Page 181 - The Memory Program How to Prevent Memory Loss and Enhance Memory Power

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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.

Phosphatidylserine: Dosage and Side Effects

Phosphatidylserine (PS) 300 mg daily for six to eight weeks should be followed by 100 mg daily for
maintenance therapy, based on the notion that a smaller dose is sufficient after the neuronal cell
membranes have been saturated with phosphatidylserine. Astonishingly, the research studies indicate
virtually no side effects. This makes the physician in me slightly nervous, because the medication
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without any side effects has yet to be invented. In particular, the possible side effects of long-term
daily intake have not been properly assessed. If phosphatidylserine is used by tens of thousands of
people, it is likely that we will hear more about its side effects, especially side effects that occur in
only a small subgroup of vulnerable individuals.

Given the fair amount of information available on the use of PS to treat mild memory loss, it is
somewhat surprising that it has not caught the public's attention. A large proportion of patients with
mild memory loss who come to our Memory Disorders Center take vitamin E or ginkgo biloba, but
hardly anyone takes PS. One reason may be that there has been no large-scale clinical trial in
Alzheimer's disease, which is necessary for any compound to reach the headlines as a treatment for
memory loss. But the fact that most phosphatidylserine studies were conducted in people who had
mild memory loss, and not clinical disorders like Alzheimer's disease, is an added plus for your
purposes.

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