Nutrition
The primitive man lived on hunting, fishing and wild fruits that filled up his dietary needs since he had what his body demanded. As the intensive cereals and grains agriculture was born together with , the industrial cattle food, the technology to preseve food and the large urban centers, the nutritional diet is substantially modified giving form to “civilization diseases” which were produced by unbalanced nutrients and faults in essential elements.
ANTIOXIDANTS
Antioxidants beat the ageing and damaging both in food as well as in living beigns.
The most important antioxidants of chia are clorogenic acids, cafeic acids, quercetin and kaemferol. It has been seen that flavonols have antioxidant, antiinflammatory, anti -cargirogenous, antivirals, antimutagenic activities, and antiplatelet aggregate.
Epidemologic studies indicate that a high level of food and drink consumption rich in antioxidants can protect against CHD, apoplexy, lung and stomach cancer. Besides, there is a growing evidence that suggest that other many diseases like arthritis, damaging of inmune system and brain dysfunction, are the result of the damage caused by free radicals.
The Chia may play an important role to prevent the risk of more serious diseases.
Essential Fatty Acids
Linolenic acid (or Omega-6 fatty acid) or alfa-linolenic acid (or Omega-3 fatty acid) are both essential fatty acids. The terminology “essential” is because our body is unable to produce it and thus the importance to provide it through food.
The essential fatty acid suitable contribution must be done throughout the entire life, as a reflex obtained since infancy. In fact, at early childhood, to eat “better fats” prepares the food of the life of the future adult. It is at this stage that nutritional education takes place.
FATTY ACIDS
Chemically, the fatty acid is an organic molecule formed by a long hydrocarbon chain, with an even number of carbon atoms, in whose extreme there is a carboxyl group. Each carbon atom joins the next and the previous one by means of a simple covalent linking. To its extreme atom, three linkings are free which are occupied by hydrogen atoms (H3C-). The remaining atoms posses two free linkings, that are equally occupied by hydrogen atoms.(...-CH2-CH2-CH2-...).
In general, (not sometimes though)we can write a generic fatty acid as R-COOH, where R is the hydrocarbonated chain that identifies the acid in particular.
Fatty acids are the compounds of some lipids. The carboxile group (-COOH) that is found in the extreme of the molecule is combined with one of the glycerine hydroxile groups (-OH), specifically propanotriol, reacting with it.
Essential Fatty Acids
Linolenic acid (or Omega-6 fatty acid) or alfa-linolenic acid (or Omega-3 fatty acid) are both essential fatty acids. The terminology “essential” is because our body is unable to produce it and thus the importance to provide it through food.
The essential fatty acid suitable contribution must be done throughout the entire life, as a reflex obtained since infancy. In fact, at early childhood, to eat “better fats” prepares the food of the life of the future adult. It is at this stage that nutritional education takes place.
Chia, Flax and Fish
Scientific evidence has shown that paleolitic diet that the human genome selected, is far from the current diet of western societies. Today, it is not more discussed the need to rise the consumption of Omega-3 fatty acids(alfa-linoleic as well as DHA and EPA) to balance the consumption of Omega-6 fatty acids and to turn western countries´diets into the ones that had been chosen by human physiology.
At the time that men become conscious of the need to increase the consumption of Omega-3 fatty acids, it arises the concern to determine the way to meet the growing demand.
At present, there are only three rich raw materials with Omega-3 fatty acids, available in large quantities: chia seed, flax and fish. Although the three constitue an interesting complement because the first are rich in alfa-linolenic fatty acids and the last in EPA and DHA, the flax seed presents serious anti-nutrient factors which strongly threaten the convenience of their use in food, both for humans and animals. The fish becomes a dominant product, inspite of its easy oxidation and its strange flavour drive(fish taste) turns it into a discriminatory target by most of western countries´consumers.
The chia is a sustainable product and friend of the evironment. Its use as a source of Omega – 3 stops destruction of natural fish stocks and also eliminates the concern for the accumulation of environmental toxins like dioxin and mercury that may be found in fish and by- products. With chia, neither solvents are needed for extraction nor preservers for human or animal diets due to its high content of antioxidants. Present science explains the reason why ancient Mesoamerican civilizations considered chia as a basic component of their diets.
