Soy Lecithin
Soy lecithin is taken from the beans of the soy plant.
Soy lecithin, like soy isoflavone concentrate, is an extract of
the soybean. It contains a substance called phosphatidylcholine (PC), which is responsible for its medicinal effects.
PC is a major part of the membranes surrounding the cells.
But when it is consumed, it is broken down into the
nutrient choline rather than being carried directly to cell
membranes. Choline is used to make acetylcholine, a nerve
chemical essential for proper brain function.
Soy lecithin provides the building blocks of healthy cell
membranes, preventing damage especially to
blood and
liver cells by oxidation, free radicals, and toxins. Lecithin
can also be used as a fat synthesizer that helps the body
process fats better. More recently, lecithin has been
proposed as a remedy for various psychological and
neurological diseases, including Tourette's syndrome,
Alzheimer's
disease, and bipolar mood disorder (manic-depressive disorder).
Benefits of soy lecithin for specific health conditions
include the following:
- Alcoholism,
cirrhosis of the liver, and
liver cancer. Numerous
clinical and laboratory studies have shown that soy
lecithin can protect the liver from damage caused by
alcohol, tetrachlorides found in cleaning solvents, the
prescription medication paracetamol, and galactosamine, a protein that
can irritate the liver. In laboratory studies of chronic
hepatitis, soy lecithin has shown an ability to protect the liver
against fatty deposits and fibrosis, the development of
nonfunctional fibrous tissue. Soy lecithin works on liver
cell membranes, helping the membranes to renew and
repair themselves.
- Alzheimer's disease and memory problems. Soy lecithin is a
source of phosphatidylcholine, an essential element in the
lining of brain cells. Providing additional
phosphatidylcholine has a modest effect on Alzheimer's disease, but this
supplement is especially beneficial when used with the
prescription medication tacrine (Cognex), which helps the brain
conserve phosphatidylcholine. Soy lecithin not only
provides phosphatidylcholine, but helps to transport tacrine
to the brain. Soy lecithin also reduces memory loss in
smokers and people with high blood pressure, conditions in
which large numbers of free radicals that damage brain
tissue are generated.
- Atherosclerosis,
gallstones, and
high cholesterol. Soy lecithin
can reduce blood-cholesterol levels. This occurs through a
complex process in which partially digested lecithin is
chemically reassembled in the intestinal wall into a form that attracts cholesterol. The lecithin then "steers" larger
particles of low-density lipoprotein (LDL, or "bad")
cholesterol to the liver, where it is broken down and
converted into smaller particles of high-density lipoprotein
(HDL, or "good") cholesterol. Soy lecithin's ability to
reduce cholesterol production helps to prevent the
formation of gallstones because most gallstones are composed
mostly of cholesterol.
- Hangover. Soy lecithin not only helps protect the liver
against the effects of alcohol, but helps to ease hangover
symptoms. It fights fatigue and
hypoglycemia, or low
blood sugar, by stopping free-radical activity that would
desensitize liver cells to low blood-sugar levels. In
addition, soy lecithin ensures that the liver releases glucose to
cover skipped meals.
- Multiple sclerosis (MS). Soy lecithin contains
phosphatidylserine, a chemical that reduces production of an
immune system chemical called tumor necrosis factor (TNF). In
people with multiple sclerosis, TNF signals
immune-system
cells called macrophages to attack nerve cells. People with
MS generally have low levels of phosphatidylserine in
their blood.
Soy lecithin may cause mild diarrhea when first used.
Although soy lecithin helps reverse alcoholic cirrhosis of
the liver, it is important to stop, or at least sharply reduce,
alcohol intake when using lecithin.
Ordinary lecithin contains about 10 to 20 percent
phosphatidylcholine. However, European research has tended
to use soy lecithin products concentrated to contain
90-percent phosphatidylcholine. The following dosages are
based on the more concentrated product. For psychological
and neurological conditions, researchers have used doses
of up to 5 to 10 grams (5,000 to 10,000 milligrams) three
times daily. For liver disease, typical doses have been 350
to 500 milligrams taken three times daily. For high
cholesterol, doses of 500 to 900 milligrams taken three times daily
are common.
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