Phosphatidylserine
Sold for focus, memory and mood. The whole evidence for ADHD is one trial in 36 children.
At a glance
| Our verdict | One trial in 36 children; no adult evidence for focus, memory or mood. |
| Sold for | Focus, memory and mood (claimed) |
| How sure the evidence is | Very low |
| Cost a month | About $25 to $40 (estimated) |
Written for adults in Canada. It explains the evidence; it is not advice for you personally. Last reviewed 20 October 2026.
Supplement Check
Is it right for you?
There is no adult evidence for phosphatidylserine. Your check looks at sleep, activity and your questionnaire scores, and tells you what is worth your money for focus. Our Supplement Check looks at:
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding
Coming soon. The Supplement Check and the Online Health Assessment open once our safety testing is complete.
$59 when it opens, paid once. Adults 18 and over, anywhere in Canada. While the service is new, Dr. French reads every report himself, and your report arrives within 3 working days. More about the Supplement Check
What it is
Phosphatidylserine is sold for focus, memory and mood. The one ADHD trial used a soy-derived product.
How it acts
Our review did not set out how it might act on attention, and we make no claim for a mechanism.
What it is used for, and what the evidence says
| Use | What the trials found | How sure we are |
|---|---|---|
| Children with ADHD | 36 children took 200 mg a day of a soy-derived product for 2 months: ADHD symptoms and short-term memory for things heard improved against placebo. [1] One small trial, never repeated in our review. | Very low |
| Adults: focus, memory or mood | No adult trial in our review. | No evidence |
How sure we are: High means further research is very unlikely to change the answer; Moderate, it might; Low, it may well change; Very low, we are very unsure. These follow the GRADE method that guideline panels use.
Benefits
- Improved symptoms in one small trial in children. [1]
- No adult benefit shown.
Risks and side effects
- No side effects were listed in our review; the one trial was small and in children, so it cannot show rare harms.
Interactions with medicines
No interactions were listed for phosphatidylserine in our review. Our review found no report that it speeds up or blocks the liver enzymes that clear medicines; that question has not been studied for it.
Who should not take it
- No specific cautions were listed in our review.
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding: no data in our review.
- Under 18: outside the Supplement Check.
Dose and timing
We do not recommend a dose. For reference, the one trial used 200 mg a day for 2 months, in children.
What we know about Canadians
Canada has no measured national figure for ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) in adults. Worldwide, about 2.6% of adults have ADHD that began in childhood and 6.8% have the symptoms. [2] Diagnosis and treatment in adults have risen sharply: in Ontario, new stimulant prescriptions rose 157% from 2015 to 2023, with the steepest rises in women aged 25 to 44 (up 421%) and 18 to 24 (up 369%). [3] In British Columbia, new adult diagnoses went from about 9 to 35 per 100,000 a month between before and after the pandemic. [4]
Most at risk of being newly diagnosed or treated: women aged 18 to 44. With so many more adults on stimulant medicines, what is taken alongside them matters more.
No Canadian data on phosphatidylserine use in our review.
How sure are we: low. Low for how many Canadian adults have ADHD (a global estimate); high for the rise in prescribing (whole-population Ontario and British Columbia data).
An honest comparison: adult ADHD symptoms
Effect sizes are put on one common scale so that different symptom questionnaires can be compared: the bigger the number, the more symptoms fell compared with a dummy pill (placebo). The medicine figures come from blinded trials in adults, rated by clinicians at about 12 weeks; the self-rated figures are closer to what you would notice yourself.
| Option | Effect | How sure we are | Cost a month (CAD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phosphatidylserine 200 mg | Improved symptoms in one trial of 36 children [1]; no adult trial | Very low | $25 to $40 (estimated) |
| Aerobic exercise, 20 to 45 minutes most days | Core symptoms improved a small amount after a single session (effect size 0.23); results of longer programmes were mixed [5] | Low | $0 to $60 (gym) |
| Lisdexamfetamine and other amphetamines | Clinician-rated effect size 0.79, the largest of any treatment [6]; self-rated 0.39 (stimulants as a group) [7] | Moderate to High | $90 to $150 (estimated; generic lower) |
| Methylphenidate, long-acting | Clinician-rated effect size 0.49 [6] | Moderate to High | $45 to $75 (estimated) |
| Atomoxetine (non-stimulant) | Clinician-rated effect size 0.45 [6]; self-rated 0.38 [7] | Moderate | $45 to $60 (estimated) |
Why we don't recommend it
We do not sell phosphatidylserine and our check does not recommend it.
Already taking it? There is no adult evidence that it helps, so there is no good reason to keep paying for it. If a questionnaire suggests ADHD, that is a screen, not a diagnosis: it needs a formal assessment. If ADHD is confirmed, the prescription medicines reduce symptoms two to four times more than any supplement.
The only ADHD trial was in 36 children; [1] there is no adult evidence for focus, memory or mood. At $25 to $40 a month we cannot justify it. Exercise and sleep are better investments.
Supplement Check
Before you buy it, get it checked
There is no adult evidence for phosphatidylserine. Your check looks at sleep, activity and your questionnaire scores, and tells you what is worth your money for focus. Our Supplement Check looks at:
- Pregnancy and breastfeeding
Coming soon. The Supplement Check and the Online Health Assessment open once our safety testing is complete.
$59 when it opens, paid once. Adults 18 and over, anywhere in Canada. While the service is new, Dr. French reads every report himself, and your report arrives within 3 working days. More about the Supplement Check
Disclosure of financial interest
White Pine Medical earns money from products bought through our Fullscript dispensary. Dr. French's Code of Ethics requires him to tell you this. You do not have to buy anything from us: every product is named by its ingredient and dose so you can buy it at any pharmacy, and the advice is the same wherever you buy it, or if you buy nothing.
References
- Hirayama S, Terasawa K, Rabeler R, et al. The effect of phosphatidylserine administration on memory and symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2014;27 Suppl 2:284-91. PMID 23495677.
- Song P, Zha M, Yang Q, Zhang Y, Li X, Rudan I, et al. The prevalence of adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: a global systematic review and meta-analysis. J Glob Health. 2021;11:04009. PMID 33692893.
- Myran DT, MacDonald-Spracklin R, Busa G, Talarico R, Finkelstein Y. Population-level trends in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder medication prescribing. JAMA Netw Open. 2025;8(12):e2548532. PMID 41379449.
- Hu K, Desai R, Au S, Zhao B, Barbic S, Marchand K, et al. Trends of incident adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder diagnoses before, during and after the pandemic provincial state of emergency in British Columbia (2013-2023): a population-based study. Lancet Reg Health Am. 2025;51:101223. PMID 41282502.
- Xu S, Zhao C, Hu L. The effects of acute and chronic exercise on executive functions and core symptoms in adults with ADHD: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Psychol Sport Exerc. 2026;84:103088. PMID 41638541.
- Cortese S, Adamo N, Del Giovane C, et al. Comparative efficacy and tolerability of medications for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in children, adolescents, and adults: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. Lancet Psychiatry. 2018;5(9):727-38. PMID 30097390.
- Ostinelli EG, Schulze M, Zangani C, et al. Comparative efficacy and acceptability of pharmacological, psychological, and neurostimulatory interventions for ADHD in adults: a systematic review and component network meta-analysis. Lancet Psychiatry. 2025;12(1):32-43. PMID 39701638.
Costs marked as estimates are typical Canadian retail or pharmacy prices, before any drug plan. Certainty grades are ours unless the review gave its own.