Info: 60 Vegetable Capsules (250 mg)
New! TUDCA (Tauroursodeoxycholic Acid) is a derivative of bile salts which has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine as well as by indigenous peoples for centuries primarily for liver support and to ward off gallstones, and there's also a flurry of recent studies indicating it may have promise for helping with certain neurodegenerative and neurological disorders, including ones affecting the eyes.
Info: 60 Vegetable Capsules (250 mg)
New! TUDCA (Tauroursodeoxycholic Acid) is a derivative of bile salts which has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine as well as by indigenous peoples for centuries primarily for liver support and to ward off gallstones, and there's also a flurry of recent studies indicating it may have promise for helping with certain neurodegenerative and neurological disorders, including ones affecting the eyes.
Product Notes:
Bile is a sticky fluid produced by the liver and stored in the gallbladder in vertebrates (animals with backbones) like us, whose main functions are to assist with the next steps of digestion after the food leaves the stomach by lowering the pH added by the stomach acid and by emulsifying or separating larger dietary fat globules into much smaller ones, to give the digestive enzymes a chance to break them down into their constituents that the intestines can absorb.
Although it's principally composed of cholesterol, bile has several constituents, including bile acids – also known as bile salts – which also help our bodies absorb certain vitamins (particularly vitamin A, which is important for vision) and eliminate some toxins.
TUDCA may have an imposing-sounding chemical name, but it's actually a specific type of one of those bile salts that gets produced naturally to a small degree in people – and a much larger degree in bears, which is where it was first discovered. This happens when UDCA – the second part of the acronym, which is short for Ursodeoxycholic Acid, which is what certain bile salts can get transformed into when metabolized by the microbes in the intestines – also gets bonded to the amino acid Taurine (the Tauro part of the longer name).
In addition to possibly reducing the formation of gallstones in those who do not have enough bile [which is what TUDCA is mainly used for in Europe], and potentially inhibiting scarring of the liver (fibrosis) in those with liver cirrhosis induced by toxins like alcohol or anabolic steroids, TUDCA may also help those whose bile is simply too thick that it starts blocking the bile ducts (a condition called cholestasis), which places stress on the liver and can have a range of associated symptoms.
TUDCA is also able to cross the blood-brain barrier, and appears to have neuroprotective properties: it's being actively researched in animal and lab models of Alzheimer's disease (AD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Huntington's disease (HD), strokes, and retinal disorders.
Naming Note: For simplicity, TUDCA is frequently used as a term for Tauroursodeoxycholic acid which can also be represented in its even more complex long form: 2-[[(3alpha,5beta,7beta)-3,7-Dihydroxy-24-oxocholan-24-yl]amino]ethanesulfonic acid. It's also sometimes referenced as taurursodiol, or as ursodoxicoltaurine (that's the international nonproprietary name (INN) for its pharmaceutical form).
Choline
TUDCA is paired here with choline, which is both a precursor to a vital neurotransmitter (acetylcholine) that's involved in many important nervous system functions affecting memory, mood, muscle control (including regulating the heartbeat), and which also helps form the membranes which provide structures to all our cells and the energy-producing mitochondria within them, by being involved in the synthesis of phospholipids like phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin. Choline also plays a role in metabolizing amino acids and fats, and a deficiency in it has been associated with fatty liver disease (NAFLD).
Related Reading and Products
The Liver: Metabolism's Misunderstood Gatekeeper
What Your Liver Is Dying To Tell You
Other related or similar bile salt supplements that are available include: Biotics Research Beta Plus * New Roots Herbal Ox Bile * Trophic Digest-Aid (Bile Salts) * Prairie Naturals Bile Force * NOW Taurine
Ingredients:
250 mg Tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA)
27.5 mg Choline
Non-medicinal ingredients: Hypromellose, Magnesium Stearate, Purified Water, Silicon Dioxide.
Suitable for vegans, this Certified GMO-Free product also contains no corn, fairy, eggs, wheat, gluten, soy, peanuts or tree nuts.
Product of Canada.
Suggested Usage:
Adults: Take 1 capsule 2 to 3 times per day, with food, or as directed by a healthcare practitioner.
Warnings:
Keep out of reach of children. Consult a healthcare practitioner prior to using TUDCA supplements if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or have a known medical condition, or if symptoms persist or worsen after using for a while. Stop use if gastrointestinal discomfort/disturbances or hypersensitivity/allergy occurs. Some people may experience diarrhea.
Health Canada Natural Product Number: 80133303.
Supporting Science:
“Bile Acid Signaling in Neurodegenerative and Neurological Disorders.” International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2020.
“From dried bear bile to molecular investigation: A systematic review of the effect of bile acids on cell apoptosis, oxidative stress and inflammation in the brain, across pre-clinical models of neurological, neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders.” Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 2022.
“Review: The bile acids urso- and tauroursodeoxycholic acid as neuroprotective therapies in retinal disease.” Molecular Vision, 2019.
“The bile acid TUDCA and neurodegenerative disorders: An overview.” Life Sciences, 2021.
“The effect of Tauroursodeoxycholic acid (TUDCA) and gut microbiota on murine gall bladder stone formation.” Annals of Hepatology, 2021.
“UDCA, NorUDCA, and TUDCA in Liver Diseases: A Review of Their Mechanisms of Action and Clinical Applications.” Handbook of Experimental Pharmacology, 2019.
“Versatile Triad Alliance: Bile Acid, Taurine and Microbiota.” Cells, 2022.