Choline makes a key nutrient available for baby development (Choline helps DHA (An Omega-3 fat) be used in the body’s tissues)

Medical Xpress / Cornell University / The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition ^ | May 18, 2022 | Kevin C Klatt et al

[ConservativeMind]

The nutrient choline—shown to have long-term benefits for children whose mothers consume it during pregnancy—also helps the body more efficiently use an omega 3 fatty acid that is essential for fetal brain, cognition and vision development, a study finds.

The findings show that choline supplementation supports cellular metabolism to more efficiently handle and release the omega 3 fatty acid DHA from a pregnant individual's liver. Once released into the bloodstream, DHA can be delivered into all the tissues, including the placenta.

…Caudill and others have also shown that high maternal choline intake eases an infant's response to stress, improves information processing and has long-term benefits in sustained attention (as shown in a study that tracked children up to age 7), and in pregnant women, choline reduces a factor that contributes to preeclampsia.

In this study, a group of 30 women in gestational weeks 12 to 16 were randomly divided into two groups: One was given 500 milligrams of choline per day, plus 50 milligrams per day of choline labeled with deuterium, so it could be tracked through the body. The other group served as a control and was given 25 milligrams per day of just the labeled choline. All participants were also given a daily 200-milligram DHA supplement.

By tracking the labeled choline, the researchers identified a chemical reaction in which choline donates small molecules called methyl groups that are added to a molecule called phosphatidylethanolamine. Through a biological pathway, phosphatidylethanolamine is converted to a new choline-containing molecule, phosphatidylcholine, which is enriched with DHA. In this form, DHA gets transferred out of the liver and into a mother's bloodstream, where it is available for use in tissues.

"Our results would suggest that choline supplementation may help achieve higher DHA status with lower DHA doses during pregnancy," Klatt said.

[ConservativeMind]

You can get choline from egg yolks, meat, and Shiitake mushrooms, as well as supplements.

[ConservativeMind]

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[chrisinoc]

It’s also available in dog food as an added ingredient in case you get desperate in the Brandon economy.

I think Balchem and Eastman are the major producers. Dow Chemical also makes it but for use in asphalt production.

[humblegunner]

Choline will make your kids grow up to be Cholos.

[Ellendra]

If I recall, eggs are by far the most concentrated source of choline on a per-volume basis. You’d need to eat 2 cups of shiitake mushrooms to equal the choline in a single egg.

I’ve seen recipes for baby formula for animals, which called for eggs. I haven’t seen any baby formula recipes for humans that included eggs, although they are recommended as a non-formula food for 6 months and up.

[YogicCowboy]

Choline - and its complementary nutrient, Inositol - are abundant in Lecithin. (Sunflower source is available as an alternative to Soy.)

Omega-3 = first carbon double bond at Carbon 3 from back end counting forward. Omega-6 = first carbon double bond at Carbon 6 from back end counting forward. Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acid families are separate; one cannot be converted to the other.

DHA (DocosaHexaenoic Acid) is vital for brain development in human infants. Human milk is naturally high in DHA; most animal milks are not.

Omega-3 derivatives of the EFA (Essential Fatty Acid) Alpha-Linolenic Acid are more efficiently utilized, since they bypass the first enzymatic conversion step mediated by Delta-6-Desaturase.

Although Omega-3 ALA is actually the minor EFA (versus the Omega-6 EFA, Linoleic Acid), it has been systematically removed from Western diets due to its much higher biochemical activity: It turns rancid much faster; packaged goods do not stay good. (Think rotten fish, from the head down, since the fish eye is high in Omega-3).

Contrary to the writings of many in nutrition and medicine, the actual plant-source EFA (versus derivative) is usable in the body: It may take some time for the body to gear up its enzymes to convert it, and it depends upon the diet not being too rich in non-nutritious fats/oils.

I personally benefited enormously from Johanna Budwig’s Oil-Protein Diet over a three-year period: Flax Oil + Cottage Cheese. I used no fish nor fish oil during that time.

I now recommend Chia - seed or oil - in place of Flax. Either way, I also recommend Hemp, seed and/or oil.

I do not advocate marijuana use at all: It is an unnatural cultivar, smoking is detrimental, and THC is a brain-altering drug. Natural Hemp Seed is entirely different.

Hemp is rich in both EFAs (O-3 and O-6), and, unusually, both first derivatives: Stearidonic Acid (Omega-3) and Gamma-Linolenic Acid (Omega-6). Hemp’s fatty acid profile is excellent for long-term human consumption. Its protein profile is also superior to almost all plant sources, including Soy, which is overrated and difficult to digest.