Choline benefit and side effects, adverse events - supplement study results 500 mg capsules and use for cognitive decline

Choline, found in foods as varied as liver, beef, eggs, ice cream and chocolate, plays an important role in the formation of cell membranes -- the outer sheath that keeps cells intact. In addition, the nutrient is a building block for the neurotransmitter acetylcholine and other chemical messengers in the brain. You can find choline in an excellent doctor-formulated multivitamin product or a product used as a diet pill.

Buy Choline Bitartrate supplement formulated by Ray Sahelian, M.D.

Choline is an essential precursor of acetylcholine, a stimulatory neurotransmitter. It also helps in the production of lipotropic agents which converts fats into useful products and aids in the production of HDL (good) cholesterol.

Choline is 100 % natural choline bound to tartaric acid, making it easier to absorb.

Supplement Facts
Choline - 500 mg *   
   (as Choline bitartrate)
* Choline daily value not established

Usage: Take half or 1 choline capsule a few minutes before breakfast or lunch or as directed by your health care provider.

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A combination of hoodia, ginger, choline, green tea extract, spirulina, acetyl-l-carnitine, guggul, and several other herbs and nutrients, as found in Diet Rx, is a very effective herbal diet pill for weight loss. Users of Diet Rx have lost several pounds within a week or two.

Choline benefit
Choline is an essential nutrient required by the body to make several important compounds necessary for healthy cell membranes. Choline helps form phosphatidylcholine, the primary phospholipid of cell membranes. Choline is also the precursor to acetylcholine, one of the important brain chemicals involved in memory. This nutrient, usually as part of phosphatidylcholine, is widely available in a number of foods, particularly eggs, fish, legumes, nuts, and meats and vegetables, as well as in human breast milk. Dietary intake of choline ranges from 300 to 900 mg a day. Most individuals who have a normal diet are not deficient in choline. The importance of choline was emphasized in 1998 when the National Academy of Sciences classified it as an essential nutrient. In the past, it was thought that the human body made adequate amounts when needed. However, a study by Dr. Steven Zeisel, from the Department of Nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, demonstrated that volunteers on a choline deficient diet were not able to produce enough of this nutrient. A major use of choline in the body is the formation of betaine, an important methyl donor.
   Although humans require dietary choline for methyl donation, membrane function, and neurotransmission, choline can also be derived from the de novo synthesis of phosphatidylcholine.

Choline Side effects and safety
A common side effect of choline ingestion is increased body temperature and sweating. Nausea and loss of appetite can result from very high doses. Most people notice having more focus and being more alert. A positive side effect is that choline helps with erections.

Choline and Pregnancy
According to the results of several studies in rats, providing choline during pregnancy enhances memory and learning capacity in the fetus (Williams 1998). Dr. Christina Williams, a behavioral neuroscientist at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, says her study findings demonstrate, "That supplementation with choline during the last third of pregnancy has fairly dramatic and long-lasting effects on the memory of offspring." A 1997 study published in Advances in Pediatrics by Dr. Zeisel showed that choline reserves are depleted during pregnancy and lactation (Zeisel 1997). This depletion may affect normal brain development and memory in the offspring. The National Academy of Sciences suggests that pregnant women consume at least 450 milligrams of choline per day.

Choline Recommendations
Individuals whose diet includes a wide variety of foods are not likely to suffer from obvious choline deficiency. Growing infants, pregnant or lactating women, and individuals with liver cirrhosis may potentially be deficient in choline (Zeisel 1994). Whether choline supplements benefit older individuals with age related memory decline has not yet been adequately determined. Because of its relative safety, and potential benefits, I recommend small amounts of choline in the elderly who have age related cognitive decline. See chapter 18 for specific recommendations. Choline can be taken occasionally by younger individuals on days when better concentration and focus would be helpful.

Choline deficiency
Some men and women who consume the recommended daily amount of choline may still develop an insufficiency and experience liver dysfunction as a result. Dr. Kerry-Ann da Costa, of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, believes some people may need more than the recommended amount of choline for optimal health. The study included 57 healthy adults -- 26 men, 16 premenopausal women and 15 postmenopausal women - who consumed a daily diet consisting of 550 milligrams of choline for the first 10 days. The subjects were then put on a diet for up to 42 days that contained less than 50 milligrams of choline, and were also randomly assigned to received folic acid supplements or no folic acid supplements. By the end of the study, 39 participants, including more than three quarters of the men and postmenopausal women, showed signs of liver dysfunction. Pre-menopausal women appeared to be less affected by the choline deprivation, however, with only 44 percent exhibiting liver dysfunction. Folic acid did not appear to influence the subjects' susceptibility to choline deficiency. Dr. Steven H. Zeisel, also of UNC at Chapel Hill, explained that "evolution designed women" so choline levels wouldn't get too low. Pre-menopausal women's "ability to make it from scratch is turned on by estrogen," he continued. However, men and post-menopausal women don't have enough estrogen to do this. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, May 2007.

