Increase the intake of choline, a nutrient found in high amounts in eggs, during pregnancy can reduce the risk of babies developing metabolic disorders and diseases associated with stress such as high blood pressure and diabetes later in life.

It is based on the results of a study conducted by researchers from Cornell University. The study suggests that choline may help protect against the effects of a mother’s stress during pregnancy.

As shown in previous studies, high exposure to stress hormones during pregnancy is caused by maternal anxiety or depression, can make children susceptible to the stress that can lead to illnesses and chronic conditions.

These latest findings add to growing evidence indicates the importance of choline for the developing fetus.

In this study 24 third trimester pregnant women were randomly assigned to consume 480 mg of choline per day or 930 mg per day for 12 weeks before delivery.

Researchers collected blood samples and maternal and placental tissue samples from the placenta. They then compared the levels of cortisol and genetic differences between all samples.

The result, researchers observed lower cortisol levels in placental and fetal tissues among pregnant women who consume higher choline.

“The findings of the study raise the intriguing possibility that a high intake of choline in pregnant women can resist some of the adverse effects of prenatal stress on the development of behavioral, neuroendocrine and metabolic in the offspring,” said Marie Caudill, PhD, of Cornell University, as reported by Indiavision.

Choline is important for pregnant women because it has been shown to play an important role in fetal and infant brain development, affecting the area of ??the brain responsible for memory and learning skills for life.

In addition, studies have also shown women with low dietary choline has a four times greater risk of having babies with neural tube defects, like spina bifida.

The best way to get your daily dose of choline is to include foods rich in choline in the diet, such as eggs, lean beef, cauliflower and peanuts.

Eggs are an excellent source of choline, contained 125 mg of choline per egg. These nutrients are found exclusively in the egg yolks, not whites.

This study has been published in the latest issue of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.