Hemp, you’ve heard about it and you only know what you’ve been able to overhear in other conversations and few articles you’ve seen here and there. Suddenly, you are noticing hemp seeds for sale at your local grocery store and it has left you a bit confused? Is hemp legal again? Doesn’t this stuff make you high? How is the grocery store selling hemp seeds?
Hemp is Legal
Hemp has been legal again, in many forms, since 2014. While the dictation and verbiage of the Farm Bill Act of 2014 wasn’t very clear, many still were slow toward using and making products with hemp. In December of 2018, a new Farm Bill was drafted that was far more explicit in the terms of hemp being legal to possess, grow under supervision, and to manufacture products from.
This blew the doors off of the industry for hemp and some products were already in place, so those took off immediately. One of these products was hemp seeds. They are great tasting and good for you, so they found their way in grocery stores a while back.
Facts About Hemp Seeds
Hemp seeds do not cause anyone to get high. There is no THC in hemp seeds, nor is there any CBD in hemp seeds either. Hemp seed oils are good for Omega 3 fatty acid and some other vitamins and nutrients that we’ll discuss later, but other than that, you cannot get pain relief or a high from hemp seeds or oil made from hemp seeds.
Nutrient rich, the hemp seed is a wonderful addition to anyone’s diet and they are profoundly beneficial to the body, as a nutritional supplement. Add hemp seeds to salads, smoothies, fruit shakes and more. They contain quite a list of dietary necessities. Below is a list of essential vitamins and minerals found in just one tablespoon of hemp seeds:
● 6.31 g of protein
● 9.75 g of fat
● 1.73 g of carbohydrates (including 0.8 g of fiber and 0.3 g of sugar)
● 14 milligrams (mg) of calcium
● 1.59 mg of iron
● 140 mg of magnesium
● 330 mg of phosphorus
● 240 mg of potassium
● 1.98 mg of zinc
● 22 micrograms (mcg) of folate
Hemp seeds also provide vitamin C, some B vitamins, and vitamins A and E.
As you can see, they are very good for you, loaded with things that we don’t get from other things. Hemp seeds also offer rich Omega 3 fatty acids and Omega 6 fatty acids as well. Hemp seeds also contain all ten of the possible amino acids in protein.
This makes them a better protein source than pine nuts or sunflower seeds. In fact, they are the only seed that has all ten amino acids, which are vital to growth, healthy hair and skin, as well as repairing damaged muscle and healing injuries.
Amino acids are the building blocks of the body and they are only found in protein. This is why humans are omnivores, however vegetarians can get good sources of protein from things like hemp seeds added to salads or smoothies. Vegetarians can get protein from many other plants but often need to supplement with things like hemp seeds in order to avoid falling short or needing to eat 10 pounds of spinach per week.
Even if you aren’t a vegetarian, there are plenty of reasons to supplement your diet with hemp seeds. Most humans are told that eating just one 3.5 ounce serving of fish per week is enough to keep them healthy and get the necessary omega fatty acids that the body desperately needs.
Most people do not eat fish that often and some people never eat fish. Hemp seeds a solid way to supplement their diet to ensure that they are getting the Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids that they need to maintain healthy cardiovascular systems.
Hemp seeds have a wonderfully nutty flavor and if you use hemp seed oil, it will tend to have a grassy flavor. Either product will give you the same benefits and you’ll have more potential ways of getting hemp seeds in your diet if you use both.
Hemp seeds are natural, gathered from industrialized hemp plants that cannabis but definitely not the same as marijuana plants. Hemp seeds are safe, calorie dense, and a great way for athletes in training to recover after workouts. Add hemp seed to your recovery smoothie/protein shake, for additional protein boost and immune system support. You can add them to almost any drink or smoothie, sprinkle on a salad or on top of soup for a nutty flavor that goes well with squash and pumpkin.
Pine nuts are now available just about anywhere that food is sold – grocery stores, convenience stores and big box chains like Walmart carry them, or order them online to get exclusive offers from manufacturers directly. They are perfectly legal in all fifty states and you can add a tablespoon to any meal to give yourself an additional 100 calories of nutrition.
If you allow yourself to try some hemp seeds, you’ll want to make them a part of your everyday routine because they are simply good. Add them to granola or cereal in the morning.
They are delicious on top of oatmeal, for example. You don’t need to drastically change your diet, simply add them to things that you already eat. A sprinkle of them on top of French toast in the morning will start your day of right. Add them on top of your strawberry jam on the toast.
Mix hemp seeds into the salad dressing oil that you make for your salad this evening. Bake some into your favorite breads. They are especially delicious in pumpkin bread and zucchini bread. No one will even know you’ve added hemp seeds, they will just notice a stronger nuttier flavor that is perfection.
You’ll begin to find a hundred ways per week that you can incorporate these tasty seeds into your diet and soon you won’t even have to put any thought into it, you’ll just add them to things without thinking about it at all.