P-H-O-S-P-H-A-T-I-D-Y-L-S-E-R-I-N-E: Your Brain Needs It!

I enjoy teaching natural health to so many people and it never fails during my Q&A time someone always asks me about cortisol. This blog post today is not just about cortisol, but brain health and stress. When I get asked about cortisol, I’m standing at my whiteboard ready to spell one of the most important nutrients that will improve your focus and relieve your stress…P-H-O-S-H-A-T-I-D-Y-L-S-E-R-I-N-E.

What is Phosphatidylserine?

Phosphatidylserine is a kind of nutrient classified as phospholipids. Phospholipids, essentially, are fat soluble chemicals. These nutrient s play an important role in cell building and growth of cells in our body. Naturally, phospholipids are already present in cell membrane.

Generally, Phosphatidylserine is a non-essential nutrient present in abundance in our cell membrane. Moreover, our body is able to produce Phosphatidylserine naturally and does not require additional supplement through food or medicine. However, with the passage of time, the aging mechanism affects the synthesis of Phosphatidylserine in our cells. This is one of the explanations behind degrading mental functions and cognitive ability with age. In many cases, this phenomenon leads to dementia and age associated memory impairment. In such cases, Phosphatidylserine supplements for memory can serve as a beneficial cure.

Where does it come from?

Our body may produce enough Phosphatidylserine for us but when it comes to supplement, it can come from animal as well as plant sources. In both cases, there aren't too many options. Animal Phosphatidylserine is obtained from bovine brain and organ meat such as lamb's kidney. In plants, Phosphatidylserine is found in beans containing soy lecithin, for instance, soy beans and white beans.

However, Phosphatidylserine supplements are now easily available in the form of standardized medicines. Yet, you must consult your physician before taking these supplements.

As a side note, everyone needs to feed their brain healthy fats from fish oil as our brains are 60-70% fat and 60-70% of that fat needs to contain EPA/DHA for optimal brain health.

Benefits of Phosphatidylserine

The major benefits of Phosphatidylserine involve improved brain function and memory. However, since it is a vital element for our cells, it also found helpful in improving many other health conditions as well. Here is a list of conditions in which Phosphatidylserine can prove to be most beneficial.

Memory Impairment

This mainly includes conditions such as Alzheimers. The proposition is made on concrete results of a test conducted by several scientists. The results suggest that 300 mg Phosphatidylserine everyday for twelve weeks can roll back a person's memory and mental capacity to as much as twelve years. Moreover, it also improves language skills and thinking abilities. This, however, works more efficiently on people aged 50 to 80.

Phosphatidylserine helps to keep the brain’s membranes fluid, which has a direct effect upon your memory and memory recall. This is vitally important when it comes to reducing aging of the brain.

Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)

Phosphatidylserine also has a positive effect on children and adults with ADHD. It’s not be the complete cure, it does relax the brain in order to reduce ADHD related symptoms such as anxiety, nervousness and hyperactivity. This property also makes it a useful supplement for students who do not suffer from ADHD but do have issues related to memory and concentration. Phosphatidylserine supplements for memory can greatly improve their academic performance. Every young person can benefit from taking PS daily. One 100mg capsule before school and even after school will help memory and relieve any stressful situations when it comes test time.

Reducing Cortisol

This is the number reason I believe most people take Phosphatidylserine daily. It lowers cortisol with amazing effectiveness! Cortisol levels are higher when we wake up in the morning and will elevate again towards the late afternoon and evening. When that happens it can prevent us from falling asleep. Taking this nutrient daily will help you mentally feel better, but it will help you cope with surrounding stress more effectively. Being calm and more focused is what everyone wants today, and it’s as easy as taking Phosphyatidylserine daily.

Other Benefits

Most natural health professionals recommend Phosphatidylserine supplements for memory but benefits of Phosphatidylserine are not limited to brain functions. Some other proven effects of Phosphatidylserine are as follows.

• Increases attention, concentration and learning
• Reduces stress and relaxes the mind
• Decreases anxiety and depression
• Improves hearing and prevent related problems
• Lowers blood pressure
• Reduces asthma

Ward W. Bond, PhD