31 Reasons to Try Brain Supplements (Nootropics)
| Ⓒ By Jonathan Roseland |
I'm not a doctor, medical professional, or trained therapist. I'm a researcher and pragmatic biohacking practitioner exercising free speech to share evidence as I find it. I make no claims. Please practice skepticism and rational critical thinking. You should consult a professional about any serious decisions that you might make about your health. Affiliate links in this article support Limitless Mindset - spend over $150 and you'll be eligible to join the Limitless Mindset Secret Society.
2024 Update: After personally using brain supplements almost every day for nearly a decade, the most important reason I see to try them is that they are literal gateway drugs to willpower. Willpower isn't a very sexy subject (although I tried to make it one) but willpower is the ultimate lifehack because if you have willpower you get to have almost everything else you might desire.
- If you don't have willpower, you probably don't realize how important it is to your happiness.
- If you don't have willpower, you won't practice the hard habits you need to practice to acquire more willpower.
- If you don't have willpower, you'll continually fail to meet your goals and you'll live a life of quiet desperation.
- If you don't have willpower, you can't get it by reading self-help books or listening to inspiring podcasts. Sorry!
Smart drugs give you willpower. Fast. 30-60 minutes after consumption the Nootropic agents will cross your blood-brain barrier boosting the neurotransmitters which will noticeably improve your self-control for 4-6 hours.
After trying over 200 different smart drugs, I found one that I call the Discipline Molecule. More than any other Nootropic I've tried, I just do 100% of what I know I should be doing when I'm on this drug. Click here to get a detailed report on this smart drug and some infotaining videos analyzing what human studies are saying about the Discipline Molecule.
Many people searching the internet for an NZT-like mindpower-boosting substance will find Nootropic brain supplements.
"Demonstrated that..."
Below you'll frequently find some desired effects attributed to particular Nootropics and you may be wondering...
Is there science substantiating these claims?
Yes. I link to meta-analysis articles I've done on these Nootropics that quote directly or cite double-blind, placebo-controlled studies. I encourage you to do your own research and read these studies.
The primary reason that people have been taking Nootropic brain supplements for +40 years is to feel smarter, focus better, and be more productive. Fast.
However, that's not all that Nootropics do. Below numerous health, lifestyle, and other practical benefits are listed, but first...
A Quick Story...
I was alone in my office on a Friday night after an eventful and demanding 11-hour day working on an invoice to send out to a client.
I was mentally juggling about 10 different projects at the moment.
I had not had a proper meal in over 7 hours.
I was in the middle of texting friends, solidifying our social plans for the evening.
I was worried about a software upgrade my hosting company was demanding.
As much as I wanted to press the invitingly blue Send Now button - fire off the invoice and shut down my computer - I double-checked the accounting on the invoice, cross-referenced my email threads with the client, and caught an error that would have cost me $70.
A couple of evenings later I was on a date; savoring a meal at one of the nicer restaurants in downtown Medellin, Colombia, and a (surprisingly) stimulating conversation with a 22-year-old girl. The thought crossed my mind that my accounting save was essentially paying for the rich ambiance, flavor, and beauty surrounding me.
At the time I was on a downright expensive Nootropic cocktail. Can I credit all my attention to detail, discipline, and general coolness under fire to the smart drugs flowing in my veins? That's hard to say for sure; but I've had enough moments while on Nootropics that my focus, attention, and creativity either saved the day or delivered the rock-star results that people pay me the big bucks for that I won't go without them. The bottom line is that smart drugs have delivered me an excellent ROI in productivity, imperviousness to distraction, and rich life experiences.
By the end of this article...
The skepticism you may have about smart drugs will be addressed. You'll understand the specific, measurable, and disparate benefits that this class of medicine delivers. Most importantly you will be better prepared to make the very serious decision about using (or not using) these tools to enrich your life.
Improved mind-body coordination.
An important job of Nootropic substances is to boost the primary neurotransmitter Acetylcholine. Acetylcholine is the primary chemical messenger that communicates between the brain's gray matter and your muscles. A 1996 Australian Study and a 2004 paper published in Powerlifting USA Magazine showed a strong correlation between athletic performance and Acetylcholine. Acetylcholine comes from the nootropics Alpha GPC, Choline, and DMAE.
