Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
The micromineral chromium is needed for healthy blood sugar, energy production and more, but this nutrient is frequently overlooked. Learn why it’s important to ensure you have enough of this mineral within your body.
The activated form of the B-vitamin folate plays an important role in the body by helping to fend off high levels of homocysteine. Learn about how this impacts brain and heart health from Jerry Hickey, Ph.
acetylcholine
InViteⓇ Health Podcast, Episode hosted by Jerry Hickey, Ph.
Subscribe Today!
If you’re beginning to forget things more commonly than usual, having trouble learning something new or losing your train of thought during a conversation, it may be related to the age-associated drop in the important neurotransmitter acetylcholine.†
Acetylcholine is produced naturally in your brain. It also works in the rest of your body, where it is involved in muscle function, heart function and more. But we’re focusing on the brain because acetylcholine is core to forming memories and learning. This nutrient has a natural decline with age and it leads to that age-related forgetfulness. We call this subjective memory loss.†
Acetylcholine is needed for more than just remembering and learning. You also use it for problem solving. For instance, if you get off the highway at the wrong exit and need to figure out how to get back on the right track, acetylcholine is needed for that. It’s also important for logical reasoning, as well as for focus and concentration.†
So how do you restore acetylcholine in the brain and body? It’s made out of choline, which is a water-soluble B vitamin. Regular choline is hard to get into the brain and it’s not in the best foods. It is in egg yolks and you do get some in fish, but a lot of the sources of choline are things such as organ meats. The choline used in most multivitamins and B-complex formulations doesn’t get into the brain very effectively. That doesn’t mean it’s not good.†
Choline is needed for nerve health, muscle health and liver health, but the form of choline that really gets into the brain is phosphatidylcholine, which is the precursor to making acetylcholine. You can get some phosphatidylcholine in legumes, but you get a lot in krill oil. Krill is a tiny crustacean related to shrimp. When we get krill for our Krill Oil Advanced formulation, we get it from a very clean, sustainable fishery in Antarctica. When you take krill oil or get phosphatidylcholine from legumes, the phosphatidylcholine readily enters your brain. The phosphatides are very important because they help maintain the structure of the brain, as well as the proper release of neurotransmitters, but it’s the choline that’s really important for your memory.†
KRILL OIL AND FISH OIL FOR BRAIN HEALTH, PART 1 – INVITE HEALTH PODCAST, EPISODE 48. Listen Now>>
90% of Americans do not get sufficient choline in the diet, which is why a krill oil supplement can be so helpful. When you take krill, you get phosphatidylcholine that readily enters the brain. You also get the fish oils that are attached to the phosphatidylcholine. Then, if you also take Alcar with ALA, the acetyl group from that supplement will attach to the phosphatidylcholine from the krill and that helps you reestablish your acetylcholine.†
In this episode, Jerry Hickey, Ph. explains the important role that the nutrient acetylcholine plays in memory. He also offers recommendations for how to rebuild levels in the body in order to support the brain.†
Key Topics:
Thank you for tuning in to the InViteⓇ Health Podcast. You can find all of our episodes for free wherever you listen to podcasts or by visiting www.invitehealth.com/podcast. Make sure you subscribe and leave us a review! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at InViteⓇ Health today. We’ll see you next time on another episode of the InViteⓇ Health Podcast.
Air pollution can wreak havoc in your body, impacting cognition, heart health and more. The good news is that there are powerful nutrients that can help fend off this damage.
Biotin is well-known for its ability to support healthy hair and skin, but did you know it is also needed for energy production?
vitamin D
InViteⓇ Health Podcast, Episode hosted by Amanda Williams, MPH
Subscribe Today!
Today, I want to get into the facts and fiction when it comes to Vitamin D. Are you getting enough Vitamin D from being in the sun in the summer months? Is 20 minutes a day enough time for you to get exposure to sunlight to maintain healthy levels of this important vitamin? I’m going to get into how Vitamin D is absorbed in the body, why it’s important to have adequate levels of this nutrient year round, and the truth when it comes to tanning.†
WHY A VITAMIN C SERUM IS IMPORTANT FOR SUMMER – INVITE HEALTH PODCAST, EPISODE 132. Listen Now>>
Vitamin D is often known for supporting bone health, but it actually works more like a hormone in the body than like a vitamin. It’s a fat-soluble vitamin. It plays a very specific role when it comes to heart health, brain health and immune health.†
This nutrient itself is technically a steroid hormone. We generally obtain it either through dietary intake, supplementation or exposure to the sun’s UVB rays.†
The big question is whether you’re getting enough Vitamin D from going out into the sun for 20 minutes. The true answer to that is that, for the average person, no, you are probably not getting enough, and there are many different reasons why. First and foremost, we have to think about photoprotection factors, such as sunscreen. It is smart to use sunscreen, but when we look at photoprotection, there have been studies that have been able to show that when someone applies sunscreen with SPF, this can suppress the body’s ability to actually absorb Vitamin D coming from the sun.†
But say, for example, that you’re going to go on a quick walk around the block and you didn’t apply sunscreen. Will that sun exposure be enough? Once again, it depends because the body can take time to absorb Vitamin D.†
I live in Florida and I supplement with 5000 IU of Vitamin D every single day. Vitamin D3 is part of my daily supplementation routine. There are times when I’m out in the sun, but I am still consistent about taking my supplementation. I also get my blood levels tested so that I know and 5000 IU seems to be the good amount for me to be using. This is why I always encourage people to get their blood levels tested at least one time a year. Then, you should start supplementing. Maybe you start with 2000 or 3000 IU a day. Then, maybe six months later, have that level tested and see where that lands. Ideally, you want your serum blood level to come back between 50 and 75. If it’s below 50, then you know that you probably need a higher amount of supplementation.†
In this episode, Amanda Williams, MPH addresses myths about how tanning can impact Vitamin D levels in the body. She details how the body absorbs this important nutrients and provides recommendations for how to ensure you are getting enough.†
Key Topics:
Thank you for tuning in to the InViteⓇ Health Podcast. You can find all of our episodes for free wherever you listen to podcasts or by visiting www.invitehealth.com/podcast. Make sure you subscribe and leave us a review! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at InViteⓇ Health today. We’ll see you next time on another episode of the InViteⓇ Health Podcast.
