Health Benefits of Choline

Dr. Joseph Mercola of Mercola.com details how fear-mongering causes people to avoid one of the most important nutrients to their health. Dr. Mercola writes:

Some studies,¹ including analyses from NHANES data, have stirred up fears about choline and its alleged link to an increased risk of prostate cancer. This fear causes people to avoid one of the most important nutrients to their health.

As your guide to deciphering the complexities of health and nutrition, I feel it’s imperative to address these concerns and explain why the fear surrounding choline intake, particularly from eggs, is not only misplaced but may also deter you from enjoying one of nature’s most nutrient-dense foods.

Healthy fetal development5 — Choline is required for proper neural tube closure,6 brain development and healthy vision.7 Research shows mothers who get sufficient choline impart lifelong memory enhancement to their child due to changes in the development of the hippocampus (memory center) of the child’s brain.8 Choline deficiency also raises your risk of premature birth, low birth weight and preeclampsia.

The synthesis of phospholipids, the most common of which is phosphatidylcholine, better known as lecithin, which constitutes between 40% and 50% of your cellular membranes and 70% to 95% of the phospholipids in lipoproteins and bile.9

Nervous system health — Choline is necessary for making acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter involved in healthy muscle, heart and memory performance.10

Cell messaging, by producing cell-messaging compounds.11

Fat transport and metabolism — Choline is needed to carry cholesterol from your liver, and a choline deficiency could result in excess fat and cholesterol buildup.12

DNA synthesis, aiding in the process along with other vitamins, such as folate and B12.

Methylation reactions.13

Healthy mitochondrial function.14

[…] So, in conclusion, don’t let fearmongering dictate your dietary choices. Eggs, particularly from chickens on a healthy diet, remain one of the most nutrient-rich foods you can eat. As always, it’s about the quality and the source. Incorporating eggs into a balanced, nutrient-dense diet supports health far more than it harms.

Assuming you’re not getting choline from other sources, you need to eat at least two, probably three and more, egg yolks per day. I eat six yolks a day (but only one egg white) because I work out and walk at least five to six miles a day. The more active you are, the more choline you need to support a higher metabolic rate.

Read more here.