Fatty acid bioavailability study of single oral doses of milled chia seed snack clusters or chia seed oil in healthy subjects

Abstract

Chia seeds are a rich source of alpha‐linolenic acid (ALA), but the acute plasma ALA response to chia seed or chia seed oil ingestion has not yet been determined. Female subjects (N=16, 20 to 45 y) reported to the lab after an overnight fast on 3 separate occasions and ingested, in random order by visit, a snack cluster (PL), snack cluster with 8 g milled chia seed (CS; 1.3 mg ALA), or chia seed oil (CSO; 1.3 mg ALA). A catheter was placed in an antecubital vein, and blood samples were taken at pre‐ingestion and postingestion (0.5, 1.5, 2.5, 3.5, 4.5, and 6 h) during which the subjects rested and ingested a 550 kcal breakfast at post‐1.75 h. Subjects returned to the lab to provide a 24 h sample. Blood samples were analyzed for ALA, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) using GC‐MS. A 3 × 8 repeated measures ANOVA revealed a significant interaction effect for ALA (P<0.001) but not for EPA (P=0.581) or DHA (P=0.445). ALA in CS (↑82%) and CSO (↑91%) increased significantly 2.5 h post‐ingestion and stayed elevated above PL with some attenuation at 3.5 h, dropping to pre‐ingestion levels at 24 h. In conclusion, these bioavailability data indicate that 1.3 mg ALA from CS or CSO nearly doubles plasma ALA levels within 2.5 h ingestion, staying elevated for several hours, and then falling to pre‐ingestion levels without conversion to EPA or DHA within 24 h.Funded by Dole Food Company, Inc.