Chia Power

Chia Pet Halloween Costumes?

Check out this Tutorial for a DIY Chia Pet Puppy Costume

 

Ten Top Chia Pet Costumes from VH1

A lame attempt made with real chia seeds! Seen at Tompkins Square Park, NYC.

And a really sad doggie from Your Saving Grace on KHSU at Humbolt State University

Beat Acid Indigestion with Chia Seeds

Emily Morris of http://www.mychiaseeds.com has written this very helpful article listing 5 ways that chia seeds can help prevent heartburn.

#2, for example:

Clinging Quality:

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.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3357666

Ophthalmic uses of chia seed

Put a chia seed in your eye? Why?

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.)

For Your Moody Mares

Horse owners are way ahead of the rest of us. Some have been feeding chia seed to their horses for years.

Here are links to a few relevant websites:

Chia Farms Booster

Equine Chia

Chia Canada 

Some Benefits of Chia Seed (for horses)

• Promotes a healthy, glossy coat
• Stronger, faster growing hooves
• Helps prevent laminitis and insulin disorders
• Calms hot nervous temperaments
• Prevents sand colic
• Eases mare cycles and estrus inflammation
• Improvement of dermatitis (summer itch)
• Lower allergy to insect bites
• Chia has no strong flavor, easy to top dress
• Easy to store, keeps up to two years
• Economical — replaces several products in one simple grain
• Horses love it!

Read more about it on the Horsetopia Forum

Chia Duck 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!

Potassium

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

             Thanks,

                       S.

---

Dear S.

Sure, I remember you. You made my day!!

 

Here's a link to complete nutrition data for chia seeds: http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3061/2 

One ounce of chia has about 45 mg of potassium.  

Stay in touch, and let me know how you are using chia seeds.   Margaret

Pet Food?

Can your pets eat chia seed? We know that there's been lots of experiments on using chia seed as chicken feed.

I've found  a few more examples of chia seeds as animal food:

• Harrison's Premium Certified Organic Bird Foods.
• Wellytales Dog/Puppy Products
• One experiment on rats concluded that chia seed and oil was beneficial to them.
• Tortoises love sprouts of all kinds and Carolina Pet Supply carries several sprouting mixes containing chia seed.

•  

Note: the Chia Cat Grass Planter does not contain any chia seeds!