The Connection Between Choline, Nootropics and Your Brain

Choline, Brain Hacking and You!

Choline is not classed as a true nootropic compound, but is still an integral part of any good nootropic stack. The human body cannot produce choline and the natural sources of choline are more limited than one would expect.

Many nootropics such as Piracetam cause headaches for many sufferers, unless they boost their stack with choline. Here we’ll be taking a look at what exactly choline is, where it comes from and how a choline supplement will help you.

What is Choline?

The macronutrient Choline is essential to the development of your brain and nervous system. It affects muscle movement, energy levels and your metabolism. Its supporting role to the rest of your brain function is undeniable. If you are choline deficient, a range of beneficial hormones and chemicals will simply never reach the brain, and if they do they arrive in limited supply.

Choline is also a part of methylation, a process of DNA Creation, nerve signaling and detox. Recent research has even proven that choline-deficiency holds a connection to many conditions such as liver disease, atherosclerosis and multiple forms of neurodegenerations. Almost every single person is lacking this critical compound. Most diets are simply not healthy enough to sustain a good supply.

What, Exactly, is “Nootropic”?

Cutting a longer story short, the brain needs good quality vitamins, minerals, water, cell salts, proteins, fats like collagen, and other trace elements to function correctly.  Nootropics, in general, is the science, study and application of balancing (as well as boosting) these functions for enhanced cognitive ability.

The Nootropic Benefits of Choline

This water-soluble macronutrient should be a part of all nootropic stacks. With Choline being the precursor to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, critical to nerve communication, many nootropic drugs benefit from it.

“Users of nootropics will always want ample levels of acetylecholine available, hence making supplementation or Choline precursors necessary. When you up your neurotransmitter levels all of your nootropic supplements will deliver a more profound effect. If you are on any racetam class nootropic then Choline is not optional, it is a must-have.” – Nootropicsexpert.com

Choline and Racetam Nootropics

Racetams include the following nootropic drugs:

• Pirecetam
• Pramiracetam
• Aniracetam
• Oxiracetam

Racetams cannot create more acetylcholine, but they do stimulate acetylecholine receptors. This means that the more of the precursor Choline you have available, the more acetylecholine will be flowing through your neural pathways. Choline is nothing more than a potentiator for better memory, focus, memory and general cognition, but it is a powerful one.

Healthy Dietary Sources of Choline

Egg yolks have the highest choline nutrient density out of all healthy food types, and every other food source borders on half the choline and below. Cauliflower has the second highest density of choline, with swiss chard placing third. Asparagus, broccoli, collard greens, Brussel sprouts, mushrooms, shrimps and scallops are all less dense in choline than swiss chard, but roughly equal to each other.

Choline Precursors

Brain hackers and other nootropic fans who wish to up the availability of acetylecholine can find great benefits from the following choline precursors:

• Choline (Choline Bitartrate, Choline Citrate, and Choline Chloride)
• Lecithin (Dietary)
• DMEA
• Phosphatidylserine (PS)
• CDP-Choline
• Alpha GPC
• Centrophenoxine

If opting for a slow-release Choline supplement like DMEA, it is best to take it just before bedtime to feel the best benefits to your mental acuity upon waking.

Symptoms of Choline Deficiency

A headache accompanying any mild nootropic is often a sign that you have a choline deficiency. Other key symptoms include sudden bouts of hazy short-term memory, aching muscles and constant fatigue. Sufferers of a fatty-liver condition or a cognitive disorder such as Alzheimer’s disease need to begin supplementing their diet with choline.

If you are taking a nootropic supplement and it does not appear to be working, try upping your choline. In most cases this simple precursor produces benefits which are nothing short of profound.

Fill out the form below to sign up to our free natural health and healing newsletter and e-zine and stay up to date on our latest articles and informed about holistic healing therapies and effective home remedies for common ailments. As a thank you for joining our newsletter, we’ll also send you The Healing Art of Aromatherapy AND The Healing Art of Reflexology mini-courses – at absolutely no cost!

First Name
Email

Our strict privacy policy keeps your email address 100% safe & secure. We will NEVER share your email address or personal information with anyone! The Natural Holistic Health newsletters are sent once per week.

About the author:

Tony (OTF) Kilvert, author of Blueprints of cosmic consciousness. After many years of studying the truths of the world we really live in today and looking far deeper into theses aspect detailed in the book above Tony decided to study holistic health mainly from the point of energy medicine to begin with, but then discovered how much more there is to health.  Especially Holistic Health. He became interested in other aspects such as Oils, vitamins, minerals and some other modalities over and beyond these very quickly thereafter while working with some of the best cutting edge people I could find.  The search continues…

photo credit: 드림포유 Concept of six ability in human brain (license)