Sunflower Lecithin Benefits and Side Effects You Should to Know

If you want to get a good meal, the only way that you can do is by seeing the ingredients within. When you buy some food, you may often find lecithin as the food’s ingredients. Then, you probably think that it can give you some bad effects for your body.

Wait! Not all lecithin are bad for you, likewise the sunflower lecithin that will give you plenty of benefits for your body. So, let’s find out some facts about sunflower lecithin, the benefits and also the side effects for your body in our post below!

What is Sunflower Lecithin?

Sunflower lecithin is a popular dietary supplement which can improve cholesterol levels and functioning of the circulatory system as well as the nervous system. Lecithin comes from Greek which means egg yolk. Well, it’s a term to describe the yellow-brownish fatty substances which occur naturally in animal and plant tissues.

Lecithin itself is an important substance which can be found in our bodies. It’s also produced naturally by the body’s primary organs including kidney, liver, and heart. Lecithin can prevent the membranes of our cells from becoming hard. Even though our body produces the lecithin, however, you may need to get supply from outside.

Well, the best lecithin supply comes from sunflowers. You can take it as the supplement to boost its effects. Moreover, the sunflower lecithin is a clean emulsifier which serves the role of an adaptor especially in grassed whey protein. As we know that two chemicals would never make a bond as their differences in chemical composition like water and oil. Whey protein and water now have a bridging agent which allows them to bind to one another effectively.

Sunflower lecithin is formed by dehydrating a sunflower and then separating it into three parts: oil, solids and gum. This lecithin comes from the sap that is processed through a cold press system like the one used for the process of making olive oil.

When the sunflower lecithin is added to certain foods as an emulsifier, it totally will help to stabilize mixtures and prevent the different parts from separating. The lecithin from the sunflower is also available as a supplement which is used in helping lower cholesterol levels, support better brain function and aid in breastfeeding.

Sunflower Lecithin Benefits

Of course, there are plenty of benefits that you can get from the sunflower lecithin. Here they are:

• Sunflower lecithin reduces your stress

We think that it’s a main sunflower lecithin benefit that you may want to get. In fact, the sunflower lecithin can reduce your stress and help repair to strengthen your brain as well as nerve cells without any problems. The Dementia and Alzheimer’s sufferers are more likely to get benefits.

• Strengthen your nervous system

Your nervous system mostly depends upon fatty acids for better functioning. Well, if the myelin sheath damages, the neuron cannot transmit the message or signal to the brain as effectively as before. Here, the fatty acids contained in sunflower lecithin will help to maintain the myelin sheath so the nerve impulses can travel to the brain efficiently.

• Reduce cholesterol levels

The sunflower lecithin can totally get benefits to reduce the cholesterol levels either on the man or woman body. It also impacts on heart health when someone has a lower cholesterol level. Some studies result that supplementing with lecithin will be able to reduce the total cholesterol levels by up to 42 percent and cut levels of bad LDL cholesterol by over 56 percent after just two months.

Some research also suggests that lecithin can increase the levels of beneficial HDL cholesterol in which it helps to keep the bloodstream clear by removing the buildup of fatty plaque from the arteries.

• Sunflower lecithin is safer than others

If we compare to other lecithins which come from soy or corn, the lecithin of sunflower is the best bet for you to minimize your intake of ingredients which have been genetically modified. Need to know that the sunflower lecithin seeds are never genetically modified. So many prefer solar seed lecithin over other types of lecithin because the extraction process does not require the use of harsh materials that are potentially dangerous.

• Antioxidant support

For skin health, antioxidants are a main key to keep us having good skin. To keep your skin healthy and smooth, the sunflower lecithin can be your best choice. However, the sunflower lecithin contains one of the most superb antioxidants named phosphatidylcholine.

By having an abundance of antioxidants in your body system, it actually can help to prevent cellular damage as oxidative stress. This damage really can cause plenty of illness including heart disease and cancer. If you have about 500 milligrams of sunflower lecithin, it will help you to retain the radiant glow and youthful skin.

Side Effects of Sunflower Lecithin

Aside from benefits, the sunflower lecithin also has the side effect. Even though it has plenty of side effects but it will happen to only a few.

• Allergic Reactions

The sunflower lecithin commonly will cause some allergic reactions. Once, it’s such a common cause to people allergic to sunflowers. Here are the following indications of sunflower lecithin’s allergic reaction:

• Unsettled stomach
• Difficulty breathing
• Itchy patches
• Skin’s redness
• Swelling on your lips, tongue, throat or face
• Vomiting

Those are all allergic reactions which will happen on your body.

• Gastrointestinal disturbances

The mild gastrointestinal disturbances will occur to people when they begin to consume the sunflower lecithin including mild nausea, loose stools, diarrhea, lost appetite and more. Those symptoms commonly go away as your body adapts to the supplement.

If you think that the side effects are highly severe, you can also try to lower your daily dose and increase your way up to the recommended intake.

How to Use Sunflower Lecithin

You are able to use the sunflower lecithin as an alternative to other lecithins in cooking or baking. You can also use it as a supplement in your diet if you do not like the sunflower lecithin’s taste in cooked food. To get the sunflower lecithin without the original taste, you can also take pills if you want.

However, you can add the sunflower lecithin to your shakes and smoothies. The sunflower lecithin is available in tablet, powder, granular and liquid forms.