Vitamin Supplements

Choline is needed for many metabolic reactions in the body. It forms part of a substance called acetylcholine, which is one of the prime neurotransmitters (nerve messengers) and helps to conduct messages from our nerves to the muscles. Choline is also found in lecithin, a phospholipid. Lipids are similar to fats and there are many different types found in the body. A simple lipid contains three fatty acid chains composed of carbon and hydrogen atoms. One of these chains may contain a phosphate group, hence phospholipid, and when choline is also incorporated into the lipid it is called lecithin. All the phospholipids we need can be made in the liver from the raw material that the blood brings direct from the intestines, so neither lecithin nor choline can be classified as true vitamins. Read the rest of this entry »

‘Vitamin‘ B15 and B17 have been much in the public eye recently though there have been more storms about their properties and management in the U.S.A. than over here. Both ‘vitamins‘ are found in the kernels of apricots and almonds. B15 has the chemical name pangamic acid and is packaged as calcium pangamate. ‘Pan’ means universal and ‘gamic’ comes from the Greek word meaning seed. This name has been ascribed to it because it is found in all seeds and many other plant tissues. B17 consists of glucose, benzaldehyde and cyanate. It is found exclusively in apricot kernels, and it has been promoted as a cure for cancer in the U.S.A., but not over here. Read the rest of this entry »