Phosphatidylserine (PS), also known as complex neurotic acid, is derived from the residual extraction of natural soybean oil. It serves as an active component in cell membranes, particularly in brain cells, with its primary function being the enhancement of nerve cell functionality, regulation of nerve impulse conduction, and improvement of memory function within the brain. Due to its high lipophilicity, it rapidly crosses the blood-brain barrier after absorption and effectively soothes smooth muscle cells in blood vessels while increasing cerebral blood flow.
Its primary effects include enhancing cell wall flexibility and improving the efficiency of neurotransmitters that transmit brain signals, thereby promoting efficient brain function and stimulating brain activation. Initially used for preventing Alzheimer's disease in middle-aged and elderly individuals, phosphatidylserine has experienced a resurgence due to recent advancements in memory clinical trials. A recent study conducted in Israel revealed that volunteers who consumed phosphatidylserine supplements demonstrated significant improvements in memory cognition, recall ability, and cognitive flexibility. Notably, learning capacity and immediate recall were significantly enhanced as well. Additionally, a clinical study involving 120 high school seniors at the Nutrition and Food Safety Research Center of the Third Military Medical University in China assessed subjects' memory using the Clinical Memory Scale standard method before and after a trial period. The subscales included pointing memory, associative learning, free recall of images, recollection of nonsensical shapes, and recall of associations between portrait features. The results indicated that phosphatidylserine had a substantial positive impact on students' memory performance with certain indices showing short-term increases exceeding 20%.
In the short term, phosphatidylserine supplementation can safely enhance memory by increasing brain spines, fluidity of cell membranes, and promoting glucose metabolism in brain cells. This leads to increased activity in brain cells, improved concentration, alertness and memory. Additionally, phosphatidylserine (PS) helps alleviate brain fatigue and repair damage to brain cells. Due to these benefits, PS-related nutritional supplements are widely used for pre-exam nutritional support. 2. The revised sentence emphasizes the safety of phosphatidylserine supplementation while highlighting its ability to improve memory through various mechanisms such as increasing brain spines and promoting glucose metabolism in brain cells. It also clarifies that PS can help relieve brain fatigue and repair damage to brain cells which is why it's commonly used for pre-exam nutritional support. The second part of the revised sentence explains how changes in modern eating habits have resulted in a decrease in natural consumption of phosphatidylserine while industrial production has further reduced its availability from lipids and oils. As a result, many people do not consume enough on a daily basis leading to deficiencies especially among vegetarians who may require higher doses of 200-250 mg per day compared with normal individuals who need between 70-150 mg per day depending on their diet type (high meat/fish or low-fat). Therefore, taking a supplement containing 100-300 mg pure phosphatidylserine per day is recommended for normal individuals but even more important for those on low-fat/low-cholesterol diets or elderly populations.Additionally, several other dietary habits can diminish the levels of phosphatidylserine in the brain. For instance, an omega-3 fatty acid-deficient diet reduces brain phosphatidylserine by 28%, subsequently altering hippocampal biochemistry. Furthermore, as age advances, cholesterol content increases while phosphatidylserine content decreases in the brain, leading to reduced enzyme activity and cellular transport capacity in brain cells and a subsequent decrease in intercellular connections that ultimately result in memory loss. Phosphatidylserine regulates the ratio of cholesterol to phospholipids in the brain, restoring normal fluidity and chemical composition of brain cell membranes while enhancing enzyme activity for improved memory function.
