I had read a lot about chia online, and wanted to try them out. I tried them various ways, but have settled into have a shot glass of pudding in the morning (1 tablespoon of seeds, agave, nutmeg, cinnamon, and almond milk--dairy milk tastes ok but the seeds do not soak as much liquid when I use dairy milk, so they are crunchier), and after dinner, a glass of diluted orange juice, with some seeds in it that I keep pre-soaked in the fridge. It has really helped with regularity. I had a lot of problems with constipation before.
I read that because of the antioxidants and omega-3's, chia can also be good for reducing wrinkles, but I have not seen any effects in that area yet (I am 30 and have some on my forehead and around my eyes). I try to chew the seeds so that I can get the most of their nutrients, but a lot of them just go right through.
I tried grinding them into my smoothies, but they gave it a grainy, thick taste that I didn't like. I prefer to put pre-soaked seeds into my smoothie. If the smoothie contains anything frozen, the seeds quickly freeze and become little chewy ice balls that are quite good.
I found when I did the chia-orange-juice thing in the middle of the day as a snack, it gave me diarrhea, so that wasn't so great-feeling.
I also read that because chia seeds are in the salvia family, they can be addictive, so you should only eat them 3 weeks out of the month. I haven't had them long enough to get addicted, but I don't know what I would do without them for a week!
My diet is overall pretty low in fiber, so chia seeds are a great way to get fiber. They combine well with so many other foods, and are so easy to prepare.
I wanted to give some to my pregnant friend, who is of course having problems with regularity, but I read that they are not recommended for pregnant or lactating women, mainly because not much testing has been done in that area. It's too bad, because I was hoping to use them if I get pregnant.
