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- By Inderbir Sandhu, Ph.D

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Choline the "Memory Vitamin" for your child


Experts believe exposure to Choline during early development can increase memory capability

Most children have amazing capability to learn. Learning capability is best demonstrated by a child's ability to remember.  That is why memory plays the most significant role in overall brain functioning. Good memory is often attributed as one of the major ingredients in one's academic success.

As your child reaches 3 years of age the "Brain Growth Spurt" period ends. This means that your child's critical brain structure is now about 90% fully developed. So for children 3 years onwards the focus is more on brain functioning.

Nutritional support plays a vital role in supporting this brain functioning period. Choline is a nutrient that supports mental functioning of a brain and plays a significant role in the development of its learning and memory centres. Choline is also a precursor of acetylcholine, important for neurotransmission in memory function. Choline is also commonly known as "memory vitamin".

Scientific research shows that exposure to Choline during early development can increase working memory capabilities of your child. Good memory is hailed as the ultimate demonstration of a brain's superior functioning capability. Other research has also shown that memory improvement due to Choline supplements in this early stages lasts through old ages suggesting that these choline supplements also protect against age-related memory decline and retention.

Recommended Adequate Intake (AI) of Choline by the Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) of the Institute of Medicine, USA.

Category Age Adequate Intake
AI for Infant 0 to 6 months
6 to 12 months 
125 mg/day, 18mg/kg
150 mg/day
AI for Children 1 to 3 years
4 to 8 years
9 to 13 years 
200 mg/day
250 mg/day
375 mg/day
AI for Pregnancy All ages  450 mg/day
AI for Lactation All ages  550 mg/day

ABBOTT's GROW is one of the milks with 200mg of Choline per litre that meets the United States Dietary Reference Intake Standards.

How your child can harness memorizing techniques
Scientists have discovered that children don't get better at memorizing things just by doing it more. But they can get better by learning some clever tricks.

Well, next your child needs to remember ten different vocabulary words for school: 1) dog  2) cat  3) cow  4) farm  5) horse  6) milk  7) a loaf of bread  8) apple  9) dinner and 10) bed, try this!

Help him to make up a story that has all ten words in it: Your dog chased Clara's cat, the cat jumped over the cow and entered the farm and woke up the horse. Meanwhile, the dog came back for some food and spilled your milk.  So you could have only a loaf of bread and an apple for dinner and went to bed ..... If the story is silly, that's just fine.

You will discover that making up a story helps your child to remember the objects for a much longer period. When he made a mental picture of the objects with a story, he used long-term memory, and that picture stuck with him. With this trick your child is doing one more thing: he is giving himself a clue that helps him pull out the memory of the rest.

Scientists call it "elaborative encoding." Elaborative encoding allows him to connect new information to his existing memories, and that helps him remember the new information.



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