How Choline Is Redefining Premier Athletic Performance
Today’s sports enthusiasts want to go beyond simply building bigger muscles. From elite athletes to weekend gym warriors, consumers are taking a more holistic approach to health and wellbeing, which requires products that go further – supporting both body and mind.
This paradigm shift is brilliantly demonstrated by the fact that major professional sports teams and influencers are increasingly expanding their partnerships into healthy product segments.When the New York Jets announced their first-of-its-kind, multi-year partnership with VitaCholine® - an essential nutrient for cognitive health - it wasn't just another sponsorship deal, it was the first time an NFL team had officially recognized that peak performance starts in the brain.
In this article, Tom Druke, Marketing Director at Balchem Human Health & Nutrition, explores how choline is revolutionizing the active nutrition market and how pioneering partnerships are bringing this essential, but often overlooked nutrient, into the mainstream.
The Science of the Mind-Muscle Connection
Let’s start with the science. Choline's competitive edge comes from its role in the production of acetylcholine. The essential nutrient is a precursor to this vital neurotransmitter, which helps to coordinate the response of neuronal networks and transmit messages from the brain to the muscles.1,2 By supporting these critical pathways, choline becomes essential for our brain, body and nervous system – facilitating cognitive functions such as memory, mood and muscle control.1
Clinical testing demonstrates that choline's nervous system support delivers measurable cognitive performance gains. In as little as 70 minutes, choline supplementation has been seen to improve visuomotor performance and hand eye coordination, as well as accuracy in a computer testing format.3
For athletes pushing for peak performance, this choline-powered brain-body connection may represent the difference between good and great. For every split-second decision on the field, every perfectly timed movement, every moment of sustained focus under pressure – adequate choline levels become crucial. Yet despite its essentiality, nearly 90% of American adults fall short of the recommended choline intake in their diet.4 For athletes, this deficiency could open a significant performance gap.
When Sporting Stars Embrace Science
Recognizing this untapped potential, Balchem has pioneered a strategic approach to elevate choline's profile in sports nutrition – partnering with elite athletes who embody the precision and mental acuity that choline supports.
The multi-year partnership between the New York Jets and Balchem’s premium choline ingredient, VitaCholine®, represents a groundbreaking investment in ingredient marketing. The collaboration offers prominent visibility for VitaCholine® alongside the team’s elite performance. This approach ensures VitaCholine® reaches millions of football fans, showcasing how sporting success demands the combination of physical prowess and cognitive sharpness. The top-tier performers of the New York Jets demonstrate precision route-running, rapid decision-making under pressure and the agility to adapt plays in real-time – all with VitaCholine® in the background.
This partnership is truly precedent-setting. This marks the first time a major professional sports franchise has officially partnered with a nutritional ingredient. The Jets understand the critical role that cognitive performance plays in sports nutrition, signaling to the industry that the future of athletic performance lies in supporting both body and mind.
Balchem's B2B2C approach doesn’t end there. Through our VitaCholine®influencer campaign we work with a diverse range of influencers who are deeply rooted in fitness, health and lifestyle.Authentic collaborations with influencers help to educate our consumers on the real-world benefits of choline, building trust and driving demand across the sports nutrition market.
From Awareness to Implementation
As choline comes under the spotlight, formulators have an exciting opportunity to incorporate it into appealing and convenient sports nutrition solutions. This has previously come with some technical hurdles and formulation complexities that limit incorporation into popular delivery formats. For years, formulators have sought a choline that flows smoothly, compresses efficiently and can be added to a multivitamin formulation without concerns over spotting, cracking or odor.
Enter VitaCholine® Pro-Flo, a first-of-its-kind microencapsulated choline ingredient. Through the cutting-edge, patented particle science from our partners IPS, we have coated the industry-leading VitaCholine® in a membrane for maximum protection. This means VitaCholine® Pro-Flo can be seamlessly incorporated into a range of existing multivitamin formulations and formats that appeal to today’s consumers.
VitaCholine® Pro-Flo allows manufacturers to deliver choline’s brilliant benefits for the brain-body connection, in convenient, enjoyable and comprehensive sports nutrition solutions.
The Complete Performance Picture
The future of sports nutrition isn't about choosing between body or mind, it's about optimizing both. Through pioneering partnerships and formulation innovations, VitaCholine® is helping brands deliver on this demand.
Learn more about how VitaCholine® can help brands supercharge their active nutrition offerings at SupplySide West 2025. Meet the Balchem team at Booth 5264 to explore our awareness campaigns, discover formulation concepts and play a game of cornhole.
References
- Choline: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals. Available at:
https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Choline-HealthProfessional/ - Woolf, N. J. (1991). Cholinergic systems in mammalian brain and spinal cord. Progress in neurobiology, 37(6), 475-524.
- Naber, M., et al. (2015). Improved human visuomotor performance and pupil constriction after choline supplementation in a placebo-controlled double-blind study. Scientific Reports, 5(1), 13188.
- USDA, Agricultural Research Service, 2023. Usual Nutrient Intake from Food and Beverages, by Gender and Age, What We Eat in America, NHANES 2017-March 2020 Prepandemic. Available at:
http://www.ars.usda.gov/nea/bhnrc/fsrg
Newsletter
From ingredient science to consumer trends, get the intel you need to stay competitive in the nutrition space—subscribe now to Nutritional Outlook.
