ergo-log.com

Definition: "An ergogenic aid is any substance or phenomenon that enhances performance "

22.06.2024

More BDNF and better memory through supplementation with PEA

Supplementation with PEA enhances the ability to absorb information and to recall and use it shortly afterwards. This is suggested by a sponsored trial in which subjects took 600 milligrams of PEA daily for 6 weeks.

Study
At the expense of PEA manufacturer Gencor, researchers from the University of Westminster studied the cognitive effect of PEA on healthy young men and women. A total of 54 subjects took a placebo or a supplement containing 600 milligrams of PEA every day on 2 different occasions for 6 weeks.

Before the supplementation started and on the last day of the supplementation period, the researchers tested the cognitive abilities of the subjects. The table below tells something about 2 of these tests, PALFAMS and PALTEA.

Results
After the supplementation period, the scores on the test had improved statistically significantly.

Mechanism
PEA increased the concentration of BDNF in the blood of the test subjects. BDNF is a growth factor that forces neurons to make new connections.

The researchers do not say exactly how much BDNF they found before the supplementation started. To get an idea of the size of the effect, we consulted a study that Swiss neurologists published in 2018. [eNeuro 2018 Mar 22;5(2):eneuro.0419-17.2018.] From this publication we took the figure below.

Click on it for a larger version.

In this Swiss study, the average BDNF level was approximately 32-33 nanograms per milliliter. If we had to make a quick & dirty estimate, we would arrive at an increase of 8-9 percent due to supplementation with BDNF. Which is certainly interesting.

Conclusion
"The increase in serum BDNF levels within the PEA treatment group, accompanied by enhancements in memory and cognitive performance, suggests the potential of formulated, bioavailable PEA supplements to be a practical and safe nootropic nutraceutical", write the researchers.

Source:
Nutrients. 2024 Feb 8;16(4):489.

More:
PEA reduces neuropathic pain in diabetes 31.05.2024
PEA against chronic pain | Metastudy 28.09.2023
Palmitoylethanolamide, a natural painkiller with no side effects 03.11.2016

Archives:
Brain Boosters
PEA

Curcumin improves memory If people aged over 50 take a supplement with a highly absorbable form of curcumin every day, their memory improves.	Better memory through creatine supplements Meta-study.	Spermidine improves memory in over-60s | Pilot study This pilot study was published in 2018.