The Effect of Choline and Myo-Inositol on Liver and Carcass Fat Levels in Aerobically Trained Rats

Choline and myo-inositol are dietary supplements ingested under the premise that they facilitate the burning of stored fat. Choline and myo-inositol have been shown to prevent abnormal or excessive liver accumulation of cholesterol and triglycerides in choline and myoinositol deficient rats. The current study was designed to determine whether the consumption of choline and myoinositol by non-deficient aerobically trained rats affects the percent liver and carcass fat. Nineteen rats were trained aerobically for ten weeks then randomly assigned to an experimental group fed choline and myo-inositol mixed with their chow, or a control group fed only chow. Rats were sacrificed after 24 more days of aerobic training. Percent carcass and liver fat were determined by a lipid extraction procedure. There was a significant difference in the percent liver fat between groups, with the experimental group having less fat (6.69 ±2.23 vs 9.22 ± 2.91 percent fat; r = 0.05). Percent carcass fat was not significantly different. There was a significant difference in the amount of weight gained during the 24 days of treatment, with the experimental group gaining less weight (5.1 ± 9.2 vs 11.8 ± 3.1 g; r < 0.05). The lack of an effect on percent carcass fat indicates that choline plus myo-inositol supplements do not reduce adipose tissue mass but can inhibit weight gain while decreasing liver fat.