Carnitine
Carnitine is not an essential nutrient. The body naturally synthesizes its own carnitine from protein. Carnitine is a generic term for multiple compounds.
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Carnitine is not an essential nutrient. The body naturally synthesizes its own carnitine from protein. Carnitine is a generic term for multiple compounds.
Last updated
Healthy humans do not need to get carnitine in their diet as the body synthesizes enough.
Some carnitine can be found in whole-wheat bread and asparagus, but it is not normally necessary to get carnitine in your diet.
For carnitine, vegans have not been studied but vegetarians have. Vegetarians were found to have about the same muscle stores of carnitine compared to meat eaters. Because Carnitine is more present in meat than in dairy or eggs, the result for vegans may be the same. "Vegetarians [...] maintained muscle carnitine stores compared to omnivores."
"Carnitine, derived from an amino acid, is the generic term for several compounds, including L-carnitine, acetyl-L-carnitine, and propionyl-L-carnitine"
The body manufactures its own carnitine in the liver, kidneys, and brain, using the amino acids lysine and methionine.