Choline and phospholipids
Like omega-3 fatty acids, phospholipids are also important for optimal brain health. As the name implies, phospholipids are made of the combination of lipids (fats) and the mineral phosphorus. Phospholipids are found in high concentrations in the lining of practically every cell of the body, including brain cells. They help brain cells communicate and influence how well receptors function. Although present in many foods, phospholipids are found in higher concentrations in soy, eggs and the brain tissue of animals. There may actually be a biochemical rational for the folk wisdom that says eating brain makes one smarter. The two most common phospholipid supplements sold over the counter are phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylserine. Phosphatidylcholine is also known as lecithin. This chapter explains the role and function of phospholipids, their clinical effects, and practical recommendations for or against supplementation.

What Benefits Do Choline and Phospholipids Provide?
Individuals who don’t have a good dietary intake of phospholipids may find that taking these nutrients leads to an improvement in learning and memory. Most young and healthy people who take phosphatidylcholine or phosphatidylserine are not likely to notice any significant changes, although supplements could help some seniors. The effects from choline, and its cousin CDP-choline, are more noticeable.

Choline supplement pill questions
Q. What is the difference between gpc choline and cdp choline? why would one be more beneficial or preferred over the other?
   A. We have come across GPC-choline but have not really looked into it in any detail since we can't find any revealing human trials with it. Since there is no human research thus far comparing the benefits of gpc choline versus cdp choline, it is anyone's guess as to which product is better. Sometimes trial and error is the best option to determine which choline supplement works best for a particular person.

Q. Hi, I just ordered more choline and a couple of bottles of Mind Power Rx. These are to help a lady friend. After a couple of weeks on choline, she says that working crosswords puzzles are a lot easier as the words are recalled more easily. My question is it benifitual to take both at the same time? Right now I'll have her try the mind power
to see how it goes.
   A. We prefer not taking choline and Mind Power Rx the same day, she could alternate their use.

Q. The choline bitartrate capsules.. Can these be broken open and mixed with food? As my son will not swallow pills.
   A. Yes, the choline capsules can be opened and a portion or full amount be mixed with juice or food. Most children will need less than the full dose.

Q. Since Choline is tetramethylglycine, would it have some of the same effects as DMG and TMG?
   A. There is an overlap between the effects of choline, DMG, and TMG, but interestingly, when these are taken as supplements, the effects are quite varied in terms of what people notice.

What's the difference in choline bitartrate and choline citrate?
    We don't have much experience with choline citrate so we don't know if it has the same effect when taken as a supplement as choline bitartrate. As of January 2008, we are not aware of human studies using choline citrate.

I read a warning about anti-cholinergic drugs (or nutrients) actually being a possible "cause" of memory loss and hallucinations. I thought you might be able to tell me which are the anti-cholinergic supplements any of us may be taking. I did notice that Vinpocetine and Huperzine A were two of the nutrients which were mentioned as having this property. Interesting, that these were two nutrients I have not been able to use for myself--one causing a rash and I can't remember the problem with the other, so I had already dropped those two some time ago. What other nutrients would he consider anti cholinergic?
    Huperzine A is a cholinesterase inhibitor, meaning it blocks an enzyme that breaks down the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, thus more acetylcholine stays in the body and brain. Galantamine falls in this category. An anti cholinergic medication is a substance that blocks the neurotransmitter acetylcholine in the central and the peripheral nervous system. Anticholinergics reduce the effects of acetylcholine on acetylcholine receptors in neurons. In other words, huperzine A is the opposite of an anticholinergic. Vinpocetine acts as a vasodilator, it dilates blood vessels.

Can I take a choline capsule with my capsule of Passion Rx? I thought I read 500 mg a day as was all I should take and that is what is in the choline capsule.
    We prefer Passion Rx not be taken the same day as other supplements that can cause stimulation or raise body temperature which choline capsules may do.