Not all Nootropics are made equal. Clinical trials have shown some nutrients perform a lot better than others when it comes to getting the most out of your mind.
Based on weeks and hours of compiled research, out of all the natural ingredients out there, these are the most potent, and safe for effective results.
The Types of Nootropics
Nootropics help towards optimizing your brain and take productivity to the next level both physically and mentally, whether it’s working on a project, or training in the gym. Nootropics can give you that edge to perform better both physically and mentally.
Here are the types of nootropics you need in your stack for the best results:
- Cognition Booster – Help your ability to learn and process things. They support your thinking speed and overall language fluency (how you form sentences)
- Memory Enhancement – Improve your recall of information and facts. Useful for students, and for professionals that work with a lot of facts and figures
- Cell Regeneration – Supports the increase the amount of nerve regeneration in the brain, which helps cognitive scale and your overall amount of brain processing power
- Intensify Focus – For those struggling with ‘brain fog’ and productivity, these types of nootropics improve your overall attention span and length of time you can work effectively without distraction
– Skip straight to the Top 3 Nootropics that deliver these effects –
What to avoid in a Nootropic: Proprietary Blends
Proprietary blends have been in the supplements industry for a while now, and they don’t benefit the consumer in any way – only the manufacturer.
This is where ingredients are all marked under the same value, the blend, this stops us from knowing how much of each ingredient is being used or how effective it will be in the long run.
Here’s a classic example from an unnamed supplement:
The ingredients are there, but their dosages aren’t. This could lead to one of two problems:
- The supplement is under-dosed in areas and ineffective – allows the company to claim their product has benefits of the ingredients mentioned, but under-doses them to save money and fool the consumer.
- The supplement is over-dosed in areas and dangerous – the user feels the effect of one or two of the ingredients and feels they’re getting the full benefit, however, depending on what’s used (e.g. caffeine) can lead to side effects.
If you’re thinking about a nootropic with proprietary blends, or any supplement, have a good luck at the ingredients first and the blend’s overall value and judge whether you think the company will be including enough.
Because more often than not, they aren’t.
The Current Top 5 Nutrients in Natural Nootropics
Huperzine-A
Recommended Dosage: 50-200mcg
Best for MEMORY
This is one of the more vital nutrients for your brain, Huperzine-A. This compound is an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor which stops the break down of acetylcholine.
Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter in the brain that helps with learning and memory, with the additional bonus of supporting muscle contraction. It’s the secret weapon for both mind and body.
It’s actually so effective that it’s currently in trials for fighting Alzheimer’s Disease, albeit in the preliminary stages.
A study carried out over 4 weeks which supplemented 100mcg of Huperzine-A on adolescents showed a dramatic increase in memory and learning ability compared to the placebo group.[1]
Rhodiola Rosea
Recommended Dosage: 50-680mg
Best for COGNITION & MOOD
One of the top nootropic nutrients out there, Rhodiola Rosea is a traditional chinese medicine that has been to help with mood, energy and cognition.
It has been seen in numerous studies to reduce fatigue, even with a low dose [2, 3] while also helping to improve cognition. [4]
Rhodiola Rosea may also support mood too, and be a valuable tool in fighting depression, however this has only been seen in higher doses (340-680mg). [5]
Lion’s Mane Mushroom
Recommended Dosage: 1000-3000mg
Best for CELL REGENERATION
This rare mushroom helps promote Nerve Growth Factor Synthesis in the brain, which supports the production of new brain cells.
Studies have shown supplementation of Lion’s Mane over a 16 week period helps with the overall reduction of cognitive decline on subjects from age 50 to 80. [6]
Bacopa Monnieri
Recommended Dosage: 300mg
Best for VERBAL LEARNING & MEMORY
A solid nootropic herb for boosting cognitive ability and memory formation. It can also help to reduce anxiety.
Studies have shown that regular supplementation of 300mg Bacopa improves verbal learning, memory acquisition and helps prevent against delayed recall. It also shows some effect at reducing depressive symptoms [7]
Citicoline
Recommended Dosage: 500-2000mg
Best for FOCUS, ATTENTION SPAN & MEMORY
One of the best nootropic nutrients for helping with memory, but it also helps in other areas.
Citicoline helps with the production of Choline and Uridine, and supports the treatment of memory impairments and recall. [8]
But that’s not all, studies have also shown that this brain booster also helps enhance your attention span [9] and prevent overall cognitive decline. [10]
What Nootropics Contain These Ingredients?
These are all great nutrients, but it’s hard to find a stack that contains them all together. After numerous lengthy research sessions and a hours of my own time, I’ve finally found what I believe to be the 3 most effective nootropic stacks on the market.
To see them all, and my thoughts on them, click the link below:
– See our Top 3 Nootropics Stacks –
They all have they’re ups and downs, but they’re good on the whole. You can see what I’m currently using in the link below:[primemale_ab]
References
[1] Sun QQ, Xu SS, Pan JL, Guo HM, Cao WQ., Huperzine-A capsules enhance memory and learning performance in 34 pairs of matched adolescent students., Zhongguo Yao Li Xue Bao. 1999 Jul;20(7):601-3.
[2] Hung SK, Perry R, Ernst E. The effectiveness and efficacy of Rhodiola rosea L.: a systematic review of randomized clinical trials. Phytomedicine. 2011;18(4):235–244.
[3] Edwards D, Heufelder A, Zimmermann A (2012) Therapeutic effects and safety of Rhodiola rosea extract WS(R) 1375 in subjects with life-stress symptoms–results of an open-label study. Phytother Res 26: 1220–1225. doi: 10.1002/ptr.3712
[4] Darbinyan V, Kteyan A, Panossian A, Gabrielian E, Wikman G, Wagner H., Rhodiola rosea in stress induced fatigue–a double blind cross-over study of a standardized extract SHR-5 with a repeated low-dose regimen on the mental performance of healthy physicians during night duty., Phytomedicine. 2000 Oct;7(5):365-71.
[5] Darbinyan V, Aslanyan G, Amroyan E, Gabrielyan E, Malmstrom C, Panossian A. (2007) Clinical trial of Rhodiola rosea L. extract SHR-5 in the treatment of mild to moderate depression. Nord J Psychiatry61: 343–348.
[6] Mori K., Inatomi S., Ouchi K., Azumi Y., Tuchida T. Improving effects of the mushroom Yamabushitake (Hericium erinaceus) on mild cognitive impairment: A double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial. Phytother. Res. 2009;23:367–372. doi: 10.1002/ptr.2634.
[7] Morgan A, Stevens J. Does Bacopa monnieri improve memory performance in older persons. Results of a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial? J Altern Complement Med. 2010;16:753–9.
[8] Spiers PA, Myers D, Hochanadel GS, Lieberman HR, Wurtman RJ. Citicoline improves verbal memory in aging. Arch Neurol. 1996;53:441–448
[9] E. McGlade, A. Locatelli, J. Hardy, T. Kamiya, M. Morita, K. Morishita, Y. Sugimura and D. Yurgelun-Todd, “Improved Attentional Performance Following Citicoline Administration in Healthy Adult Women,” Food and Nutrition Sciences, Vol. 3 No. 6, 2012, pp. 769-773. doi: 10.4236/fns.2012.36103.
[10] Alvarez XA, Laredo M, Corzo D, Fernández-Novoa L, Mouzo R, et al. Citicoline improves memory performance in elderly subjects. Methods Find Exp Clin Pharmacol. 1997;19:201–210.