The substance that gives egg yolk its golden yellow color is lecithin, which is a fatty substance that has a lot of functional uses, most notably in food and pharmaceutical industries. In recent years, it has been tied to several studies looking into its alleged neuroprotective properties in the human body, which includes improving cognition and intelligence. Today, lecithin is touted to enhance brain function.

In 1847, Theodore Gobley, a French chemist and pharmacist, coined the term lecithin, deriving from a Greek word that translates as egg yolk after isolating the substance from egg yolk. There is a class of substances with different chemical makeup that we refer to as lecithin altogether, and Gobley was able to identify the chemical makeup of some of its constituents, which are now used commercially either as food supplements or food additives. Due to its non-toxicity even at very high concentrations, the United States Food and Drug Administration conferred lecithin with the status GRAS, or Generally Recognized as Safe.

Essential Nutrient

Lecithin is rich in choline, a substance that is necessitated by the body for good health but its endogenous counterparts do not amount to concentrations adequate to support normal body functions, and thus dubbed essential nutrient. This makes choline at par with other vitamins, and in fact almost always classified with vitamins B complex.

One of the chemical reactions that necessitate the presence of choline is the communication between cells. Choline plays an important role in maintaining the structural components of each cell at its peak, greatly contributing to the health and functionality of cells. The mobility of cells in the human body and their ability to effectively signal and coordinate with each other in times of distress are both determined by the availability choline and its metabolites.

Synaptic Transmission

Following the chemical reactions implicated in neurotransmission in which choline participates allows the scientific community to get to the bottom of lecithin’s effects on the brain. Choline is a precursor of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that is present not only in the central nervous system but also within the nerve cells that connect the brain to the limbs, organs, and the rest of the body.

Acetylcholine is responsible for the contraction of skeletal muscles, and supervises the actions governed by muscle contractions, initiating a series of reactions that lead to movement. It plays a more active role in the central nervous system, where it is associated with innumerable major neural processes, including the signaling between nerve cells called synaptic transmission, altogether related to memory and creativity.

The dietary significance of lecithin is associated with its choline content among others, but its purported brain boosting properties are attributed solely to choline, which is responsible for a number of metabolic pathways that has an effect on the central nervous system one way or another. High levels of choline metabolites in infancy and their reducing availability as we age are now believed to explain the changes in brain function as we age, resulting in senility.

Lecithin is an inexpensive supplement available in softgel form at your local or internet vitamin store. Always choose name brands like Now Foods to ensure quality.

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Category: Wellness, Fitness and Diet
Keywords: Lecithin, Choline, Acetylcholine, brain function, Central Nervous System Boost