What is CDP Choline, what are its potential benefits?  If you are unfamiliar with Cholinergic Synapses give this article a read.  Most can achieve adequate choline levels by regularly consuming a diet rich in cauliflower, sunflower seeds, eggs and beef liver.  Some people don’t like those foods, or simply want more choline fueling their brain.  This is when they invite CDP Choline into their life.

CDP Choline is known by many names, some call it Cytidine 5′-diphosphocholine, others refer to it as citicoline.  It is essential to the pathways found in our cell membranes.  When ingested orally it is absorbed, and broken into two distinct components: choline and cytidine.  The Choline portion of the compound is metabolized then transformed into phosphatidylcholine, a precursor to acetylcholine, and distributed throughout the body.  Phosphatidylcholine is used to construct new neurons and related structures.  Acetylcholine is used to pass signals between neurons; without it our nerves would have a really hard time communicating with each other.  Our body needs to have chatty neurons to have a healthy, harmonious existence.  In addition to delivering CDP Choline’s delicious neurotransmitters throughout the peripheral nervous system it crosses the blood-brain barrier, granting our brain access to it. The cytidine portion of the compound is believed to elevate uridine synthesis, which regulates synaptic strength, neuronal connectivity, and brain cell maturation. Uridine is also involved in the synthesis of RNA – the molecule which codes, decodes, and expresses various genes.

This amazing compound activates the biosynthesis of structural phospholipids in neuronal membranes, increasing brain metabolism and influencing neurotransmitters.  By studying the effects it has on the brain, research has unveiled its potential benefits of elevating norepinephrine levels, providing a neuroprotective effect, improving learning and memory performance.  It also has also demonstrated its ability to increase neuroplasticity, and inhibit apoptosis associated with cerebral ischemia. (1)

Potential Benefits of CDP Choline

  • May elevate norepinephrine levels, providing a neuroprotective effect, improving learning and memory performance. (1)
  • Research suggests it exerts antiapoptotic, neuroprotective and antiamnesic effects in conditions of neurodegeneration. (2)
  • May improve attentional performance,  and ameliorate attentional deficits associated with central nervous system disorders. (3)
  • Choline and uridine can stimulate brain phosphatide synthesis without diminishing acetylcholine synthesis or release. (4)
  • Citicoline may prove effective in treating age-related cognitive decline that may be the precursor of dementia. (5)
  • May improve memory performance for the elderly. (6)
  • May be of use in reversing age-related changes in the brain. (7)
  • May help to mitigate cognitive declines associated with aging by increasing energy reserves and utilization, as well as increasing the amount of essential phospholipid membrane components needed to synthesize and maintain cell membranes. (8)

Some people ask why we don’t just consume more choline in our diet.  The simply reason is because our body excretes most of the nutrients we consume and it becomes a net loss.  Instead most turn to supplements like Choline Bitartrate or Choline Citrate.  Here are the reasons most choose to use supplements:

  1. Citicoline is readily absorbed in the gut.
  2. It crosses the blood-brain barrier very easily.
  3. It raises choline levels quicker and more effectively than other choline sources.
  4. Citicoline contains both choline and cytidine, which is a potent nootropic in its own right.
  5. Getting an optimal amount of choline from food is difficult and hard to control.

Learn more about the benefits of Choline with this amazing online guide.

Consult with a medical professional before using CDP Choline. We are not doctors, and this is not medical advice.  If you experience any side effects whatsoever while using Citicoline, in any form, then stop using it immediately and talk to a health professional.

Disclaimer

Please consult with your medical doctor before taking any supplements or making alterations to your wellness routine.

This article and its contents in no way seeks to represent the ability to treat, alleviate, or cure any disease; or treat, alleviate, or cure disease and other health conditions as effectively as most over-the-counter medications, or is an effective alternative to prescription medications.  We strongly suggest all of our readers, customers, and clientele to first consult with their medical doctor before taking any supplements or making changes to their wellness routine.

We encourage you to seek  out competent and reliable scientific evidence consisting of human clinical testing of the supplement or of an Essentially Equivalent Product, that is sufficient in quality and quantity based on standards generally accepted by experts in the relevant disease, condition, or function to which the representation relates, in light of the entire body of relevant and reliable scientific evidence, to determine if the supplement’s representation is true.  Such testing should be: (1) randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled; and (2) conducted by researchers qualified by training and experience to conduct such testing.