Belangrijk in de voeding van (zwangere) vrouwen.*
Uit een Amerikaans onderzoek blijkt dat doorgaans in de voeding van zwangere vrouwen te weinig choline zit. De stof choline is belangrijk bij een goede ontwikkeling van de hersenen en goede geheugenfuncties. Speciaal voor de foetus is dat ook belangrijk. Een gemiddeld persoon krijgt per dag met de voeding slechts 314 mg binnen terwijl voor vrouwen minimaal 425 mg en voor mannen 550 mg de aanbeveling is.
Typical
Diet Deficient In Nutrient Linked To Infant Brain Development, Memory
A
new study by researchers from three of America's top universities suggests U.S.
women aren't getting adequate amounts of a nutrient thought to promote normal
fetal brain development.
Sponsored by the National Institute of Health, researchers found the average
American consumes just 314 milligrams of choline each day - much less than the
425 milligrams (women) and 550 milligrams (men) recommended by government health
officials.
Choline is a nutrient essential for human brain development, normal memory
function and fertility, and is thought to be particularly important during
pregnancy. Foods rich in choline include soy lecithin, beef liver and egg yolks,
although soy lecithin delivers one of the most bioactive and natural sources of
the nutrient without cholesterol or saturated fat.
Accurately estimating per capita choline intake has been difficult because a
food composition database was only recently made available to the research
community. In this analysis, researchers studied the diets of some 2,000
subjects by comparing data from a food frequency questionnaire against a new
U.S. Department of Agriculture choline database.
“Our research suggests the typical American diet is lower in choline than
recommended,” said Steven H. Zeisel, M.D., one of the study's researchers.
“When corrected for energy intake, daily choline levels were significantly
below the recommended daily intake for both men and women. Although we cannot be
sure from this study, Americans may not understand the importance of choline in
their diets, or may not know which foods are rich in the nutrient.”
New Poll Finds a Public Confused about Choline
Most Americans can't say how much choline they consume each day and don't
understand its role in the human diet, according to an August poll of U.S.
adults. Nearly three-quarters of respondents don't understand or don't know if
they understand what function choline plays in a person's diet, and only 14
percent said they knew how much of the nutrient they consume in a day.
Respondents over the age of 65 and between the ages of 25 and 34 were least able
to estimate their daily intake.
Nutritionist Greg Paul, Ph.D., thinks choline consumption would improve if more
food manufacturers used a recent Food and Drug Administration ruling to
advertise “Good” or “Excellent” sources of choline on package labels.
“The small amount of choline found in most of today's processed foods makes it
difficult for the average consumer to meet the nutrient's recommended daily
intake,” Paul said. “In 2001, the FDA ruled that food manufacturers could
make certain claims about choline on product packages. Increasing the amount of
choline in processed foods and better promoting those products that are good or
excellent sources of choline are positive steps to help address this public
health issue.”
Paul said one of the easiest and cost-effective ways to boost choline levels in
processed foods is to add extra amounts of soybean lecithin, a naturally
occurring emulsifier long used as a functional food ingredient.
The study, “Choline Awareness in America,” was conducted by Opinion Research
Corporation's CARAVAN® among a nationally representative sample of 1,020 adults
18 years of age and older between August 24 and 27, 2006. Findings have a margin
of error of plus or minus three percentage points at the 95 percent confidence
level.
(Sept.
2006) (Opm.
Choline is een essentiele voedselcomponent. Zonder choline zou geen
enkele cel in het menselijk lichaam normaal kunnen functioneren. Het is
betrokken bij de stofwisseling en het transport van vetten van de lever. Het
wordt meestal gevonden in fosfatidylcholine. Lecithine bestaat voor 25 tot 35
procent uit fosfatidylcholine. Choline is ook aanwezig als een natuurlijke
samenstelling in vooral eieren, vis, peulvruchten (sojabonen), granen (tarwe),
noten (pinda's), orgaanvlees, mager vlees en groenten.)