Motor function is also aided by Bacopa.
Makes you more articulate.
One of the most pleasant immediate effects of good Nootropics is that they will increase your mastery of words and vocabulary. You will find yourself using a little more flowery grammar, obscure words that you haven't used in years, and generally being more creative, especially while on Piracetam, Green Tea, and L-Theanine. L-Tyrosine also increases verbal intelligence and sociability according to some bloggers.
Improves your confidence and ability to socialize.
Like in the movie Limitless, increasing your neurotransmitters, focus, and creativity will naturally make you more confident and outgoing in social, dating, and business situations.
Sleep better.
Acetylcholine and its nootropic precursors promote REM sleep. 5-HTP normalizes sleep patterns, a 1988 study suggests that DMAE induces lucid dreams. For those who occasionally suffer from Narcolepsy or circadian rhythm-related sleep disorders, Modafinil (notorious for causing near NZT-48-like levels of mind power) will ensure empowered wakefulness when you need it the most. 150 milligrams of L-Tyrosine will give you an extra 3 hours of alert mindset if you are operating on not enough sleep.
Gets you fired up and productive in the morning.
Mornings are so valuable to life hackers and Nootropics allow you to extract the maximum productivity out of these golden 4-6 hours you have every day. A Nootropic like Piracetam, QUANTUMiND, or Excelerol taken upon rolling out of bed, will begin to kick in like a cup of coffee brewed by Zeus himself in about 30-60 minutes. But unlike a cup of Joe, you WON'T need to caffeine re-up 90 minutes later to maintain your energy and focus.
Makes you a better writer.
For authors, bloggers, novelists, copywriters, or students with an important paper due Nootropics will improve your focus, creativity, and dexterity as a writer. For creativity: Nicotine, Green Tea, and Piracetam.
Boosts the feel-good neurotransmitters; serotonin and dopamine.
The two chemicals of pleasure can be stimulated and sustainably increased by Nootropic intake. Nootropics: 5-HTP, Bacopa, Green Tea, L-Tyrosine, Vitamin B12, and Phenylalanine.
Prescription drug alternative.
Nootropics have been shown in numerous studies to quite effectively treat or prevent a lot of conditions that the pharmaceutical industry profiteers upon. What do Nootropics prevent or even cure?
Depression
Anxiety
ADHD
Sleep-related disorders
Alzheimer's disease
And other degenerative brain diseases.
While antidepressants have been linked to decreased sexual desire, weight gain, and even an increased risk of suicide. Those going off antidepressants will also frequently report symptoms of withdrawal; dizziness, nausea, diarrhea, sweats, chills, itching, disorientation, headaches, and mood swings.
Superior in multiple dimensions to coffee.
Many productivity rockstars are highly dependent upon the dark nectar of wired-up bitterness. While coffee is a great source of antioxidants, unless we are talking about toxin-free coffee, it likely contains mold and mycotoxins which are bad for your brain. The cost (in time and money) of a daily coffee habit (ESPECIALLY if you frequent coffee shops) is double, triple, and sometimes more than a reasonable monthly Nootropics budget; which starts around $20/monthly and goes up to several hundred dollars monthly for sophisticated personalized bespoke Nootropic stacks.
Eliminates the post-lunch/mid-afternoon productivity lull.
Life hackers, entrepreneurs, students, and high-performing professionals loathe the mid-afternoon energy lull; feeling like you need a nap in the middle when you know you should be doing your best work. Nootropics like Piracetam, white strains of Kratom, and caffeine help you maintain a high baseline of mental energy throughout the entire day.
Reverses glutamate and acetylcholinesterase damage to your brain.
When you inevitably eat things like bread and pasta they turn into neurotoxic glutamate in your brain. Acetylcholinesterase, a chemical antagonist that destroys acetylcholine is itself combated by Bacopa and Huperzine A, so the enemy of your enemy is your friend.
Boosts Neuroplasticity.
