All This Talk About Creatine But What About...
The other 'C' nutrients and how they support each other
Before I dive right into those other nutrients, I wanted to add my latest LIVE video with
on more label reading shenanigans. We discussed front labels and how they don’t always add up to the back label on ingredients and as well as some shady marketing practices of food companies. This may surprise you.Bottom line is take the time to read those labels and make an informed choice of the food products you buy and consume.
Now back to our regular scheduled program….
There are many powerful nutrients unique to animal foods and lately we have been hearing a lot about one certain molecule - creatine. Yes it is an important nutrient.
a molecule that helps us to store energy in the form of phosphate bonds which are then used when we need ATP (energy) quickly. ATP is adenosine triphosphate. It's often referred to as the "energy currency" of the cell and is used by our muscles to contract and is in all of our cells for protection and repair of genetic material. Creatine provides us with quick energy. It is a molecule that is shown to increase intelligence, memory, reaction time and strength. We only produce a small amount in our bodies but not enough for optimal health so we must get it from external food sources, mostly animal food sources (red meat and fish have the highest source of bioavailable source of creatine).
Just search creatine benefits and there are numerous article and studies in support of this nutrient as a supplement.
But what about the other important, but lesser known nutrients that also start with a ‘C’ - choline, carnitine and carnosine.
Choline
The nutrient choline is used in the formation of the neurotransmitter, acetylcholine and is also used in the production of the membrane phospholipids that enclose every cell in our body. Like creatine (and the other nutrients to be discussed), we do make some in our bodies, but not enough for optimal health.
Choline regulates our genes that help direct brain development. A deficiency of choline can affect the hippocampus (the brain’s learning and memory center). It is particularly important for pregnant and nursing mothers to maintain higher levels of choline as deficiencies are linked to neural tube defects, poor brain development, premature birth and preeclampsia. 90% of pregnant women do not get enough choline.
Choline wasn’t recognized as an essential nutrient until 1998 and emerging research suggests that choline deficiencies may contribute to autism, schizophrenia, cognitive development as well as neurogenerative disease and heart disease.
Where do we get choline from? Animal food sources like red meat, organs, eggs are the best source and best for bioavailability. 5 egg yolks = 600 milligrams. You can get choline from plant sources, broccoli being the richest source, but you would have to consume 1 lb of broccoli to = 500milligrams. Adults can consume up to a max of 3500 milligrams without issues. That’s a lot of broccoli!
Carnitine
Carnitine is the molecule that shuttles fatty acids across the mitochondrial membrane to the interior of each cell where the fatty acids (fat) can be used as fuel. Carnitine helps us use our fat for energy rather than glucose. This process results in ketones which benefit our bodies in so many ways, one of which is improving mitochondrial function. Fat based metabolism is important for brain health and low levels of carnitine have been shown in brains of people who have periods of deep depression. In studies, carnitine supplementation significantly decreased depression symptoms compared to no intervention, with fewer side effects.
How does one become deficient in carnitine? Well, the best source and best bioavailable source is animal foods (red meat, animal organs). Red meat contains more carnitine than white meat because red muscle fibers use more energy. We synthesize carnitine from the amino acid, lysine. Plant foods are low in carnitine because they primarily burn carbohydrates for energy, not fat. Carnitine is absorbed in the small intestine. If some make it to the colon, certain gut bacteria can turn it into TMA, a foul smelling gas - trimethylamine. TMA can enter the bloodstream and the liver convers it to TMAO (trimethylamine oxide) that is eliminated in urine.
There are studies that have associated TMAO with high rates of atherosclerosis. It is important to note that these studies were done on genetically altered mice and fed a supplementary form of carnitine - not meat. These mice, who are also missing the gene for cholesterol processing, were fed TMAO supplements and excreted less cholesterol, which suggested cholesterol stayed within the body and therefore leading to the theory that TMAO could lead to heart disease.
Seems like a lot of reaching and far fetched hypothesis to me…
Carnosine
The last of the ‘C’ nutrients, carnosine - made of two amino acids, beta - alanine and histidine is an endogenous antioxidant. But more than an antioxidant, carnosine is shown to reduce the formation of AGE’s (advanced glycation end products), harmful compounds that are formed when sugar molecules are added to proteins and fat in our bodies. High levels of AGE’s are associated with diabetes, heart disease and dementia.
High concentrations of carnosine are found in muscles and brain tissues and if you can see a trend here, carnosine is found in animal products such are red meat and is NOT found in plant sources.
The combination of these three nutrients are proud members of a performance support team.
Choline is the coordinator, managing communication and logistics
Carnitine is the transporter getting fat (fatty acids) into the cell’s mitochondria
Carnosine is the protector buffering acids and preserving function during stress
Creatine is what provides us quick energy
This just goes to show that we shouldn’t zero in on just one nutrient—everything works together, and nutrients rely on each other to do their job. It also highlights that including some animal foods can be important for getting certain nutrients we need for optimal health, even if that’s not the most popular take these days.
I am also a big proponent of getting your nutrients from food first and supplementation second.
Danni
So if a person is vegetarian and wants to avoid red meat, what are the best supplements to get these, and are the plant-based or synthetic ones going to do the job? A hard question.