History of chia

Chia, (salvia hispanica L.) has a rich history as an ancient food of the Mayan, Aztec and Southwest Native American people, not only used as a staple food in their diet along with corn, beans and amaranth, it was offered to their gods. Chia was so valued that it was used in ceremonies and also as currency to pay taxes.

When the Spaniards arrived, like all good conquering nations they stopped the inhabitants from doing what they normally do, normally eat, how they speak and just about everything they enjoyed. This included all pagan rituals and since they wanted to civilize all the natives and teach Christianity, they forced them to stop growing chia.

Roasted and ground, chia was used as flour called pinole. Native people have used chia seeds for wounds, colds and sore throats, upset stomaches, body odors, prostate problems, and even constipation. Known as the ”Indian Running Food”, and not because of the high fibre content however because chia is a high-energy endurance food that has been recorded as far back as the ancient Aztecs.

Growing wild, chia was harvested and used as before until the early 80's when health conscious people started hearing about a super food from the desert used by the Mexicans and the Indians. Slowly the word started getting around until someone came up with the idea of farming it. It is used throughout Mexico and grown by locals of every village. Mixed with water, lemon or lime and a little honey chia seeds make a refreshing drink called "chia fresca" used to quench their thirst from the hot Central American sun. Now chia seeds are grown through out Central and South America where it has been grown for thousands of years.