Key Takeaways
- Fatigue, brain fog, muscle aches, irritability, and poor exercise recovery can be signs of low choline.
- Pregnant and breastfeeding women, vegans and vegetarians, and heavy drinkers are at higher risk.
- Eggs (especially the yolk), meat, fish, beans, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts are good food sources.
- Dr. Parsons recommends about 425 mg a day for women and 550 mg a day for men.
Choline is a nutrient most people have never thought about, and according to Dr. Mikell Suzanne Parsons, most of us are low in it. In this video, she covers the signs of low choline, who's most at risk, the best food sources, how much you need, and a simple taste test she uses in the office.
Common Signs You May Be Low in Choline
Dr. Parsons lists several everyday symptoms that can point to low choline:
- Fatigue
- Memory problems and brain fog
- Muscle aches
- Mood changes or irritability
- Poor recovery after exercise
- Numbness
More Serious Signs
Low choline can also show up in the liver. Dr. Parsons notes that many people have fatty liver that isn't related to alcohol, and not getting enough choline could be one reason. Elevated liver enzymes can also point to low choline, though she adds that gluten can be another cause, and testing can help sort out which one, or whether both, are involved.
Choline also matters during pregnancy. A baby needs choline to develop a healthy brain, so if a mother isn't getting enough through her food and prenatal vitamins, the baby may not be getting enough either.
Who's Most at Risk
- Pregnant women, because the baby's developing brain increases the demand for choline
- Breastfeeding mothers, whose need for choline also goes up
- Vegans and vegetarians, who may not get enough from food and may need to supplement
- People who drink a lot of alcohol
Foods That Contain Choline
Dr. Parsons' approach is always food first. Good sources of choline include:
- Eggs, especially the yolk
- Liver
- Beef and chicken
- Fish
- Soybeans (if you're not allergic)
- Beans
- Broccoli and Brussels sprouts
If these foods aren't a regular part of your diet, you may not be getting enough choline from food alone.
How Much Choline Do You Need?
Dr. Parsons recommends about 425 mg a day for women, and more for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding. For men, she recommends about 550 mg a day.
The Choline Taste Test
Dr. Parsons shares a taste test she learned from her very first chiropractor. In the video, two members of her team try a choline tablet from Standard Process. It tastes sour, which Dr. Parsons says indicates low choline.
Her approach is to take one tablet a day, sucking or chewing it. As choline levels improve, she says the tablet will start to taste sweet. The goal is to get to the point where it no longer tastes sour.
Find Out If You're Low in Choline
If you're dealing with fatigue, brain fog, or any of the signs above, The Natural Path Health Center in Fresno can help you find out whether low choline is part of the picture, including with an in-office taste test. Learn more about our functional nutrition services and how we approach vitamin and nutrient deficiencies.
Read the full video transcript
We are talking about an easy, breezy substance that most of you are going to be deficient in, and that is something called choline. Choline is so important for so many different reasons. But signs that you might be low would be fatigue. Now, I know a lot of you are tired, because you tell me that every time you come in, until we get it fixed. Memory, brain fog, I hear that a lot too. Muscle aches, mood changes, or irritability. A lot of you are crabby; I know, your family tells me. Poor exercise recovery, numbness. Those are just some of the indicators that you might not be getting enough choline. Now, more serious indicators would be fatty liver, which many people have, and it's not due to an excess of alcohol. It's just something that happened, and you have no idea why. It could be because you don't have enough choline. Another is your liver enzymes are elevated. That could be choline, or it could also be gluten, so I can help you figure out which it is, or if it's both. You might actually have liver damage. There's a variety of reasons why, but for some of it, choline will be helpful. Pregnancy problems and fetal brain development: baby has to have choline to develop a beautiful, healthy brain. So if you don't have enough choline, baby doesn't get it through your prenatals and through your food. That could be a problem. There are high-risk groups. Pregnancy, because your demand for choline goes up, because baby needs it to grow a healthy brain. If you're breastfeeding, your demand for choline goes up. If you're a vegan or a vegetarian, you're not getting choline through food sources, so you're going to need to supplement that. And if you do tip back the bottle a little too much, if you use a lot of alcohol, you're going to be low in choline. Now, the good news is there are foods that contain choline, because it's food first, always. Eggs, especially the yolk. If you're going to do eggs and you need choline, eat the yolk as well. If you are into liver (that's not one of the things I'm going to eat; I'm going to eat eggs), liver also has choline in it. Beef and chicken, fish, soybeans as long as you're not allergic, beans, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. So if you're not eating these things, you may not be getting enough choline just in your diet. Now, for dosage: for women, you need about 425 mg, more if you're pregnant or breastfeeding. For men, you need 550 mg per day. Now, this is the cool part, and I learned this a hundred years ago from my very first chiropractor. It's a way that you do a taste test, because taste buds don't lie. So we are going to do a real, live, not rehearsed taste test to see if Rachel and Alyssa have healthy levels of choline. The choline that I use for this is from Standard Process. It's a little white tablet. Go ahead and each of you take one. What I want them to do is pop it in their mouth and taste it, and then they're going to explain what it tastes like. Go ahead. What's it taste like, Rachel? "Sour." Sour. That means they're low in choline. So if you suck on one of these, or if you have to, you could chew it, and do at least one a day. As your choline levels go up and get to a healthier level, it will start to taste sweet, like candy. Isn't that fun? You can get a bottle, test all your friends and family, have a little choline-tasting party, get a little crazy, because that's going to help you get healthy, all through what your tongue tells you. Because your tongue has a direct connection to your brain, and your brain already knows what your body needs. Standard Process is my favorite of the choline products. Give it a taste, and the goal is to get it to where it's not sour anymore. This is Dr. Mikell Suzanne Parsons, founder of the Natural Path Health Center, with her awesome dream team. Thank you for the demo, ladies. We hope to see you soon, and you can come in and we can give you a taste test here. Bye.
Dr. Mikell Suzanne Parsons, DC, CCN, DACBN, DACNB
Dr. Mikell Suzanne Parsons, DC, CCN, DACBN, DACNB is a Doctor of Chiropractic, certified clinical nutritionist, and brain wellness expert with 34+ years serving Fresno families at The Natural Path Health Center.
Learn More About Dr. Parsons
