Choline: Food sources, Benefits, Side Effects & Deficiency

Author: becky

May. 13, 2024

Choline: Food Sources, Benefits, Side Effects & Deficiency

If you want to learn more, please visit our website citicoline cdp choline benefits.

Most people might overlook choline when thinking about essential nutrients, but it’s vital for brain, liver, and cellular health. Your brain cells use it to produce acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter crucial for memory. Keep reading to uncover the details about choline!

What is Choline?

Choline is indispensable for optimal health. While the body does produce some choline, dietary intake is essential to prevent deficiency. It is sometimes categorized under B vitamins, but it doesn’t truly belong to that group.

Choline plays several important roles in:

  1. Cell membrane integrity: Choline is essential for building phospholipids that maintain cell structure.
  2. Neurological functions: It aids in synthesizing acetylcholine, vital for cognition, movement, and other essential functions.
  3. DNA production: Works alongside folate and vitamin B12.
  4. Cell communication: Choline constructs molecules that serve as cell messengers.
  5. Cardiovascular health: It helps lower homocysteine levels, reducing heart disease risk.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages:

  • Prevents fatty liver
  • May enhance cognitive function
  • Supports fetal development
  • Could help with asthma
  • Safe for kids and pregnant women

Disadvantages:

  • Can cause a fishy odor and nausea
  • May not enhance mental health and athletic performance
  • Could be linked to movement disorders
  • Possible association with heart disease and certain cancers

Choline Food Sources & Deficiency

Daily Requirements

The Institute of Medicine now recognizes choline as essential, recommending these daily intakes:

  • Men: 550 mg/day
  • Women: 425 mg/day
  • Pregnant women: 450 mg/day
  • Nursing women: 550 mg/day

These recommendations align with the National Institutes for Health standards.

Deficiency Symptoms and High-Risk Groups

Most people don’t consume enough choline. Symptoms of deficiency may include:

  • Poor memory and focus
  • Liver issues, including fatty liver
  • Mood swings
  • Muscle fatigue
  • Decreased athletic endurance

Despite insufficient intake, deficiency symptoms are rare, likely due to the liver producing some choline.

Higher risk groups include:

  • Postmenopausal women
  • Chronic alcohol consumers
  • Pregnant women
  • Individuals with specific genetic variants
  • Athletes
  • People relying on intravenous nutrition

Everyone, from omnivores to vegetarians, is at risk of choline deficiency. Meat eaters and individuals who consume eggs regularly are less likely to be deficient.

Food Sources

Top choline sources include beef liver, eggs, chicken, and beans.

Table 1: Choline Food Sources

Food, Serving size, Milligrams (mg) per serving, % of Daily Value

  • Beef liver, fried: 3 ounces, 356 mg, 65%
  • Egg, hard-boiled: 1 large, 147 mg, 27%
  • Soybeans, roasted: ½ cup, 107 mg, 19%
  • Chicken breast, roasted: 3 ounces, 72 mg, 13%
  • Codfish, cooked: 3 ounces, 71 mg, 13%
  • Shiitake mushrooms, cooked: ½ cup, 58 mg, 11%
  • Red potatoes, baked: 1 large, 57 mg, 10%
  • Beans, kidney, canned: ½ cup, 45 mg, 8%

You'd need to consume around 3 ounces of beef liver or 1-2 eggs daily to meet requirements.

Choline Benefits

Potential benefits listed below refer specifically to choline studies. Citicoline and alpha-GPC offer additional benefits. Always consult your healthcare provider before starting any supplementation.

Potentially Effective Uses

The benefits in this section are backed by significant clinical evidence but are still not officially approved for these conditions.

1) Fatty Liver

Choline helps build phosphatidylcholine, which aids in breaking down liver fats. Low choline levels can thus result in fatty liver.

For instance, a large study involving over 56,000 Chinese participants noted that increased choline intake reduced the risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in normal-weight women.

Adults on low-choline diets showed increased risk for fatty liver, reversed through choline reintroduction. Intravenous choline can prevent fatty liver in people on total parenteral nutrition.

Animal studies also suggest that higher choline intake can prevent and reverse fatty liver, enhance cholesterol metabolism, and protect against liver damage and cancer.

2) Cognitive Enhancement

Choline helps maintain cognitive health by enriching the protective myelin sheath around neurons and sustaining acetylcholine levels.

Studies indicate that higher choline intake correlates with better cognitive performance and memory. Animal research supports its role in preventing memory loss, improving stroke recovery, and protecting the brain.

3) Asthma Relief

A study involving 74 asthma patients found that choline supplementation significantly reduced symptoms and inflammation.

Animal studies further back these findings, suggesting that choline may alleviate inflammation and oxidative stress in asthmatic conditions.

4) Fetal Development

Choline is vital for fetal brain development and may prevent birth defects and cognitive issues. Studies suggest optimal choline intake during pregnancy enhances memory and prevents birth defects.

Animal studies show that prenatal choline supplementation can improve fetal brain development and protect the offspring against brain damage.

