How to get the hill you need

Recent scientific articles warn that vegans, babies and the elderly could suffer alterations in their development and brain function due to insufficient choline in the diet. The liver could also be harmed.

An article published in British Medical Journal Nutrition, Prevention & Health draws attention to the potential risks of choline insufficiency during development stages. According to the author, nutritionist Emma Derbyshire, this risk is increasing due to the rise of essentially plant-based diets.

Choline is found in many plant foods

The hillwhich is found in the cell membrane, where it performs various physiological functions, is certainly found in greater amounts in foods such as beef and beef liver. However, it is also in the milk and eggs –suitable for lacto-ovo vegetarians– and in vegetable food like broccoli or chickpeas.

The emphasis on the supposed risk faced by vegans has aroused the suspicions of the UK Vegan Association (Vegan Society). This organization highlights that the researcher belongs to the Meat Advisory Panel, a group of experts that defends the health benefits of red meat.

What is the necessary dose of choline?

However, Derbyshire offers interesting facts in his article, such as that the average European intake is below the recommendations of the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA), which has established since 2016 a minimum intake of 400 mg per day for all adults, 480 mg for pregnant women and 520 mg for lactating mothers.

In Spain there has been a recommendation since 1998. The Spanish Federation of Nutrition, Food and Dietetic Societies advises a minimum intake of choline 375 to 600 mg daily depending on gender and age.

The choline deficiency It can cause a number of disorders: premature birthsgrowth disturbances in fetuses and children, hypertension, infertilityconditions in the bones and muscles, fatty liver and neurodegenerative diseases in the elderly. It is also suspected that it may promote liver, prostate and colon cancer.

What is the hill?

Choline is considered a pseudovitamin, “false vitamin” or vitaminoid, which, however, is generally included in the group of B vitamins. It participates in multiple metabolic processes, including the transport and assimilation of fats or the production of neurotransmitters.

It is synthesized in the small intestine with the participation of vitamin B12, folic acid and the amino acid methionine (consequently the deficiency of one of these nutrients can produce choline deficiency). But the body is only capable of producing a small part of what it needs, so it also it is necessary to obtain it from food.

Some countries do not consider an essential nutrient and have not established a recommended minimum intake. This is the case in the United Kingdom, which is why Derbyshire calls on the health authorities of their country to establish this minimum intake, which would help make the population aware of its importance. Derbyshire even proposes to consider the protocol supplementation during pregnancy.

Which people are really at risk?

Choline is not a nutrient on the hardest to get list. Calcium, vitamin C, iron or omega-3 are on everyone’s lips, but choline is rarely mentioned in consultations or in the media, despite the serious consequences of deficiency.

Derbyshire mentions the vegans as a risk group, but in reality they are no more so than anyone else, since no one is free from error when preparing their diet. In fact, the people who have traditionally been cited as being most vulnerable to deficiency are:

The endurance athletes (runners and long-distance swimmers) people who drink alcoholwhich increases the need for choline women during menopausesince the decrease in estrogen reduces choline levels. pregnant womenbecause the fetus needs a large amount for the development of the neural tube

How to ensure the minimum intake of choline

The deficiency can be avoided with a good selection of foods. In general, a balanced vegetarian or vegan diet, including supplementation with B12, it can provide all the essential nutrients, including choline, in sufficient quantities.

To check if you get all the hill you need in one lacto-ovo vegetarian or vegan dietLook for the foods you eat throughout the day in the following list and add the doses that each one provides. Ideally, you should reach 400 mg.

1 egg: 113mgA serving of shiitake (100g dried): 202mgA serving of grilled firm tofu (100g dried): 106mgA 180g serving of cooked lentils or chickpeas: 70mgA glass of soy milk: 60 mgA serving of broccoli (150 g): 38 mgA serving of quinoa (50 g dry): 35 mg2 slices of whole wheat bread: 30 mg25 g of flax seeds or pistachios: 19 mg.A cow’s milk yogurt (125 g ): 19 mgA banana: 12 mgAn apple: 8 mg30 g of almonds: 7 mg

Pregnant, nursing, or menopausal women can add a tablespoon of soy lecithin as a supplement (contains 248 mg of choline).

You can find a complete list of choline content in foods on the US government database.