Biochemic Combination of Chia Seeds Produced by
The following tables show the chemic combination of chia seeds produced by Chia Corp™ in the last three years. These data are the average from over 30 tests carried out by two independent labs under ISO 9000, based one of them in Argentina and the other in USA:
Content of protein, fibres, lipids, and antioxidants in chia produced by Chia Corp™
PROTEINS LIPDS FIBRES ANTIOXIDANTS
(1%) * (mg/g of seed )
20 31 37.9 9.42
Profile of Chia Fatty Acids Produced by Chia Corp™
Fatty Acids
Palmitic Estearic Oleic Linoleic Linolenic Araquidic Gadoleic SFA PUFA O-6:O-3 PUFA:SFA O-3:SFA
6.9 3.5 7.4 18.6 62.5 0.28 0.15 10.4 81 0.3 7.9 6.1
Profile of Chia Antioxidants Produced by Chia Corp™
______________________________________________________
Quercetin Kaemferol Clorogenic Acid Cafeic Acid
(1%) *
______________________________________________________
6.5 4.6 55.8 33.1
______________________________________________________
* Percentage over the total of phenolic compounds
__________________________________________________
DIETARY FIBRE
Chia seed contains a high percentage of dietary fibre. 5% of this percentage is soluble fibre. By soaking the seed, a clear sheet is formed and strongly remains stuck to it. This chia gelatine is useful as dietary fibre, improving the running of digestive system.
Trans - Fats
Trans – fats are noxious for health because the body confuses them. Their chemical form is similar to Omega-3´s and Omega-6´ s, and the body uses them for the same purpose.
However, as they are structurally different, the cell membrane that needs to be porous becomes tense and rigid. This causes several inconveniences including resistance to insulin which leads to diabetes type 2.
Trans- fats consumption increases heart disease risk by the rise of LDL cholesterol and the fall of HDL cholesterol.
LIPIDS OR FATS
We often speak ill about fats. We probably forget that we badly choose them and consume them in great amounts during adulthood being the reason of the development of diseases called “civilization ones” such as diabetes, obesity, cancer, CHD,etc.
Fats composed, mainly,of fatty acids are basic for life from its beginning. The three first months after birth are critical for the baby. In this moment is when the nervous system is developed and the need of essential fatty acids is high. Breast milk contributes to high amounts of fatty substances to favour the growth and development of the new-born, covering about 50% of daily energy needs until the age of two.
Fats also play very important roles becoming some fatty acids more useful than others, particularly essential fatty acids.
LIPIDS AND THEIR FUNCTION
Lipids and their role are one of the principal matters in nutritional research, even more important than proteins and carbohidrates.
Fatty acids are “the bricks” to build the other body lipids, stimulating and keeping basic vital functions in human beings. They work as energetic reserve (protection against external agents as climate), they are fundamental constituents of cell membranes, act in the formation of an important group of hormon compounds as prostaglandins, tromboxans and leucotriens that are in charge of many physiologic processes associated to the central nervous system, hormon functions, regulation of blood pressure, cholesterol transportation, inmunologic mechanisms and inflammatory reactions.
Healthy Foods
Everything we eat or drink is basically formed by three fundamental elements called macro nutrients: proteins, carbohydrates and fats, that produce energy (calories). The fiber, that does not incorporate into the body as nutrient, is necessary to make digestive system work.
However, for the human body to reach a relative balanced state and to work properly, it needs some nutrients in very small quantities. If these are absent, that balance might be altered since we cannot produce these compounds commonly called micro nutrientes which are: vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and oligoelements.
Omega- 3 Fatty Acids
Omega- 3 fatty acids are formed by alfa-linolenic(ALA), eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and decosahexaenoic (DHA). From the three, ALA, is the most important O-3 fatty acid, and it´s considered essential because as it cannot be synthesized by the human body, must be incorporated to it by means of foods. DHA and EPA fatty acids are combined by fatty acid ALA, then these are not refered as essential.
Omega-3 fatty acids, are the principal component of phospholipidics membranes of the retina and the brain, and their deficiency causes sight reduction, understanding and behaviour deterioration, learning deffect, unipolar depression,etc. Their effect has also been found in CHD, because they protect the individual from deadly ischemic CHD, the cardiac arrithmia, and the thrombosis, restraining the factors of cell growing in arterial walls (preserve its size). Even though, they inhibit the development of tumor cells, avoiding some kind of cancer.
At the time that man becomes conscious of the need to increase the amount of Omega-3 fatty acids, to counteract the excess of Omega-6 fatty acids active in fats, oils and margarine that he frequently consumes, it appears the concern to determine the way to meet this upgrowing demand.
:: Index :: English Version :: Française Version :: Deutsche Version ::
*******************************************************************************************
Important it reads!!!:Flash Player (ver.8 onwards) is needed in order to visualize this website.
JavaScript must be activated in your web browser to visualize this website.
CICS recommend Firefox web browser and Google
You may test your actual Flash Player noscripthere.
If the problem continues, please contact our Web Support
Design by R-Design
*******************************************************************************************