Why Choline Matters during Pregnancy: What Every Parent Should Know

While nutrients like folate, iron, and calcium tend to steal the spotlight during pregnancy, choline beginning to get some more attention as an important pregnancy nutrient. And for good reason! Choline is a nutrient plays an important role in your baby’s brain development, pregnancy and postpartum recovery.

What is choline?

Choline is a nutrient that supports healthy brain and nervous system development in babies and helps with liver function, metabolism, and cellular health in the body. While your body can make small amounts of it, most of your choline needs have to come from food. During pregnancy, those needs go up—and most pregnant women are not getting enough.

Why does choline matter in pregnancy?

There are three main reasons why choline is especially important during pregnancy:

It supports baby’s brain development.

Choline plays a role in building and organizing the brain, especially in areas linked to memory and learning. Some studies even suggest it may support long-term cognitive outcomes.

It helps prevent neural tube defects.

Choline works alongside folate to support early brain and spinal cord development. Having enough in early pregnancy may help reduce the risk of neural tube issues.

It supports your placenta and helps prevent complications.

Choline may help regulate inflammation and improve blood flow to the placenta—both key for a healthy pregnancy.

How much choline do I need?

During pregnancy, the recommended amount is 450 mg of choline per day. If you’re breastfeeding, the recommendation increases to 550 mg per day.

Most prenatal vitamins don’t include much choline (or any at all), which means that it's important to pay special attention to your food choices, supplementing when needed.

What are the best food sources of choline?

Some of the highest food sources of choline include:

• Eggs (especially the yolk!) – ~147 mg per egg

  
  

• Salmon – ~187 mg per 3 oz

  
  

• Chicken – ~72 mg per 3 oz

  
  

• Broccoli and Brussels sprouts – ~60 mg per cup cooked

  
  

• Milk and yogurt – ~38 mg per cup

  
  

• Tofu and soybeans – varies

Fun fact, choline is one of the nutrients that is passed through breastmilk to your baby! For this reason, optimizing your dietary intake of choline during postpartum can increase the amount that is passed to your baby!

Do I need a choline supplement?

Maybe! It depends on your diet. If you don’t eat eggs, meat, or dairy—or if you follow a mostly plant-based diet—you might benefit from a choline supplement.

I suggest tracking your overall intake of choline for 3 days to get an idea of your typical intake. If your levels seem to be on the low side, consider increasing your intake of choline rich foods, or making an appointment with your main health care provider or nutritionist to see if adding a supplement would be supportive for you.

Conclusion

Whether you're pregnant, postpartum, or planning to become pregnant, choline is a nutrient worth paying more attention to. While it may not be as widely talked about as folate or iron, choline plays an essential role in your baby's development, pregnancy and postpartum. If you would like to learn more about choline, or other nutrients that are supportive during the perinatal period, consider making an appointment. We are here to help!