IS 'CHIA SEED WATER' GOOD FOR YOU?

Q: I keep seeing "chia seed water" all over social media, with influencers saying it helps with constipation, bowel regularity and weight loss. Is that true?

- CAROLINE HOPKINS LEGASPI NYT

A: In a video on TikTok, a woman waves a plastic water bottle containing chia seeds, lemon juice and water in front of the camera. She's on her fourth day of drinking the gloop, she says. "Let me tell you something," she adds, "this is, like, the realest thing I've ever learned on the internet. I am the most constipated person I know," but since drinking the chia seeds, she continues, she has "never been so regular".

It's a familiar line on TikTok, where views for many videos about "the internal shower", as the drink has been called, number in the millions. Chia seed water is made from simple ingredients: just a tablespoon or two of chia seeds, water and perhaps a squeeze of lemon juice for taste. Yet the drink has been said to have big benefits, including helping with bloating, bowel irregularity and even weight loss.

To a certain extent, these claims are true, said Amanda Lynett, a dietitian specialising in gastroenterology and hepatology at Michigan Medicine. Thanks to the high fibre content, chia seeds are one of her go-to dietary recommendations for people who struggle with constipation, she said.

But you don't have to chug them in water to enjoy their benefits. Experts say that no matter how you consume chia seeds whether sprinkled onto oatmeal or yoghurt, or mixed into puddings, baked goods or smoothies - they'll still help your digestion.

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