Vitamins that make you Smarter (Part 1)

Today, we’re kicking off Part 1 of our new series: Vitamins That Make You Smarter.

✅ What’s the Point of This Podcast?
Your brain needs certain nutrients to function optimally. Without them, you risk memory loss, cognitive decline, and brain fog. Today, we’re diving into one essential nutrient that can make you sharper, improve your memory, and keep your brain performing at its peak— choline.

What is Choline & Why Does Your Brain Need It?

🧠 Choline is a B-vitamin that your body must get from food—it cannot produce enough on its own.
🧠 Choline is essential for making a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, which is critical for:
✔ Memory & Learning – Helps retain information & recall memories faster.
✔ Focus & Mental Clarity – Keeps your brain sharp & alert.
✔ Mood Regulation – Affects motivation, arousal & emotional stability.

🚨 Fact: A deficiency in acetylcholine has been linked to Alzheimer’s & dementia.

Why is Choline Critical for Brain Health?

📌 Without enough choline, your brain cannot produce enough acetylcholine.
📌 This leads to memory loss, difficulty concentrating, & increased risk of cognitive decline.
📌 Research shows that 90% of Americans are deficient in choline.

🔬 What does science say?
Doctors prescribe medications like Aricept (Donepezil) for Alzheimer’s because they help increase acetylcholine levels in the brain. But instead of relying on drugs, why not naturally boost acetylcholine by getting more choline from your diet?

How Much Choline Do You Need Daily?

✅ Women need 425 mg of choline per day.
✅ Men need 550 mg of choline per day.

How much food does that translate to?
🥚 3 eggs per day = 425 mg (women’s daily requirement)
🥦 3 lbs of broccoli = 425 mg
🍗 ½ pound of chicken = 425 mg

For men:
🥚 4 eggs per day = 550 mg (men’s daily requirement)
🐟 ½ fillet of salmon + 2 eggs = 550 mg
🍊 27 grapefruits (but who’s going to eat that much fruit? 😅)

💡 Best sources of choline include:
✔ Eggs (one of the richest sources!)
✔ Fish (salmon, cod, sardines)
✔ Organ meats (liver, kidney, heart)
✔ Shiitake mushrooms
✔ Quinoa
✔ Peanuts & almonds

The Liver-Brain Connection: How Choline & Acetylcholine Affect Mood

🔹 Your liver produces about 10% of your body’s choline, but the other 90% must come from your diet.
🔹 In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the liver is believed to regulate mood.
🔹 Science now confirms this link—acetylcholine helps control emotions, motivation & stress levels.

🔥 Translation: If you’re feeling sluggish, moody, or mentally exhausted, you might not be getting enough choline.

Choline & the Blue Zones: Why Centenarians Stay Mentally Sharp

🌍 People in Blue Zones (regions where people live over 100 with high quality of life) consume a diet rich in:
✅ Fish (high in choline)
✅ Eggs (natural choline boosters)
✅ Vegetables & legumes (support brain function)

🚀 The result? These people stay mentally sharp, have better memory retention, and avoid cognitive decline.

The Carnivore Diet vs. Choline-Rich Diet

🥩 Carnivore & keto diets often provide a temporary brain boost because they are high in animal protein, which contains choline.
⚠️ But there’s a catch: These diets are also highly inflammatory, leading to long-term brain fog, energy crashes, and memory issues.
💡 Solution: Instead of relying solely on meat, focus on balanced choline-rich foods to get the benefits without the inflammation.

Warning: Too Much Choline Can Be Harmful

⚠️ Excess choline (over 3,500 mg per day) can be toxic.
⚠️ Symptoms include nausea, low blood pressure, excessive sweating & liver damage.
⚠️ Most people won’t reach toxic levels through food alone—but excessive supplementation is a risk.

💡 Moral of the story: Get your choline from food, not synthetic supplements!

Example of a Perfect Brain-Boosting Meal

🥣 Breakfast: 2 eggs + ½ cup quinoa = 300 mg choline
🍽 Lunch: ½ fillet of salmon + 1 cup of quinoa = 250 mg choline
🥗 Dinner: Leafy greens + 1 tbsp shiitake mushrooms = 50 mg choline

🔥 Total Choline for the Day: 600 mg (more than enough to fuel your brain!)

Final Takeaways: How to Get Smarter with Choline

✅ Your brain NEEDS choline to produce acetylcholine—a neurotransmitter essential for memory & learning.
✅ Eggs, fish, and quinoa are some of the best choline-rich foods.
✅ A deficiency in choline increases your risk of Alzheimer’s, dementia & cognitive decline.
✅ Avoid excess choline supplementation—it’s best to get it from food!

This Week’s Action Plan: Eat for a Smarter Brain

🥚 Add 2-3 eggs to your diet daily
🐟 Eat at least 1 serving of fish per week
🥦 Incorporate quinoa, mushrooms, and leafy greens
🛑 Reduce processed foods & inflammatory oils

🎙 That’s it for today’s episode of the Restorative Longevity Podcast!

📅 Join us next week for Part 2, where we’ll uncover more vitamins that can boost your brain power!

🚀 Did you learn something new today? Share this with a friend who wants to keep their brain sharp!

Sincerely,

Jimmy Yen, Acu Sensei