Additionally, increased choline intake during pregnancy may reduce the risk of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and neural tube defects.

Evidence Needed

Limited clinical evidence supports the use of choline for the following conditions. Further research is required.

5) Mental Health

Some studies report that choline may help manage bipolar disorder when combined with standard treatments.

One clinical trial found that children with bipolar disorder experienced notable improvements when treated with choline.

Lower blood choline levels have been linked to increased anxiety, suggesting a possible benefit of choline supplementation for mental health.

6) Weight Loss

Choline might aid in weight loss, as suggested by a study on female athletes where choline supplementation reduced BMI without affecting performance.

However, a review of multiple studies showed inconsistent effects of choline on body composition.

These contradictory results mean further research is needed to confirm choline’s role in weight loss.

Additional Conditions

Choline may also help with cystic fibrosis and tardive dyskinesia, although evidence is limited.

Possibly Ineffective Uses

Some studies found no significant effects of choline for conditions such as movement disorders, schizophrenia, and athletic performance.

Heart Disease and Stroke

Choline plays a role in converting homocysteine to methionine, potentially lowering cardiovascular risks. However, increased choline intake has been linked to higher levels of trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), which is associated with cardiovascular risks.

Research offers mixed results, requiring more investigation to understand the relationship between choline and cardiovascular health.

Cancer Risks

Higher dietary choline intake might lower breast cancer risk but could increase the risk of prostate cancer.

The connection between choline and colon cancer remains inconsistent, warranting further research.

Limitations and Considerations

Choline supplementation might not provide the same benefits as dietary choline. Clinical trials often lack placebo controls, involve small sample sizes, and have poor designs. Be cautious about higher choline intake due to potential adverse effects.

Choline Supplements

Although choline supplements offer potential benefits, they are not FDA-approved for medical use. Consult your healthcare provider before using any supplements.

Common forms of choline supplements include pills (350-500 mg of choline bitartrate), bulk powders, choline with inositol, and choline-enriched multivitamins. Many supplements derive choline from soy and eggs; vegan options are available.

Other choline-based supplements include alpha-GPC, phosphatidylcholine, and citicoline. Each has unique pros and cons.

Side Effects & Risks

The following list of potential side effects might not be exhaustive. Consult your healthcare provider to determine the safety and appropriate dosage of choline supplements for you.

Choline supplements are generally safe, causing minor side effects like stomach upset, fishy odor, and diarrhea. The FDA considers choline "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS) up to 3,500 mg/day for healthy adults.

Dosage Recommendations

Choline dosages typically range between 500-2000 mg/day. For prenatal use, doses of 930 mg/day during the third trimester are suggested. Choline dosages between 1-2 g/day are often used for brain health, though clinical backing is limited.

Start with lower doses and consult your healthcare provider when beginning choline supplementation.

User Experiences

User reviews reflect personal experiences and are not medical advice. Consult your healthcare provider for medical concerns.

Users often find choline supplementation beneficial for memory, mental clarity, energy, liver function, asthma, and weight control. Common side effects include fishy odor and nausea.

Where to Buy Choline

  • Amazon or iHerb

Conclusion

Choline is crucial for liver, brain, and nerve health, yet many people worldwide don't meet their choline requirements. Beef liver, eggs, chicken, whole grains, and beans are excellent sources.

Choline may prevent fatty liver, boost cognition, and support fetal development. However, scientific consensus is required to validate benefits for mental health, weight loss, and other conditions. Exercise caution, especially as high intake may relate to heart disease and some cancers.

Benefits of Citicoline: Is It Good For Me?

What Is Citicoline?

“Embrace what you don’t know, especially in the beginning, because what you don’t know can become your greatest asset. It ensures that you will absolutely be doing things different from everybody else.”
― Sara Blakely

Citicoline is a natural supplement enhancing mental functions like concentration, focus, learning ability, and memory. It’s an organic choline compound linked with cytosine, as shown in studies in Future Lipidology.

Initially isolated in 1954 to potentially treat liver diseases, citicoline showed no benefits for liver conditions but did increase blood pressure, alertness, and response in animal studies.

Notably, the CNS Drugs study showed that citicoline enhances mental energy, memory, attention, response time, concentration, and focus.

As it can cross the blood-brain barrier, citicoline has been extensively studied for stroke recovery, leading to FDA approval. It is also marketed as a nootropic supplement for cognitive enhancement.

Citicoline boosts CDP-choline levels, aiding in the synthesis of phosphatidylcholine, essential for neuronal membrane receptors' optimal function.

It inhibits cholinesterase, increasing brain acetylcholine levels while promoting neuron regeneration and synaptic plasticity.

In summary, citicoline supports neuronal function and offers protection against ischemic damage.

Contact us to discuss your requirements of citicoline sodium salt. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.

102

0

Comments

Please Join Us to post.

0/2000

All Comments ( 0 )

Guest Posts

If you are interested in sending in a Guest Blogger Submission,welcome to write for us!

Your Name: (required)

Your Email: (required)

Subject:

Your Message: (required)