Health Benefits (taken form wikipedi.org & phosphatidylserine.net)

Phosphatidyl Serine (PS) has proven to be a safe and effective therapeutic agent in treating memory deficit disorders and for improving other higher brain functions. Here is the information you need to see how this plant-derived substance can improve the quality of your life.

What can Phosphatidylserine (PS) do for Me?

Leci-PS in Flavay Plus® increases metabolism throughout your entire brain.

(Above:) PET imaging of the brain of a 59-year-old woman. The color scale indicates regional glucose metabolism at three brain levels, red is most intense and blue is least. UPPER: before Leci-PS; LOWER: after taking Leci-PS daily for three weeks.

Over 3,000 published research papers and more than 60 clinical trials have established that phosphatidylserine (LECI-PS) can rejuvenate your brain cell membranes and thereby:

• strengthen your memory,
• increase vigilance and attention,
• boost learning,
• increase mental acuity,
• intensify your concentration,
• relieve depression and improve mood,
• inhibit exercise and stress induced increases in cortisol,
• decrease stress—whether you are young or old.

 

Memory and Cognition

Early studies of phosphatidylserine distilled the chemical from bovine brain. Because of concerns about BSE, however, modern studies and commercially available products are made from soybeans. The fatty acids attached to the serine in the soy product are not identical to those in the bovine product, which is also impure. However, preliminary studies indicate that the soy product is at least as effective as that of bovine origin. ^[1][2]

On May 13, 2003, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave "qualified health claim" status to phosphatidylserine, stating that "Consumption of phosphatidylserine may reduce the risk of dementia in the elderly" and "Consumption of phosphatidylserine may reduce the risk of cognitive dysfunction in the elderly"

Sports Nutrition

Phosphatidylserine has been demonstrated to speed up recovery, prevent muscle soreness, improve well-being, and might possess ergogenic properties in athletes involved in cycling, weight training and endurance running. PS has been reported to be an effective supplement for combating exercise-induced stress and preventing the physiological deterioration that accompanies too much exercise.^[3] In recent studies, PS has been shown to enhance mood in a cohort of young people during mental stress and to improve accuracy during tee-off by increasing the stress resistance of golfers.^[4]

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

First pilot studies indicate that PS supplementation might be beneficial for children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.^[5][6]

Side Effects

Phosphatidylserine has been shown to reduce specific immune response in mice. ^[7][8]

Dietary Sources

PS can be found in meat fish, but is most abundant in the brain and in innards such as liver and kidney. Only small amounts of PS can be found in dairy products or in vegetables, with the exception of white beans.

Table 1. PS content in different foods.^[9]

Food	PS Content in mg/100 g
Bovine brain	713
Atlantic mackerel	480
Chicken heart	414
Atlantic herring	360
Eel	335
Offal (average value)	305
Pig's spleen	239
Pig's kidney	218
Tuna	194
Chicken (average value)	110
White beans	107
Soft-shell clam	87
Mullet	76
Veal	72
Beef	69
Pork	57
Pig's liver	50
Crayfish	40
Cuttlefish	31
Atlantic cod	28
Anchovy	25
Whole grain barley	20
European hake	17
European pilchard (sardine)	16
Trout	14
Rice (unpolished)	3
Milk (whole, 3.25% fat)	1

The average daily PS intake from the diet in western countries is estimated to be 130 mg.

Applications

Research

Annexin-A5 is a naturally-occurring protein with avid binding affinity for PS. Labeled-annexin-A5 enables visualization of cells in the early- to mid-apoptotic state in vitro or in vivo.

Tumour

Technetium-labeled annexin-A5 enables distinction between malignant and benign tumours whose pathology includes a high rate of cell division and apoptosis in malignant compared with a low rate of apoptosis in benign tumours.

How Does it Work?

Leci-PS restores your brain's supply and output of acetylcholine—neurotransmitter essential to memory.

Change the way you grow older by recharging your memory for the many years ahead.

Phosphatidylserine enables your brain cells to metabolize glucose and to release and bind with neurotransmitters, all of which is important to learning, memory and other cognitive functions.

Phosphatidylserine increases communication between cells in your brain by increasing the number of membrane receptor sites for receiving messages. Phosphatidylserine modulates the fluidity of cell membranes—essential to your brain cells' ability to send and receive chemical communication.

Scientific studies demonstrate that phosphatidylserine restores the brain's supply and output of acetylcholine, the neurotransmitter so important to memory, and so may turn back the clock in an aging brain.

Leci-PS restores your brain's supply and output of dopamine—essential to memory, attention and problem-solving.

Phosphatidylserine can increase the availability of endogenous (that which is created within your cells) choline for de novo synthesis and release (while similar treatments with phosphatidylcholine had no effect).

