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Phs6.0
Phosphatidylserine Research
Mostly mechanism / observational
15 peer-reviewed studies
What the evidence says
Mostly mechanism / observational
Most Phosphatidylserine studies are mechanism or observational rather than RCTs that measure a clinical effect — keep findings provisional.
Most evidence is from high-quality meta-analyses and randomised trials published 2008–2026 with a typical study size of 118 participants.
Based on 15 studies · 1 meta-analysis · 10 RCTs · 1,968 total participants
Confidence
High confidence
What the studies found
1helped· 14 more without graded effect data
By outcome
Cognitive functionBetter memory, especially in cognitive decline · 4-12 weeks
Anxiety & stressReduced cortisol and stress response · 2-4 weeks · Attenuation of cortisol response to stressors · 1-4 weeks
Mostly mechanism / observational3 studies
Cholesterol & lipids
Too few graded studies2 studies
Focus & attentionSupports attention and processing speed via cell membrane integrity · 4-8 weeks
Too few graded studies1 study
RecoveryBlunted cortisol response to exercise · 2 weeks
Too few graded studies1 study
Women's healthMay help reduce PMS-related mood and cognitive symptoms · 1-3 cycles
Too few graded studies1 study
Therapeutic & clinical
Too few graded studies1 study
By the numbers
Pulled from 10 studies with measurable effects
Likely real effects
100%
across studies
People studied
1,968
typical study: 118 people
Strongest designs
11
1 pooled, 10 randomised
Showed benefit
100%
1/1 studies
How long studies ran
1–3 months
2
Populations Studied
Age-related cognitive decline1
Chinese older adults with mild cognitive impairment1
Children with ADHD1
Patients with carpal tunnel syndrome1
Active research area
9 studies in the last 5 years · Latest meta-analysis: 2021
200820172026
1Systematic ReviewCited 11×n=118 · medium study2023
The areas of neurology and psychiatry have shown great advances regarding the deepening of knowledge in prophylaxis and pathophysiology, as well as in the treatment of established diseases.
Nogueira-de-Almeida CA et al. · Central nervous system agents in medicinal chemistry (2023)
According to the GRADE instrument, most studies (>50%) followed a controlled clinical study model and had a good methodological design.
The areas of neurology and psychiatry have shown great advances regarding the deepening of knowledge in prophylaxis and pathophysiology, as well as in the treatment of established diseases.
The recognition of the role of nutrition as an adjunct to these processes is currently growing.
3Cognitive function improvementsRCTCited 5×n=190 · medium study2025
This food supplement containing phosphatidylserine could improve different cognitive functions of MCI patients, especially short-term memory, and increase serum n-3 PUFAs and neurotransmitters levels.
Duan H et al. · Journal of affective disorders (2025)
A total of 190 participants (mean [SD] age, 67.95 [5.62] years; 70 (36.8 %) male and 120 (63.2 %) female) were randomized to the placebo group (n = 95) and intervention group (n = 95).
Compared with placebo group, the intervention group had statistically significant improvements in arithmetic testing (β, 0.688; 95 % CI, 0.103-1.274), the similarity test (β, 1.070; 95 % CI, 0.472-1.667) and short-term memory (β, 0.600; 95 % CI, 0.399-0.800).
And the intervention may improve short-term memory by increasing serum ALA levels (average causal mediation effect = 0.132, 95 % CI, 0.053-0.225) with 19.7 % mediation proportion.
4ADHD symptoms (inattention, hyperactivity-impulsivity)Meta-Analysisn=216 · medium study2021
Results of the meta-analysis showed a statistically significant effect of 200-300 mg/day of phosphatidylserine on symptoms of inattention relative to placebo (effect size [ES] 0.36; 95% CI: 0.07 to 0.64; p = 0.01).
Bruton A et al. · Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (2021)
Four studies met the inclusion criteria for the narrative review (n = 344) and three for the meta-analysis (n = 216).
Statistically significant effect of 200-300 mg/day of phosphatidylserine on symptoms of inattention relative to placebo (ES 0.36; 95% CI: 0.07 to 0.64; p = 0.01).
Preliminary evidence suggests phosphatidylserine may be effective for reducing symptoms of inattention in children with ADHD, although the quality of the evidence is low.
Dietary integration could be considered as an option in patients who could not undergo surgery.
D'Orio M et al. · Acta bio-medica : Atenei Parmensis (2023)
Dietary integration could be considered as an option in patients who could not undergo surgery.
Symptoms and pain could improve, but surgery remains the gold standard for recovery of function in mild to moderate CTS.
Further research warranted to confirm findings
6Glycemic factors and hepatic functionRCTCited 160×n=80 · small study2020
In conclusion, the present trial shows that supplementation with a phytosomal preparation of curcumin containing phosphatidylserine and piperine could improve glycemic factors, hepatic function and serum cortisol levels in subjects with overweight and impaired fasting glucose.
