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1. Appearance

Sabja and chia seeds may look similar, but upon closer look, you will realise they are different. The dietician revealed the visual difference, “Sabja seeds are jet black in colour and chia seeds are greyish in colour with a few black and white speckles.”

2. Seasonal nature

Certain seeds are seasonal, while others can be eaten year-round. The dietician segregated them based on their functionality and properties. Since saja seeds aid in calming you because of their cooling properties, they can be consumed in summer to beat the heat- issues like acidity and bloating. Chia seeds have neutral benefits, making them suitable for year-round consumption without any prominent seasonal limitations.

3. Soaking time

Preparation is another area where these two seeds differ. Since, sabja seeds swell quickly, Shweta said, “When you add sabja seeds in water, it hardly takes them 5-10 minutes to swell up.” But chia seeds take longer, requiring at least 30 minutes or even overnight to fully expand and get to their gel-like texture.

4. Nutritional focus

Next, let’s look at the most important, their nutritional profiles, and each is great for your health. But their strengths lie in different areas.

“If you are looking for better gut health, bloating, acidity, and constipation, sabja seeds would be your go-to option. If you are looking for overall higher fibre intake, weight loss, better omega-3 content, which will also help your skin health, then chia seeds would be your go-to option,” Shweta elaborated.

5. Usage

How you add to your diet also differs, as the dietician noted that sabja seeds are commonly added to drinks like nimbu pani (lemon water), coconut water and traditional sharbat. Whereas, chia seeds are a bit more versatile and more flexible, finding a place in smoothies, breakfast bowls and puddings. So it means, for light, refreshing drinks, sabja seeds fit the bill, but for more meal-based options, chia seeds work better.