Plasticity, the cognitive function we employ whenever we learn new skills, a new language, form new memories, make new friends, recover from brain damage, or adapt to new challenges or situations, is maintained and boosted by Nootropics. Fatty amino acids are one of the most essential building blocks of new brain cells and synaptic connections, the biological components of neuroplasticity. Supplementing Omega-3 Fish Oil or Krill Oil every day will supply your brain with these aminos that the average Western diet is highly deficient in. Vitamin B12 is also essential to the manufacture of new neurotransmitters.
Fights physiological and psychological stress.
Stress is without a doubt the least limitless thing in your life. If there's one chemical that can be blamed for making life suck, it's cortisol. The following Nootropics work to regulate cortisol and protect your brain from oxidative stress with potent antioxidants and minimize your perception of stress: Bacopa, Ginkgo Biloba, Green Tea, Phosphatidylserine, L-Carnitine, L-Theanine, L-Tyrosine, and Vitamin B3.
Prevents obesity.
The Nootropics 5-HTP and Green Tea fight obesity by boosting metabolism, energy, and even blocking chemicals that motivate us to overeat. Nootropics, in general, promote a more conscious and active lifestyle, a person wired up on nootropics is NOT going to spend hours sitting on the couch eating potato chips.
Promotes lucid dreaming.
The common Nootropics DMAE and Huperzine A drastically increase the likelihood of having lucid, entertaining, highly aware, Inception-like dreams every night.
Improves your ability to learn new languages.
The myriad of cognitively empowering effects of Nootropics makes you more effective at learning new languages. You will find it easier to learn vocabulary and grammar rules. Your increased confidence will give you more opportunities to practice the new language and make friends. When paired with memory association systems you can become conversationally fluent in as little as 60-90 days in a brand new language.
Anti-aging effects on the brain.
Aging begins to negatively affect the brain in people as young as 25. Combating oxidative stress and regulating cortisol levels is directly proportional to the gracefulness with which your mind ages. Ultimately lethal neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer's disease, dementia, post-stroke aphasia, and geriatric cognitive disorders can be prevented, treated, and sometimes even reversed using Nootropics. Nootropics to keep your mind young: Alpha GPC, Bacopa, ALCAR, Niacin, Piracetam, Vitamin B12, and coconut-derived MCT Oil.
Protects DNA.
Bacopa protects and Niacin is a repair agent for DNA - you can take this to the next level by using the most bioavailable form, NMN.
Prevents and fights cancer.
- Bacopa cleans up free radicals that can turn into cancer.
- Niacinamide is used in combination with Vitamin C for cancer therapy.
- Vitamin D prevents tumor angiogenesis.
- DHA fights multiple types of cancer in your body. White Tea extract fights lung cancer cells.
- Multiple studies done across the globe have demonstrated that Green Tea is one of the most potent cancer-fighting agents along with the phytochemical anthocyanin.
For decades cancer research has correlated high levels of stress and runaway cortisol levels to a higher occurrence of cancer. As you already know at this point one of the primary things that Nootropics do is decrease stress and regulate cortisol levels to a happy medium. In general, people on Nootropics are significantly more likely to live the kind of active, biologically introspective lifestyle that keeps them cancer-free.
Boosts libido and sexual appetite.
- Ginkgo Biloba and Ginseng (in a proportion of 60/40) work in concert to empower your mind and your libido.
- L-Tyrosine boosts sex drive and has a positive effect on erectile dysfunction.
- Horny Goat Weed functions as a sensation enhancer (for him and her) for several hours within dosing, in the long term it boosts testosterone.
If you are a single person Nootropics will make you more bold, more articulate, and confident in social situations - which will help get you laid more often!
Improves blood circulation to the brain.
Our brain receives many of the Nootropics mentioned here via the blood-brain barrier. Our brain completely relies upon a constant source of blood and oxygen to operate at its fullest capacity, if your blood flow is cut off for just a few seconds you will go unconscious. The Nootropic Vinpocetine causes vasodilation, which is the widening of the main arteries that deliver blood, oxygen, and nutrients to the brain.
Prevents depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia.