Cicero AFG et al. · European journal of nutrition (2020)
After 56-day treatment, the curcumin-treated group experienced a significant improvement in fasting plasma insulin (FPI), HOMA index, waist circumference, blood pressure, triglycerides (TG), HDL-C, liver transaminases, gamma-GT, index of liver steatosis and serum cortisol compared to the baseline.
FPI, TG, liver transaminases, fatty liver index and serum cortisol level also significantly improved compared with the placebo-treated group.
In conclusion, the present trial shows that supplementation with a phytosomal preparation of curcumin containing phosphatidylserine and piperine could improve glycemic factors, hepatic function and serum cortisol levels in subjects with overweight and impaired fasting glucose.
Results substantiate the efficacy of PAS in reducing symptoms of PMS.
Schmidt K et al. · Clinical nutrition ESPEN (2018)
Likely real
For the biomarkers, the salivary cortisol percentage increase of the CAR was significantly less pronounced in the follicular phase of cycle 4 than in the follicular phase of cycle 1 for subjects taking PAS when compared to subjects taking placebo (p = 0.018).
Results substantiate the efficacy of PAS in reducing symptoms of PMS.
In view of the recent inclusion of severe PMS symptoms (PMDD) in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), the positive results of this clinical study merits consideration of developing the PAS complex as a botanical drug for treatment of PMDD.
8Memory and cognitive functionsRCTCited 21×n=109 · medium study2022
Results indicated significant benefits of Magtein®PS in improving memory and cognition in healthy Chinese adults.
Zhang C et al. · Nutrients (2022)
Subjects receiving Magtein®PS showed significant improvements over the control group in all five subcategories of "The Clinical Memory Test" as well as the overall memory quotient scores.
The older participants showed more improvement than younger participants.
Results indicated significant benefits of Magtein®PS in improving memory and cognition in healthy Chinese adults.
This systematic-review examined the effects of Phosphatidylserine.
Henn D et al. · Autophagy (2025)
To maintain lysosome integrity and functionality, cells have evolved multiple quality control pathways corresponding to different types of stress and damage.
These can be divided into five levels: regulation, reformation, repair, removal, and replacement.
The different levels of lysosome quality control often work together to maintain the integrity of the lysosomal network.
6 months of Soy-PS supplementation could improve the memory functions of the elderly with memory complaints.
Kato-Kataoka A et al. · Journal of Clinical Biochemistry and Nutrition (2010)
78 elderly people with mild cognitive impairment (50-69 years old) were randomly allocated to take Soy-PS (100 mg, 300 mg/day) or placebo for 6 months.
In subjects with relatively low score at baseline, the memory scores in PS-treated groups were significantly increased against the baseline, while placebo remained unchanged.
Memory improvements were mostly attributed to the increase in delayed verbal recall; Soy-PS was well tolerated.
In the future, supplementation with phytosterols and phospholipids may be considered for improving blood lipid profiles in individuals with borderline hyperlipidemia, thereby preventing or delaying the progression to overt hyperlipidemia and cardiovascular diseases.
Li L et al. · Food & function (2026)
Noticeable benefit
← WorseNo effectBetter →
Likely real
After 60 days of intervention, the levels of total cholesterol (TC) and apolipoprotein B (ApoB) in the combined PSs and PLs group decreased by 7.8% and 6.4% (P < 0.001), respectively, relative to the baseline.
In the PSs-only group, the level of total cholesterol (TC) was significantly reduced by 6.2% (P < 0.001).
Nevertheless, in the PSs and PLs group, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) was significantly reduced by 7.7% compared with the baseline only at 30 days of intervention (P = 0.017).
Findings from this work support the notion that exogenous phosphatidylserine can inhibit arterial ADAM17 activity and improve markers of vascular health in diabetic mice and humans with diabetes.
McMillan NJ, Augenreich MA, Ramirez-Perez FI, Power G, Burr K, Lateef OM, Nagarajan M, Foote CA, Imkaew N, Jurrissen TJ, Lazo-Fernandez Y, Betancourt-Cortes EE, Ferreira-Santos L, Beltran-Ornelas JH, Manrique-Acevedo C, Martinez-Lemus LA, Padilla J. · Journal of applied physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985) (2026)
Lastly, we observed that PS reduced vascular oxidative stress.
This work supports the potential of oral PS as a therapeutic strategy to improve vascular function in T2D and suggests that the beneficial effects of PS may be driven by its vascular insulin-sensitizing and antioxidant actions.
Findings from this work support the notion that exogenous phosphatidylserine can inhibit arterial ADAM17 activity and improve markers of vascular health in diabetic mice and humans with diabetes.