In the process of forming gels, the seeds may
also gather up impurities in the liquid. The ancient Aztec people, if
they got dirt or ash in their eye in battle, would actually allow a Chia
Seed to be dropped into their eye. (This is not recommended, you are
not an ancient Aztec warrior) The seed would then go to work absorbing
their eye-water and any debris along with it. The seed and debris could
then be easily removed and the eye was clear again.
The same thing
happens when dry seeds are added to your stomach. Particles, bacteria
and liquids are 'captured' when the seeds form their gel.
Barbara writing on Healthmad.com: "I had just that morning awakened with a
really pink and swollen eye. Hated the thought of an expensive doctor
visit. ... I put 3 or 4
seeds in my eye (just dropped them in to the lower lid area) and laid
back with my eyes closed for a bit, waiting for the seeds to soften a
bit. I could feel them but it was not painful. Well, I continued that
for the next 24 hours, and my eye began to get better immediately. I
never did go to the doc - by the next day the swelling was pretty much
gone, with just a trace of redness left. I continued to keep a seed or
two in the eye for a few days and never had any more trouble." June 11, 2008
ChrisMC writing in Ode Magazine says, "because I have dry eyes I started putting one Chia seed inside the
lower lid of each night before I go to bed and removing it in the
morning. I started doing this the beginning of January and when I saw
my eye doctor the end of January, he said I have more moisture in my
eyes than he had seen in a long time."
Where did people get this idea? Apparently it comes from an old fashioned remedy for removing a foreign object from your eye. This old guy remembers using flaxseed, which also has a gelatin-forming seed coat. So .... just put'tim in yer eye:
(And elsewhere on chiativity you can read about the woman who put a chia seed in her duck's eye.)
NEWS: According to Sarah Enriquez, Lifemax Distributor in Orlando, her pet duck, Mingming, has made a miraculous recovery from an eye infection with the help of chia seeds! She says, "I noticed her right eye wasn't moving. It was shut close for a few days and when she finally opened it, it won't see a thing. It won't respond to any movements and it looked as though there was a clear film on it."
Sarah learned of the reports of ophthalmic uses of chia seeds among native Californians:
"...seeds were dropped into the eye, and rolled around or left
in overnight. The Cahuilla tribe used chia seeds in this fashion
to remove sand in the eyes acquired from sandstorms encountered after
a long day of hunting . Seeds were sometimes mashed
with a rock or hammer and placed in the eye overnight
The film that resulted from the gelatinous seeds in either method absorbed
any foreign body or irritant and helped to ease inflammation." (This is from a USDA document on Golden Chia)
So Sarah sprinkled some MILA (ground chia seed) on Mingming's eye and says, "the next morning, the clear film was gone. Her eye is still not as good as the one on the left but it really did get better with MILA. I will put more tomorrow so it will completely heal."
P.S. Sarah has also used MILA to heal her chick's broken leg!
Although I didn't sell alot at the recent Longwood Country Fair, I made some terrific connections and had a great time!! I especially enjoyed watching children do the chia craft activity and handing out samples of Chia Bug Juice and home made Chia Butter Cookies.
Here's an email from someone I met who told me that she has been adding chia seed to her horse's diet!!!
From: S.K. Sent: Tuesday, November 11, 2008 7:26 AM To:
mcon@optonline.net Subject: I met you at fair last
weekend
Margaret,
Hi I'm not sure if you would remember me
as I'm sure you met many people but I was the one with my husband and daughter
that new alot about the seeds. I think you said that was a first and then I told
you that I had already seen your site. Anyway if you don't it was so nice to met
you and I wanted to ask you if you know the potassuim amount in the
Chia