NOW Foods Lecithin Granules

Lecithin is a naturally occurring compound found in all cells in nature, plant and animal. Lecithin plays a major role in almost all biological processes - including nerve transmission, breathing and energy production. The word Lecithin is taken from the Greek Lekithos, which means "egg yolk". A fitting name for this essential nutrient, for the egg is considered a symbol of life, strength and fertility. Lecithin is important for all of these biolgoical functions and more. Our brain is approximately 30% Lecithin. The insulating myelin sheaths that protect the brain, spine and thousands of miles of nerves in your body are almost two-thirds Lecithin. Even the heart has a high concentration of Lecithin. Lecithin is composed of many different components, including Choline, Inositol, Linoleic Acid, Phosphatidylserine, beneficial fatty acids and triglycerides. These valuable constituents of Lecithin are vital for the proper functioning of many metabolic processes. NOW Lecithin Granules are derived entirely from soybeans.

• Nervous System Support
• Supports Brain & Nerve Function
• Integral for Energy Production
• Vegetarian Product

In today’s high-tech rapidly changing nutrition marketplace we are constantly inundated by new products, irresistible fads, and nutrients that are impossible to pronounce. A nutrient we tried yesterday has already been forgotten today so as to make room for the promise of something new tomorrow. Hopefully we can resist the temptation to forget some of the nutritional giants that have served as foundations to our health and even our industry. Lecithin is just one such nutritional powerhouse.

Lecithin is composed of a group of phosphorus containing fats or phospholipids the most important being phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylinositol, and phosphatidylethanolamine. Lecithin can be found in a variety of foods including egg yolks, milk, meats, fish, and legumes. Since our intake of some of these foods has been reduced due to cholesterol and fat concerns we have concomitantly reduced our intake of this important nutrient. Every living cell contains these phospholipids and the functioning of our nervous system is particularly compromised if we are inadequate in lecithin’s key ingredients. Deficiencies are linked to a variety of neurological disorders. Phosphatidylcholine builds nerve cells and substances they communicate with and has been studied for memory. As a lipotropic choline is critical in fat and cholesterol metabolism particularly via the liver. The heart muscle has one of the highest concentrations of any muscle. For these reasons one often sees lecithin included in weightloss, cardiovascular, and liver support formulas.

NOW recognizes the importance of lecithin and carries one of the largest selections of lecithin products on the market today. Commercially lecithin is derived from soybeans. Concerns over Genetically Modified Organisms such as found in most soy beans has prompted NOW to introduce a non-GMO lecithin, one of the first of its kind. NOW has a strict specification on heavy metal and microbial content. The extraction process also necessitates careful monitoring of solvent residues, rancidity via peroxide values, moisture content and other impurities, and phospholipid content. Our granular lecithin is 97 - 98% phospholipids compared to the 95% seen in other brands and with a taste that many people prefer over others. This is often a tell tale sign for purity. Rest assured that NOW will continue to work to meet or exceed our already high standards.

NOW's Mission
The NOW mission is - To provide value in products and services that empower people to lead healthier lives. NOW Foods is an award-winning and highly respected manufacturer of vitamins, minerals, dietary supplements and natural foods.

In 1948, with the natural food and supplement industry in its infancy, entrepreneur Paul Richard paid $900 for the purchase of Fearn Soya Foods—a Chicago based manufacturer of grain and legume-based products. This began a six-decade legacy of providing health-seeking consumers with high-quality, affordable nutrition products.

History of NOW
In 1968, NOW Foods was founded under the belief that good health was not a luxury available only to the wealthy. For the past forty years, NOW has made it their life's work to offer health food and nutritional supplements of the highest quality, at prices that are fair and affordable to all those who seek them. Today, NOW Foods is one of the top-selling brands in health foods stores, an award-winning manufacturer, a respected advocate of the natural product industry, and a leader in the fields of nutritional science and methods development. And while NOW has grown considerably over the past four decades, one thing has never changed – NOW's commitment to providing products and services that empower people to lead healthier lives.

NOW Commitments

• Customer Focused and Information Driven - NOW believes that their products, services, and the decisions they make should be primarily influenced by the desires and needs of NOW customers. The decisions that NOW makes should be based on accurate information and therefore NOW places a high value on knowledge and learning within their organization.
• Quality and Value Oriented - Acting in the best interest of NOW customers, NOW endeavors to produce the highest quality products at competitive prices. NOW's first priority is to maintain quality where it counts the most – in the products. NOW's exceptional cost-conscious team of employees then focuses their energies on driving costs down. Nurturing this competency of value drives NOW's ability to provide high quality products at the very best prices.
• Natural is Better - NOW is convinced that natural products are better than their synthetic counterparts and produce better results in human health. Therefore, wherever possible, NOW strives to provide products that contain natural ingredients because they are better for their customers.

NOW Science
NOW's experienced professional and technical staff formulates their products to be of the highest quality. NOW has a group of biochemists, chemists, nutritionists, and food technologists who review current science and nutritional parameters, and formulate our products to be effective for the intended use. NOW's structure/function claims are based on science for active ingredients, and on nutritional science for nutritional content. Serving sizes are based on doses from clinical studies and other published data. NOW's contemporary formulas are designed to meet the health and wellness needs of today’s consumers. NOW uses ingredients that have been tested for effectiveness in clinical trials and laboratory studies. The heart of NOW science is third party independent research. NOW investigates and review clinical studies and other lab studies conducted on their ingredients and their formulas. Best science is used to support best formulations which lead to best quality. NOW products are constantly being tested in clinical trials conducted at top universities and research centers around the country and in various parts of the world. NOW products are being tested to determine such things as effectiveness for joint support, quality of life for cancer patients, cardiovascular support, and athletic endurance. Effective products mean health and wellness benefits, which mean quality.

GMP Quality Assured
NOW’s GMP certification covers standard operating procedures, employee training, product specifications, expiration dating, vendor certifications and much more. Standard operating procedures include sampling and testing incoming materials according to NOW Foods specifications, inspecting manufacturing processes, and testing finished products to specifications. Tests include organoleptic evaluation (human senses such as sight, taste, smell), physical testing of tablets and capsules, chemical identity of ingredients, potency and contamination testing by the company’s in-house state-of-the-art analytical testing lab, as well as microbiological testing by NOW Foods’ in-house rapid analysis microbiological lab.