Clinical Studies
Italian researchers evaluated phosphatidylserine in small-scale uncontrolled clinical trials, each in approximately thirty volunteer subjects who had minimal memory deficits. Phosphatidylserine showed memory-enhancing properties in these subjects. Later, several placebo-controlled trials were conducted, some by European researchers and a few by Dr. Thomas Crook, an American psychologist who has worked closely with the pharmaceutical companies in trying to find a treatment
for ‘‘age-associated memory impairment.”
This narrow diagnostic category is defined by poor performance on a few neuropsychological tests, and represents only part of the population with agerelated memory loss. In several studies of people with age-associated memory impairment, phosphatidylserine was superior to placebo on specific neuropsychological measures. If you tend to forget names, take heart: phosphatidylserine has been shown to be helpful for that very symptom. In these studies, the consistency, more than the size, of the cognitive improvement was impressive. Hence I place phosphatidylserine near die top of my list of medications that you can take for agerelated memory loss, and to prevent the onset of age-related memory loss.
A Few Words of Caution
A few words of caution before you jump headfirst onto the phosphatidylserine bandwagon: nearly all studies so far have involved fewer than fifty people, meaning that fewer than twenty-five people received phosphatidylserine and fewer than twenty-five people received placebo. Also, the duration of these clinical trials was usually six to twelve weeks. We don’t know if these people would have maintained cognitive improvement on phosphatidylserine over a period of several months to years, but this is quite possible.
Phosphatidylserine Products and Content
The amount of phosphatidylserine available in your diet, primarily through fish, soy beans, and green vegetables, is too little to have a significant promemory effect. The health food product derived from cow brains has given way to soy-based phosphatidylserine (mad cow disease was not responsible for this change), which should be of some comfort to those of you who are vegetarians. The content of phosphatidylserine varies among health food products. The label “Leci-PS” indicates that the product’s contents have been tested by a standard laboratory to ensure that it contains adequate amounts of phosphatidylserine, as claimed by the manufacturer of that particular brand. “Brain gum,” which contains phosphatidylserine, has gained popularity during the last few years.
Taken From: The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss
and Enhance Memory Power
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