Understanding Phospholipids for Brain Health

BRAIN Posted on 03 February, 2025

2 MIN READ

The Role of Phospholipids in Brain Health

MOSH Life

Essential Building Blocks for Brain Health and Cognitive Function

The brain may only weigh a few pounds, but it’s the most energy-demanding organ in your body, driving everything from memory and concentration to mood and decision-making. Behind this powerhouse lies a lesser-known yet essential group of compounds: phospholipids.

These unique molecules are the building blocks of brain cell membranes, enabling communication between neurons, supporting energy production, and overall brain health. Discover how phospholipids support cognitive function, why they’re crucial for healthy aging, and how you can ensure your brain gets the support it needs.

What Are Phospholipids?

Phospholipids are a unique group of fats (or lipid molecules) that form the foundation of every cell membrane in your body—including the billions of cells that make up your brain.

Their distinctive structure features a water-loving (hydrophilic) head and a water-repelling (hydrophobic) tail, allowing them to arrange into a double-layered lipid bilayer structure. This bilayer forms the semipermeable membranes that surround, protect, and regulate the contents of each cell.

Phospholipids are indispensable in the brain. They comprise a significant portion of brain tissue (or gray matter) and are critical components of neuronal cell membranes. These membranes are more than just protective barriers; they are dynamic structures that facilitate communication between brain cells.

Phospholipids help regulate the flow of nutrients, ions, and signals in and out of cells, enabling critical processes like neurotransmitter release and synaptic plasticity—the foundation of learning and memory.

Key phospholipids, such as phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylserine (PS), and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), play specific roles in brain function. PC helps stimulate the production of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter vital for focus and memory, while PS supports nerve cell repair and maintains membrane fluidity, which declines as we age. PE, on the other hand, is essential for energy production, forming a critical component of mitochondrial membranes and helping optimize brain cell energy for effective function.

In essence, phospholipids are far more than just structural components—they are the unsung heroes of brain health, working behind the scenes to help brain cells stay resilient, efficient, and ready to meet the demands of daily life.

The Science Behind Phospholipids and Cognitive Function

Phospholipids play a critical role in cognitive function by maintaining the integrity and fluidity of brain cell membranes. These membranes are essential for neuron communication, nutrient transport, and transmitting signals that underlie learning, memory, and focus.

Phospholipids continually undergo turnover to repair and maintain cell membranes. Factors such as stress, aging, or poor nutrition can disturb this balance, making it more difficult for brain cells to function efficiently. This may impact processes like neural communication, energy production, and overall brain health.

How To Support Brain Health with Phospholipids

Supporting your brain health begins with ensuring an adequate intake of phospholipids, essential for maintaining brain cell membranes' structure and function. While the body produces some phospholipids naturally, factors like aging, stress, and diet can affect their availability, making it important to prioritize both dietary and supplemental sources.

Eggs, soy, fatty fish, and organ meats like liver are rich in phospholipids. These options provide the raw materials for the body to synthesize key phospholipids like PC, PS, and PE. However, modern diets often fail to deliver these critical nutrients, especially when processed foods replace whole, nutrient-dense options.

Cognizin® Citicoline can provide additional support. Citicoline is a precursor to phospholipid synthesis, supporting phosphatidylcholine production and phospholipid metabolism in the brain. A nice addition to dietary sources, Cognizin delivers a consistent and bioavailable supply of citicoline, providing daily support for long-term brain health.

Combining a phospholipid-rich diet with high-quality supplements, regular exercise, adequate sleep, and stress management strategies offers a comprehensive approach to supporting brain health and cognitive function.

This article was written by an employee of Kyowa Hakko Bio Co., LTD, the company that owns the patent for Cognizin® Citicoline and supplies this ingredient to MOSH. The opinions expressed in this article are their own and are intended to provide valuable information to our readers.

This disclosure ensures transparency about the author’s relationship with Kyowa and the potential bias that could influence the content. It allows readers to make informed decisions while maintaining the integrity and trustworthiness of the MOSH blog.

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MOSH protein bars are formulated with nutrient-dense ingredients that support brain and body function. Each MOSH protein bar contains 6+ brain ingredients including Cognizin®, lion’s mane, ashwagandha, omega-3s, vitamin B12, and D3. Cognizin® has been scientifically studied for its beneficial effects on brain health, specifically enhancing focus, attention and memory. MOSH products are designed to support overall brain health as part of a comprehensive mindstyle lifestyle that includes 6 pillars of brain health: medical health, physical exercise, food and nutrition, mental fitness, social interaction, and sleep and relaxation. MOSH bars are not intended to treat or prevent any brain disease.

Cognizin® provides essential nutrients like choline that are especially crucial for brain cells. To sustain your focus and concentration, your brain requires an adequate ongoing supply of energy and healthy communication between neurons. Cognizin® supports healthy brain metabolism and helps provide phospholipids essential to healthy brain function.* 5, 9,11,13 (250mg) *One MOSH bar contains 125mg of Cognizin® 5. Babb SM et al. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2002; 161:248-54. 9. Silveri MM et al. NMR Biomed. 2008; 21(10):1066-75. 11. McGlade E. et al., Food and Nutrition Sciences. 2012; 3:769-773. 13. McGlade E, et al. J Atten Disord, 2015.

The Women's Alzheimer's Movement (WAM) is the preeminent organization focused exclusively on women and Alzheimer’s. WAM was created to raise awareness around Alzheimer’s as a disease that discriminates against women, since two out of every three brains that develop Alzheimer’s belong to women–with women of color at even higher risk– and 2 out of 3 caregivers of all races and ethnicities being women as well. Until 10 years ago, the conventional thinking was that the higher incidence of Alzheimer’s in women simply reflected the fact that women tend to outlive men. That narrative was disrupted back in 2010, when WAM founder Maria Shriver partnered with the Alzheimer’s Association on a ground-breaking report challenging the assumption that age alone accounted for the higher number of women with Alzheimer’s. Ever since that seminal Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Takes on Alzheimer’s, WAM and Shriver have taken every opportunity to highlight the disproportionate and particular impact of Alzheimer’s on women. WAM's mission is to discover why Alzheimer’s discriminates against women and communities of color and to prepare women and their families for the impact of Alzheimer’s by providing them with information and tools to help prevent the disease. WAM envisions a future in which Alzheimer’s will no longer destroy the lives of women and their families. WAM works to change the future for women and Alzheimer’s by focusing on the four pillars: research, education, advocacy and clinical care. WAM funds critical gender based research to advance our knowledge of how Alzheimer’s affects women, educates the public about Alzheimer’s through summits, national polls, reports and educational guides. WAM advocates at all levels of government for policies, increased funding and other social, political and economic changes that will move the needle on Alzheimer’s. WAM provides on the ground services to give women the medical guidance they need to reduce their risk for developing the disease.

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