Essential nutrient for our brain and bodyEgg Yolk Choline
Choline is a nutrient that has been attracting attention for maintaining our brain and body healthy. In foods, it exists in various forms, such as phosphatidylcholine, sphingomyelin and glycerophosphocholine. Egg yolk contains large amounts of choline in phosphatidylcholine, and it is called “egg yolk choline”. In this site, we will introduce various effects of egg yolk choline, especially for brain function and Kewpie's work on it.
Expected effects of egg yolk choline in addition to improvement of brain function
Potential of “Egg Yolk Choline” to improve brain function
When we eat eggs, they are digested and absorbed through digestive tracts of stomach, duodenum, and small intestine. The egg yolk choline in eggs is absorbed in the small intestine and delivered to the liver, brain, and other parts of the body. Passing into the brain after transported through the blood-brain barrier*, it becomes acetylcholine, known as a neurotransmitter.
*It restricts the transfer of substances from the blood to brain tissue and prevents the entry of harmful and unnecessary substances into the brain.
According to statistics of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, as of September 2020, elderly population (65 years old and over) in Japan amounted to 36.16 million, accounting for the highest on record, 28.7% of the total population. One of the issues we are facing in this super-aging society is dementia. Alzheimer's disease (one of the types of dementia) is thought to be caused by the degeneration of nerve cells in the brain and as the disease progresses, the brain will show atrophies. Since Alzheimer's disease is difficult to cure, prevention of the onset of the disease is important.
It is well known that dietary habits and the health of the brain are closely related. For example, DHA and EPA, which are abundant in fish, will protect the brain nerves, and cocoa polyphenol, the main ingredient in chocolate, will increase brain blood volume. In addition, choline, which is rich in eggs and soybeans, is considered to activate the brain. Choline is a precursor of acetylcholine which transmits information in the brain, so it is expected to prevent Alzheimer's disease.
Researchers talk about the importance of choline.
Choline is designated as an essential nutrient in the United States.
Choline is still an unfamiliar nutrient in some countries, but more and more countries, especially in Europe, Asia and the U.S.A. are setting recommended doses. In the U.S.A, it is designated as an essential nutrient and the recommended daily intake is 550 mg for men and 425 mg for women. It is 400 to 500 times higher than those of vitamins B1 and B2.
Choline is an essential nutrient for us because it plays an important role in improving brain function, lipid metabolism, and blood vessel health. Some reports say that people with higher choline intake have higher cognitive function. High amounts of choline are in eggs, beef liver, chicken liver, and wheat germ. Eggs are one of the most efficient foods to intake choline. Eggs are less expensive and have more recipes than the other foods.
Source: The U.S. Department of Agriculture database
Prof. Yutaka Miura
Professor, Division of Applied Biological Chemistry, Institute of Agriculture Tokyo
University of Agriculture and Technology, Tokyo, Japan
Source: Kewpie Report, Vol. 106, “What’s Choline?” edited.
History of Egg Yolk Choline and Kewpie
"Let's research Chicken and Eggs” - The Unlimited Potential of Egg Yolk Choline -
In 1980s, Chikao Fujita, our president at that time, was passionate about "clarifying the unknown nutritional functions of eggs and making use of them in order to improve people's health". We were looking for new research themes to realize our company's vision. In those days, the period of rapid economic growth in Japan was winding down and people were turning their attention the “quality” and “functionality” of products. In response to those changes, we started working on "the research on chickens and eggs," and investigating hyaluronic acid from chicken comb.
Fujita had paid attention to choline especially. It’s abundant in eggs as the form of phosphatidylcholine. At that time, in Europe and the United States, there were a lot of researchers showing that choline reaches the brain and helps the memory formation. Then we decided to reveal its effects on the brain in detail to find out the solution to dementia becoming a social issue. We formed a new project team focused on egg yolk choline.
What role will egg yolk choline play in the brain?
Toward a New Era of Dementia Prevention
To reveal effects of choline on the brain, we started studying with Professor Hisao Ikeda, a leading researcher on dementia who was then a professor of the Department of Neuropsychiatry at Kochi Medical School. He was a clinical research physician who advocates "preventive medicine" that promotes health and prevents illness through eating habits.
We researched with Prof. Ikeda and other professors to uncover the relationship between acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter in the brain, and phosphatidylcholine in egg yolk. For many years, we conducted scientific research while we developed a plan as a marketing activity to deliver egg yolk choline to customers. Finally, we found out two important facts.
Ⅰ. Choline contained in phospholipids is easier to reach the brain than choline alone because the former is transmitted across the "blood-brain barrier" more efficiently.
Ⅱ. Choline in phospholipids is mainly contained in egg and soybean. Egg has a higher concentration of choline and choline derived from egg is more efficiently absorbed.
In short, we revealed that eggs are one of the best recommended foods for choline intake.
We have always been cherishing our founder’s wish for the health of customers. Since we have our corporate principle, “strive for originality and ingenuity”, we do not give up even if we do not get immediate results, but rather carry on with our vision. Not only in Japan but also in the world, dementia is becoming one of the most important social issues in “super-aging society”. What role will egg yolk choline play in the brain? We will continue to conduct research on this topic and to contribute to people’s health all over the world.