigislerida, blood pressure, and help to lose weight.
Unfortunately there has been no scientific reports that supported the link between consumption of chia seed with the benefits of weight loss. In research conducted by Nieman et al, it was concluded that consumption of chia seed as much as 50 g/day every day for 12 weeks no influence on body mass, body composition, or disease risk factors in men/women who have heavy more body or obesity.
How to use chia seeds?
Chia seed can be eaten raw or mixed into the dish. Chia seed taste resembles the taste of the beans, suitable both in sweet or savory dishes cuisine. Chia seed can be sprinkled on cereals, salad or rice. Chia seed can also be added to smoothies, yogurt or pudding. When mixed with a liquid, chia seed will expand and change their texture becomes like jelly.
For those of you who are vegetarian or allergic to eggs, the chia seed can also be used as a substitute for eggs when making a cake batter. Do I mix 1 tsp of chia seed with 2 tbsp water. One tbsp of chia seed mixture can replace 1 egg. For those of you who have a gluten allergy, chia seed can be consumed because of chia seed does not contain gluten.
How many chia seed can we consume in a day?
Chia seed consumption doses affected the age and health condition. There is currently no scientific information that can be used as a guideline for sure range number of chia seed can be consumed. In 2000, the U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend the use of chia seed per day may not exceed 48g/day. The European Commission allowed the use of chia seed bread products on a maximum of 5%.
How do I store the chia seed?
Because of its high antioxidant content, chia seed is not easily broken, safely stored for up to several months in a cool and dry place. For those of you who love organic food or undergoing diet raw food, may have heard some of the benefits of chia seed, though actually still needed much more research on the benefits of chia seed themselves. For those of you who are curious with a variety of benefits of chia seed, the following are a variety of benefits that can be obtained from estimations of chia seed:
Lose weight
The number of fibers are high enough in the chia seed is believed to be able to lose weight. This is due to high fiber-containing foods can generally be helpful in making the stomach feel full longer. Protein content on chia seed is also believed to be able to reduce the desire to eat. Research shows that obesity sufferers who routinely eat chia seed for 6 months, a visible decline weight about 2 kg.
However, taking chia seed alone is not enough to make Your weight loss program a success. In this case, the chia seed can help lose weight if coupled with diet and healthy living patterns, namely by controlling your calorie intake, exercising diligently, and enough rest.
Good for bone health
Protein content as well as the chia seed on minerals, such as calcium, manganese, magnesium, and phosphorus both to support bone health and prevent osteoporosis. In addition, the chia seed that comes from the plant is also a good source of calcium for vegetarians.
Maintains heart health Chia seed with protein, fiber, antioxidants, and good fats a high turn out is also seen to have an impact that is good for heart health. Research shows that consumption of chia seed can protect the heart from hardening of the arteries and heart disease. However, this effect is not just solely from consuming chia seed, but also by living the healthy life patterns. Good for diabetics A number of studies show linkages taking chia seeds with reduced risk of type 2 diabetes. The results of the study showed that chia seed can prevent a spike in blood sugar in the body. This effect is allegedly linked to the nutrient content in chia seed can help keep blood sugar stable. Good for people with divertikulosis
The high content of fibers to make chia seed is believed to be able to address the problem of divertikulosis. A number of studies show that consuming foods rich in fiber can help relieve the symptoms of divertikulosis. Eating foods that are high in fiber can facilitate the movement of the intestines and prevents constipation.
In addition, the chia seed also predicted good for lowering bad cholesterol in the body. In fact, with the content of omega-3 in them that is also not less high, chia seed is believed to lower the risk of the appearance of the stroke.
Benefits Of Chia Seed For Babies
Chia seed is the source of complete proteins containing the amino acids that are essential for the health of the body. Because of chia seed is easy to digest then widely used by parents for extra food companion asi (MPAsi) as well as children who are still in its infancy, by way of adding to foods such as cereals, rice, fruit puree, milk is low calories, and yogurt, then the nutrients contained in Chia Seed will be doubled and beneficial for the health of the body so that it is able to improve the quality of the intelligence of the brain naturally. Below is the content contained on the Chia seed, among others:
The content of Omega 3 in Chia Seed 8 x higher than the salmon The content of calcium in Chia Seed 6 x greater than cow milk The amount of Protein in Chia Seed 2 x higher than other grains Content of Pottasium in Chia Seed 3 x more than the bananas The amount of antioxidants in Chia Seed 3 times more compared with bluberry Iron content found in Chia Seed 3 times higher when compared with spinach
Because of chia seed has a small form and easy to digest on the baby, then how has become so easy that can be directly sown on food or beverages will be served. Chia Seed can be stored in a dry state for 4 to 5 years. In that time period of chia seed will not experience a decrease in the taste, aroma, or his nutritional and nutrient content.