Nootropics consistently balance and maintain the brain chemistry that results in a healthy psyche. 5-HTP, Bacopa, DHA, DMAE the chemical precursor of ACh along with Ginkgo Biloba, L-Tyrosine, Piracetam, and Vitamin B12 are demonstrated in studies to prevent, treat, and in some cases cure psychological disorders.
For vegans and vegetarians: Nootropics feed you essential nutrients.
Those who refrain from eating meat miss out on a lot of nutrients that feed our brains which occur in animal protein or are synthesized by bacteria in our gut biome that comes from animal foods. Vegans and vegetarians should regularly supplement at a minimum; Acetyl-L-Carnitine, Vitamin B12 (essential for manufacturing neurotransmitters), and Omega-3 - a supplemental must for those who don't eat fish regularly.
Saves you money.
Eating an organic diet containing all the brain-feeding nutraceuticals mentioned in this article would cost you at least several hundred extra dollars every month just in groceries. The daily coffee shop or energy drink habit that many workaholics have costs anywhere from +$70/monthly to several hundred monthly. The cognitively superior, sustainable, and significantly healthier productivity buzz you get from Nootropics will cost you less.
Saves you time.
The majority of Nootropics are taken in pill form, so they take just a few seconds out of your morning or after lunch to swallow with a glass of water. In contrast, the other habits people employ to maximize their energy and productivity (coffee shop visits, buying energy drinks from gas stations, taking power naps during the day, meditation breaks, etc.) will eat up at least several productive hours a month.
Help you beat addictions.
Nootropic substances like Piracetam, 5-HTP, and L-Tyrosine deepen your perception of reward and arousal from healthy pleasure stimuli; eating good food, spending time with loved ones, sex, physical touch, accomplishing goals, exercise, relaxation, etc. This has been shown to help those suffering from alcohol and methamphetamine addiction.
No amphetamine-related health risks.
Many popular pharmaceuticals like Ritalin, Adderall, Dexedrine, Dextrostat, Desoxyn, Didrex, ProCentra, and Vyvanse, as well as Benzedrine or Psychedrine, contain or metabolize into addictive amphetamines. Tolerance increases rapidly meaning that you will have to constantly increase the dosage to maintain the desired effect and overdose can lead to psychosis, hypertension, and chest pain. Amphetamines can also be very dangerous for those with heart conditions.
Relatively non-existent side effects.
One of the single greatest reasons to take nootropics as a preventative measure OR to treat a condition is the relative lack of negative side effects.
For a frightening experience, go check the potential side effects of some of the more popular pharmaceuticals for the same kinds of conditions that Nootropics prevent or treat more effectively. Many of the pharmaceuticals on the market that treat depression, anxiety, ADHD, or problems sleeping introduce a serious medical risk - they can cause cancer and even death in rare cases. After personally experimenting for over a decade with numerous Nootropics at sometimes quite high dosages the worst side effect I ever encountered was a level of slight irritation with people around me who were slower than me.
Supports small business people.
Unlike the pharmaceutical or food industry where management is ensconced in the ivory tower of capitalism, solely concerned with profitability, the majority of Nootropics companies are privately owned by small business people who stake their personal reputations on the effectiveness of their products.
I've personally met and dealt with the management and owners of many companies in the Nootropics industry, they are not corporate zombies or profiteering tycoons, in my experience, they are very thoughtful folks who aspire to the noblest ideals of socially responsible entrepreneurship.
Money-back guarantees.
The better Nootropic supplements on the market come with 100% money-back guarantees; if you don't get impressive gains in mind power you get your money back.
Brain cross-training...
Is a strategy utilized by elite Biohackers to maximize the ROI of Nootropics using brain-training software; it entails brain training under the influence of smart drugs and recording the results. Which is tantamount to a bodybuilder that maximizes their gains in the gym while under the influence of a powerful pre-workout supplement. Get a free download of my favorite smartphone fluid intelligence training App - the only one demonstrated in human studies to have "transfer effects" to real life.
Leave a comment...
Let me know which Nootropics you are thinking about trying and what you are hoping to get out of your self-experimentation.
Finally...
Don't underestimate the power of taking action now! If upgrading your mind with Nootropics is for you order some today via the Mind Power Marketplace.
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