Foods Alive | Organic Chia Oil | 8 oz

Pros:Very light, neutral flavor, so lettuce, raw kale, and other salad ingredient flavors shineExcellent customer support - fast responses to email questionsCold-pressed to retain all the benefits (not expeller-pressed, which uses harsh chemicals)High in Omega 3 Fatty Acids that lower blood pressure and reduce inflammationMay improve brain health and cognitive functionMay be frozen to extend use by dateCon:In a plastic bottle

I ordered this to replace the chia seeds in my green smoothies. It has made my smoothies so much easier to drink since I was having issues with the texture. I just finished day 16 of my smoothies to help decrease my inflammation. I notice a huge difference in my joint pain. I also add it to my rice in the evening because it has a nice nutty flavor. Very happy with my purchase. I'm already on my 2nd bottle.

I love chia as it is such a nutrition powerhouse. I am so glad more companies are making it available in oil form as Chia seeds contain about 32% Omega fatty acids which is very high and rare for a seed. They are 61% Omega-3 (ALA) and 20% Omega-6 (LA). What a great source of Omega without an unhealthy omega 3:6:9 ratio! Chia seeds contain about 42% fiber; 5% soluble fiber and 36% insoluble fiber. Fiber is essential for a healthy gastrointestinal system and inhibiting constipation. 21% protein and are high is essential amino acids, the building blocks of protein, for healthy cellular function. Chia seeds provide iron, magnesium, potassium (equivalent to 3-4 bananas worth), Vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, phosphorus, manganese, copper, iron, molybdenum, niacin, zinc, naturally boost energy and are gluten-free.Chia compares very favorably to the other main sources of -3's:Flax: Today the main source of vegetable -3's among dietary supplements is flax seed or flax seed oils. However, flax seeds need to be milled for effective use in human '-3 absorption, and unfortunately after grinding, it becomes rancid very quickly. In addition, whole flax seed contains cyanogenic glycosides and a vitamin B antagonist, both toxins, making whole flax seed a poor health choice for omega-3 oil consumption. Flax seed oil also has its problems as a "health food" as it has been used for centuries to produce oil based paints and linoleum flooring (another common name for flax seed oil is linseed oil). Daily flax seed consumption in Europe is controlled due to its adverse effects or is banned as is the case in France where flax has been banned since the days of Napoleon.Chia seed oil is much more stable than flax seed oil. In addition whole chia seed has no cyanogenic glycosides, does not require pre-milling and its seed is digestible without grinding. Like flax seed, chia also contains no gluten, however the protein levels in chia seed are much higher than those found in whole flax seed. Thus, if choosing a seed based high omega-3 oil, chia seed is the safe and healthy choice over flax. There are no limits to consumption of Chia.Fish: Another important source of -3 is wild fatty sea fish (Herring Fish, Salmon, Tuna). Fish oils rich in this fatty acid contain from 20% to 30% Omega-3. In the best cases, only 1.5% of fish body weight is -3. Fish oil also contains nearly 80% saturated fat and its omega-3's are quite unstable. In addition, fish oil may contain environmental toxins such as methymercury and PCB's concentrated through the natural fish food chain, and natural high toxins from the fish liver. World fish stocks are declining and gloomy projections about ocean contamination increasingly raises questions about the safety of eating wild fish. Today many fish oils have to undergo molecular distillation to remove these known toxins and carcinogens. Many people refuse to eat fish oil based products of any kind including fish oil concentrates.Chia oil is a stable, non-toxic alternative to fish oil with the added benefit of suiting vegan consumers.Meat: Beef, chicken and pork have very little -3's (0.43%, 0.3% and 0.09%, respectively) and are therefore a poor source of these heart healthy oils.Algae: Some algae contain relatively large amounts of -3. However, they also contain very large amounts of saturated fat Most Western diets do not include algae sources, however certain types of algae are useful sources of DHA, a brain and CNS functional omega-3.Chia oil is a better source of Omega-3 than algae as, in the body, Omega-3 reacts with enzymes and A) counter-balances the effects of Omega-6 in the body and B) creates DHA. Taking algae based DHA does give you it's benefits but does not give the overall benefits that Omega-3 does.Chia: Consumption of either fish or algae based oils can be completely avoided if a stable plant based omega-3 ALA, like Chia, is substituted for them, since it has been shown that ALA is readily converted in useful amounts in humans to both EPA and DHA. In addition, ALA is a strong feedback inhibitor of the highly inflammatory omega-6 metabolic pathway which leads to the extremely potent prostacyclins, thromboxanes and leukotrienes responsible for pain, stroke and immune response. Too much omega-6 in the diet has been heavily associated with heart attacks, strokes and over reactive cellular responses to inflammation stimuli. Consumption of either chia seed or chia seed oil provides a good balance of omega-3:6 ratio in a Western diet that far exceeds appropriate levels of omega-6 intake.While this Foods Alive Chia Seed Oil is very high quality - cold-pressed Artisan and is light and thriving, I wish that Foods Alive would make it available in Miron glass as this bottle is plastic. Miron glass would add a pretty penny to the price but it is worth every cent. As far as chia seed oils that are bottled in plastic, I do not think there is a better quality chia seed oil than Foods Alive. 5-starsUPDATE Nov2013 - FoodsAlive has informed me that the same high quality chia seed oil sold in their plastic containers is available for purchase on their FoodsAlive website in the miron glass. Way to go Foods Alive!

Although the taste is not pleasant, I bought it for its benefits.

Obsolutly fresh tasting. This is my second purchase & I am again happy with this oil. I store my chia seed oil in the fridge. I use it for cooking & I simply love putting it alone on toast.

I used this product to moisturize my face at night. If you use oils to moisturize, you may want to try Chia Oil. I have extremely dry skin and have tried Argan Oil, Avocado Oil, Sweet Almond Oil, Olive Oil, Jojoba Oil, and Grapeseed Oil. I found that Grapeseed and Argan weren't moisturizing enough so I went to the heavier oils - Avocado, Sweet Almond, Olive and Jojoba but found them to be too thick.Enter Chia Seed. From trying a korean chia seed beauty serum from The Face Shop, I noticed that my skin felt moisturized and baby soft. I wanted to go a little more natural so I bought pure Chia Oil. The oil is thin (similar in consistency to Grapeseed or Argan) but it absorbs quickly and moisturizes as well as the heavier oils without leaving my face too shiny. It has the benefits of the heavier oils with the texture of a lighter oil. Apply after cleansing with your face lightly damp, massage it into your skin to allow it to absorb. Depending on your skin, you could use a few drops but I tend to like my face completely drenched so I use a small palmful.The oil has a slightly nutty or exotic scent that I don't love but am willing to overlook because of it's effectiveness. Also beware that the oil stains light colored linens and clothes.

This came without a lid on it. And there wasn’t even one in the package.

This chia seed oil is nice tasting product but expensive like most other chia oil products on market. Too costly for regular purchasing.