Learn About the Benefits of Choline Supplements
Choline is an essential nutrient that is often mistaken for a member of the B complex family because of the numerous functions that it shares with it. Although a well balanced diet should supply enough choline there have been links made between deficiencies of choline and some health impairments such as cardiovascular disease, liver disease, and impaired cognitive function which is why choline supplements are sometimes needed.
For many years it was thought that people could get enough choline through the body’s ability to manufacture choline from other nutrients, vitamin B12, and folic acid. Now however it is known that the body does need choline supplements if there are deficiencies to avoid the health complications that could occur.
Choline in the body is contained in phospholipids, fat molecules more commonly known as lecithin. Lecithin is crucial for the proper functioning of the brain’s neurotransmitters and is an important element in the composition of cell membranes and effective biochemical communication between cells.
Lecithin is naturally found in egg yolks and can be extracted from soybeans through a refining process. Individuals who aren’t getting enough lecithin from foods can talk to their doctor about adding a choline supplement.
Benefits of Choline or Lecithin Supplements
The vast array of functions that lecithin is involved in the body is directly related to the importance of choline and choline supplements in cases of deficiency. Lecithin in found in every living cell with the highest concentrations being found in the body’s vital organs – the heart, brain, liver and kidneys.
Choline helps to reduce cholesterol. Although its effects on cholesterol are not dramatic, in the fight against heart disease any decrease is considered a positive outcome. Lecithin helps the liver to break down fats that cause high cholesterol resulting in lower overall cholesterol numbers.
In addition to helping break down fats in the liver, research has found that a deficiency of choline may result in a buildup of cholesterol in the liver resulting in what doctors call a ‘fatty liver’.
This deficiency of choline and the resulting fat accumulation in the liver are believed to be the reason for an increase in liver cancer.
Other reasons for preventing choline deficiencies through the use of choline supplements include the fact that choline affects brain development and may also be helpful in managing individuals with Alzheimer’s disease.
The effect of choline on brain development may also lead to better treatment of neurological and psychological disorders in both infants and in elderly patients experiencing dementia.
Choline, through lecithin, is highly regarded as a fat emulsifier which also makes it powerful in preventing arteriosclerosis and heart disease, two common cardiovascular conditions known to be caused by a fat and cholesterol.
Choline, a little known nutrient in the body that is found in the fat molecules known as lecithin, is an important part of many vital functions. As more research is conducted on the impact of choline deficiencies in the body, more people will turn to choline supplements to insure they are fully protected.