stressA study appearing in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2009, 90(4): 1056-60) looked at anxiety and its relationship to the amount of choline in the blood. The two groups of subjects in the cross-sectional study were between the ages of 46 and 49 or 70 and 74. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was used to evaluate the 5,918 subjects. It was found that there was an inverse relationship between plasma choline and anxiety. The relationship did not extend to depression and no relationship between choline levels and depression was found.

Choline is considered one of the B-complex vitamins. It functions with inositol as a basic constituent of lecithin. It is in egg yolk, liver, brewer’s yeast and wheat germ. It is associated with the utilization of fats and cholesterol in the body. It prevents fats from accumulating in the liver and facilitates the movement of fats into the cells. Choline is also essential for the health of the myelin sheaths of the nerves. It also helps to regulate and improve liver and gallbladder functioning and aids in the prevention of gallstones. Choline deficiency is associated with fatty deposits in the liver and may be related to cirrhosis of the liver, atherosclerosis and high blood pressure.