Wtf is this craze? I now own a bag of them and plan on putting them on my yogurt - but on the real, what's the health/nutrition benefit? I just keep reading that they're good for you.

Thoughts?

They contain healthy fats with a mix of protein. That is pretty much it. They, like flax seed, can also be used as an egg replacer in some recipes due to their binding properties.

I haven't jumped on the chia seed bandwagon yet... But since I'm always up for trying whatever the latest food craze is... I'm sure it won't be long before I'm seeing them sprinkled on something that I happen to be eating...

Apparently the word on the street is that 2013 is going to be "The Year of The Chia Seed"... but I'm just gonna take a "wait and see" on that one for now...

Has their been an increase in advertising? I thought chia seed popularity had peaked a few years ago. I heard of them prior but Born to Run (2009) gave chia seed popularity a pretty big boost and that is when I started to see them everywhere.

Yeah, I don't think they ever gained the "traction" as a genuine "bona fide" food craze that the companies behind them would have liked... but there does seem to be a few more mainstream media reports about them lately for some reason... so I guess they're still trying... as they say..."If at first you don't succeed..." and well, we all know how that one goes...

Chia seeds are too expensive for me. I'll just stick with flax seed.

Also, A comparison of flax vs. chia

I like that chia seeds don't have to be ground unlike flax seeds and they seem to keep better. Flax seeds seem to be cheaper, I usually buy chia at around $7/lb although last time I went to buy them from Amazon, I must've hit an unusual sale as I got 2 lbs for $7 which has lasted me forever. I like the nutty taste of flax seeds though which is something chia is lacking.

I love em. Sprinkled in yogurt like you SoMuchFattitude! Mix them into smoothies too. They make your smoothies extra thick! Besides good fat and protein, they have a decent amount of fiber too (Careful, they can make you gassy at first!!)

I was on a Chia kick for a while, I always just added them to yogurt or a shake. I never made the paste with them, that texture would give me the creeps!

The other craze (to me) is quinoa. I never heard of it til like 3 months ago and now it's all over the place.

Thanks for the link, Psychic!!

Not to hijack the thread but now this has me wondering about the comparisons, can I mix chia and flax seeds together to get both benefits? Has anyone ever tried that?

amandie - they have similar benefits so eating both is fine if you like.

elvislover - I'm not sure if quinoa has gotten a boost lately but its been around a while but it starting to be recognized as a real worldwide crop. I've seen a lot of quinoa recipes in mainstream magazines for quite a few years and many of my cookbooks have quinoa recipes.

Amandie, I put both in my morning smoothie. Good stuff and the chia thickens it slightly when I'm not using fruit.

I buy cold-milled golden flax from Flax USA. I find it at Sam's Club for $7.98. Its already ground up, but since its cold-milled, it keeps it nutrients.

Ground flax seeds are subject to going rancid which is what I don't like. I can keep my chia seeds in my pantry but you need to keep flax seeds in the fridge and I'm not sure how long they stay good for in the fridge? Maybe longer than I think but I've heard so many rancid flax seed horror stories that I buy whole flax seeds when I buy them.

Maybe it's because I finally got my head out of the bowl of pasta, the bowl of white rice and the bowl of mashed potatoes and realized there is healthier food out there! I do believe there was some negative news recently and that got my attention, that quinoa crops were too expensive for the poor people to eat anymore due to it's recent popularity. Actually I think the story was linked here in a 3FC thread.