Lecithin

Lecithin is easy to place, because it's a food phospholipid. The questions our naturopaths ask in store are about what you're buying it for and which seed it came from.

A good fit if

• You want a food-form phospholipid rather than a manufactured choline salt
• You eat few eggs, little meat and no liver, which is where most of the choline in food comes from
• You avoid soy and would rather choose sunflower
• You'd rather stir granules through porridge or a smoothie than swallow capsules

Check with us first if

• You avoid soy. Soy lecithin is made from soybeans, and sunflower is the usual alternative. We haven't been able to confirm whether refined soy lecithin has to be declared as an allergen here, so read the label and ask us.
• You avoid eggs. Egg lecithin is a separate permitted ingredient and turns up in some formulas.
• You're pregnant or breastfeeding. Your choline needs rise to 440 mg and 550 mg a day, and a combination product needs checking as a whole formula.
• You already take choline in another supplement. The Upper Level is 3,500 mg a day for an adult, and it's a total, not a per-product figure.
• You take prescription medicines. Check with your doctor, pharmacist or our naturopaths before starting.

• Soy lecithin (granules, capsules, liquid). Best known for: The standard, most widely sold form. It's Schedule 1 item 2980 and can be the active ingredient with no conditions attached. Absorption: No human trial has measured how well supplement lecithin is absorbed. One study comparing four choline forms included egg phosphatidylcholine and found blood choline levels similar to the other forms. Typical use: Stir granules through food, swallow capsules or blend the liquid. It's the same material used as an everyday food emulsifier.
• Sunflower lecithin. Best known for: The soy-free swap, and what our team points people to when soy is the problem. Absorption: No study has compared it with soy lecithin, so there's nothing to tell them apart. Typical use: Comes in the same granule, capsule and powder formats as soy lecithin.
• Egg lecithin. Best known for: It has its own Schedule 1 entry, item 1990, and can also be the active ingredient. It isn't vegan, and it's not for you if you avoid eggs. Absorption: Egg phosphatidylcholine was one of four forms in a blood choline comparison and performed like the rest. Typical use: Less common on Australian shelves than soy and sunflower lecithin.
• Purified phosphatidylcholine. Best known for: The isolated phospholipid rather than the natural mixture. It's roughly 13% choline by weight, a figure worked out from its chemical formula rather than measured. Absorption: Can't be judged as a supplement, because it isn't allowed to be the active ingredient in one. Typical use: Item 3866 allows it only as an inactive ingredient, so no Australian listed medicine may present it as the active.
• Hydrogenated lecithin. Best known for: Skin products, not something you swallow. It's a different Schedule 1 item with tight limits. Absorption: Not relevant, because it's only used on the skin. Typical use: Item 2608 allows it only in medicines applied to the skin, never in medicines for the eye, and at no more than 5% concentration.
• Soy phosphatidylserine-enriched soy lecithin. Best known for: A lecithin that carries phosphatidylserine, which is what the product is really sold on. Absorption: No study compares it with plain lecithin. Typical use: Items 4689 (liquid) and 4690 (powder), limited to 300 mg of soy phosphatidylserine a day.

Reference values. There's no reference value for lecithin itself. The one that matters is for choline: the NHMRC sets an Adequate Intake rather than an RDI, at 550 mg a day for men and 425 mg for women, rising to 440 mg in pregnancy and 550 mg while breastfeeding.

Typical supplemental range. No trial has established a supplement dose for lecithin, and Australia's permitted ingredients list (Schedule 1) doesn't cap it. In Australian stores it usually comes as 1,200 mg capsules, or granules taken by the spoonful. What neither tells you is the choline. Phosphatidylcholine content ranges from about 30% to over 94% depending on the grade, and phosphatidylcholine itself is only about 13% choline by weight (worked out from its chemical formula, not measured). So a capsule adds a little to your choline intake rather than being a choline dose. That's why the label matters more than the front of the tub.

Upper level. Schedule 1 has no upper level for lecithin. The limit that applies is the NHMRC Upper Level for choline: 3,500 mg a day for adults, 3,000 mg at 14 to 18 years, and 1,000 mg for children aged 1 to 13. High choline intakes are linked to a fishy body odour, vomiting, heavy sweating and salivation, low blood pressure and liver toxicity.

Worth knowing. If you want the most choline per dose, a choline salt is the more direct choice. If you want a food-grade phospholipid, lecithin is the one. What you need depends on your age, diet and health, so talk to one of our naturopaths.

Food first, where the diet allows it.

• Egg, hard boiled: 147 mg choline per large egg. The yolk is where egg lecithin comes from
• Beef liver, pan fried: 356 mg choline per 85 g serve, the richest source on the table
• Soybeans, roasted: 107 mg choline per half cup. Soybeans are the raw material for soy lecithin
• Sunflower seeds, oil roasted: 19 mg choline per quarter cup, from the seed sunflower lecithin is pressed from

If any of these sound like you, talk to one of our naturopaths or your doctor before you start.

• You're allergic to soy or avoid it for any reason. Soy lecithin is made from soybeans, so sunflower or egg lecithin are the alternatives. Whether refined soy lecithin must carry an allergen declaration in Australia hasn't been confirmed.
• You're allergic to egg. Egg lecithin (Schedule 1 item 1990) is a separate ingredient, so check which lecithin a product uses.
• You're pregnant or breastfeeding. Your choline Adequate Intake rises to 440 mg and 550 mg a day, so look at combination formulas as a whole.
• You take choline from more than one source. The NHMRC Upper Level for choline is 3,500 mg a day for adults, 3,000 mg at 14 to 18 years and 1,000 mg for children 1 to 13.
• You take in a lot of choline, at any age. Reported effects include a fishy body odour, vomiting, heavy sweating and salivation, low blood pressure and liver toxicity.
• Hydrogenated lecithin. It's only for medicines applied to the skin, never for the eye, and at no more than 5% concentration.
• If you take prescription medicines, check with your doctor, pharmacist or our naturopaths before you start.