Phosphatidylserine also stimulates your brain to produce dopamine and this is likely why patients diagnosed with clinical depression have shown marked improvement in their symptoms as a result of taking phosphatidylserine daily. Reduced dopamine levels are also thought to contribute to attention deficit disorder and this natural substance has proven to be an effective therapeutic agent for ADD and ADHD.

Leci-PS inhibits stress- and exercise-induced increases in Cortisol.

Studies examining athletes involved in cycling, weight training and endurance running show that phosphatidylserine can speed recovery, prevent muscle soreness and help athletes to feel their best during the rigors of training.

We also know that phosphatidylserine is important in bone matrix formation, testicular function, beat coordination of the heart, hormone secretion by the adrenal glands and cell repair and removal by the immune system.

Modern science has only begun to understand how important phosphatidylserine is to our bodies. After all, it's present in every type of cell in our body and the membrane proteins that it activates are important in all cells.

Why Do I Need Phosphatidyl Serine?

Your body cannot produce phosphatidylserine in sufficient amounts when under stress, when aged, or when lacking in the necessary enzymes and metabolic cofactors.

Because of stress, aging, and our modern eating habits and food-production methods.

Stress: Like burning a candle burning at both ends, stress increases the demand for phosphatidylserine and depletes your phosphatidylserine levels at the same time.

Aging: The elderly particularly benefit from taking phosphatidyl serine. While aging increases our brain's need for phosphatidylserine it also creates digestive and metabolic inefficiency so that it's simply not possible to get enough phosphatidylserine in your diet. Considerable research has proven that Leci-PS improves age-associated memory impairment and continued use prevents age-related decay of brain functions.

(Above:) Changes in daily phosphatidylserine (PS) consumption.

Modern Diets: Modern low-fat and low-cholesterol diets lack up to 150 mg per day of dietary phosphatidylserine. A vegetarian diet may undersupply as much as 200 to 250 mg per day. Other eating styles also create a demand for more phosphatidyl serine. For example, a diet deficient in omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the amount of phosphatidylserine in the brain by 28% and thereby impair your brain's ability to form, store, process and remember.

Modern Food Production: To make matters worse, modern industrial production of fats and oils decreases all of the natural phospholipids—including phosphatidylserine.

One or two words: Phosphatidylserine or Phosphatidyl Serine?

Both ways are correct. While the term appears as one word in scientific journals, the marketplace often splits the awkward name into two.

What is Phosphatidylserine (PS)?

Phosphatidylserine includes amino and fatty acids such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

Phosphatidylserine is a phospholipid that is vital to your brain cells. Phospholipids are molecules containing both amino and fatty acids found in every cell membrane within our bodies. The fatty acids include omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acid molecules—essential for life.

Actually, phosphatidylserine is universally present in living things from the most simple to the most complex. It is present in every one of our cells. Phosphatidylserine has many known functions throughout all of our tissues and organs, but is most important as the key building block for the billions of cells that make up our brain.

First isolated in 1942, phosphatidylserine is now available as a dietary supplement derived from soy lecithin.

Is Leci-PS Safe?

Yes! The use of Leci-PS is well validated through clinical research and proven safe in standard toxicology tests.

From the large number of human studies conducted Leci-PS developed a flawless safety record. First, it has proven compatible with a wide array of medications including: antacids, anti-hypertensives, anti-inflammatories, antiulcer and mucolytic agents, diuretics, antithrombotics, hypoglycemics, antiarrthymics, insulin, calcium channel blockers, calcitonin, chemotherapy drugs and other prescription medications. Second, Leci-PS is well tolerated by elderly patients with chronic diseases such as cerebrovascular, artery and vein disorders, heart diseases, high blood pressure, diabetes, lung diseases, digestive system diseases and arthritis.

Interestingly, clinical researchers found Leci-PS lowered uric acid levels and liver SGPT in their elderly patients—which can signify improved liver health.

Phosphorylated vs. Phosphatidyl

Phosphatidyl serine's tails of amino and fatty acids, the extra negative charge on its head piece and unique conformation are essential to its specific actions.

A phosphorylated serine is available as a dietary supplement but does not substitute for phosphatidyl serine (PS), despite the claims of its manufacturer. Though it resembles the head piece, phosphorylated serine is different—it is not a phospholipid and does not work like PS does.

Consumers report phosphorylated serine can cause highly uncomfortable adverse reactions. Be sure you get the real thing.

Authentic vs. "Borrowed" Science

Proven in clinical trials, LECI-PS is an important part of Flavay Plus®, a complete and synergistic blend of Leci-PS with Flavay® (patented free-radical scavenger) plus all of the essential antioxidants and their co-factor nutrients in one convenient and cost-effective capsule.

BUYER BEWARE: Not all phosphatidyl serine products are equal. The marketplace is full of imitations, offshoots and derivatives of scientifically proven natural products. Those who are looking for a product that will produce the proven results and not just “claimed” or “implied” results want the authentic product that was used in the actual scientific research.

Consumers want the actual phosphatidyl serine proven safe and effective in the clinical trials.