Chia seeds are also full of fiber, which is why they can absorb up to 10 to 12 times their weight in water2. “The fiber is what really acts as a sponge,” Cohen notes. In fact, she tells us that her co-author, cultural anthropologist Gina Bria, suggested her mother (who was suffering from overt dehydration) put chia seeds in her orange juice every morning. “She never became dehydrated again, because it held onto the hydration better,” Cohen recounts. Of course, this is no clinical trial—just one person’s success story—but the science behind it makes sense.