New Food Labels Highlight Health Benefits of Choline

The Food and Drug Administration has approved labeling foods to reflect a high content of choline, which has been declared an essential vitamin by the government due to its wide range of health benefits.

Constance Geiger, PhD, RD, dietician and research professor at the University of Utah, joined the Early Show to discuss the benefits of choline, how consumers can identify choline-rich foods and foods that will become fortified with choline in the near future, how to integrate choline into a healthy diet, and how to recognize and interpret new labeling.

Choline is a B vitamin and the major ingredient in lecithin. The government declared it an essential nutrient in 1998. The FDA has just authorized products containing qualifying amounts of choline to carry a nutrient content claim, either "good source" or "excellent source" of choline. It is essential for liver function and research is showing that it also has benefits in brain development, cardiovascular health, and reproductive development. The National Academy of Sciences recommends men get 550 milligrams per day and women get 425 milligrams per day.

Lecithin is a naturally occurring substance found in every living cell of the body, especially the brain and the liver. It is a natural source of choline in the form of phosphatidylcholine. It has numerous functions within the body, acting as a powerful fat emulsifier that protects the entire body from excess accumulation of fats.

Geiger says choline is an essential vitamin, which means that it is required by the body but not made in adequate amounts--so we need to get it in our diet. The benefits are almost too many to list, but she says choline

• Improves brain development in the areas of short-term memory and learning.
• Is essential for normal liver function. If you don't get enough choline a fatty liver can result. Even within a few weeks without it you develop abnormal liver function. Eventually the liver cells can't breathe because fat develops around the liver, which predisposes you to liver cancer.
• Improves heart health with the exciting benefits of lowering cholesterol and homocysteine. Both are indicators of cardiovascular disease at high levels.
• Greatly benefits reproductive health. It enhances sperm mobility and is required in early brain development of infants. It interacts with folate to prevent birth defects and is just as important as folate in preventing birth defects.
  

There are three main high-choline food sources: 452 milligrams of choline is found per three ounces of liver. Eggs contain 282 milligrams per egg. Milk is also a good source. Unfortunately, nature packaged very few foods high in choline. Those that are high in choline are also high in cholesterol, so you probably don't want to try to get all your choline from these sources alone.

There are plans in the next 6 months or so to start fortifying foods with choline, like whole gains, light breads, waffles, breakfast bars, and nutritional beverages. You can also get choline in supplements containing lecithin, or in lecithin granules to sprinkle on your cereal. The granules come in different flavors. Two tablespoons will give you about 500 milligrams.

Choline is not very toxic and has very few side effects. Geiger says you would have to take a lot of it to feel sick, but it's not life threatening. The upper limit set by the government is seven times the daily value, about 700% more than you need.

The new labels will be a nutrient content claim. You'll see it as "good source," which means 10-19% of the daily value for choline in one serving, or as "excellent source," which means 20% or more of the daily value in one serving. The actual numbers are right next to the claim. You won't see choline on the nutrition facts label or as an ingredient: The terms to look for on the ingredient list are lecithin or soy lecithin.
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