The brain health supplement market reached $1.3 billion in 2015 and is expected to grow another 19.5% by 2024. No doubt about it: nootropics are taking the world by storm. But do nootropics work?
If you’re interested in starting to take nootropic supplements but aren’t quite sure if they’re legitimate, this guide is for you! Whether you’re looking to fix memory problems caused by stress or you’re just interested in boosting your cognition, you might want to give nootropics a try. Read on to learn more about the scientifically-backed studies proving the benefits of nootropics.
What are Nootropics?
Let’s start with the basics. Believe it or not, the word was first used in 1972 by a Romanian psychologist and chemist. They are substances or supplements that improve overall cognitive performance.
Are they safe? Usually, yes! As long as you aren’t taking smart drugs like Adderall and Ritalin that are prone to abuse.
Most people consider nootropics a separate category from smart drugs like those above. Smart drugs usually refer to addictive stimulants. Meanwhile, nootropics are natural and do not have side effects.
But note that this is the real world, and they aren’t magic. They enhance your capabilities but don’t increase your IQ or make you some sort of super genius. Be sure to have realistic expectations.
If they can’t make me a genius, what can they do? Well, they can increase productivity, motivation, and focus. And these are all are necessary for optimal cognitive performance.
They can also help with your memory, help decrease anxiety, and improve your sleep (interesting note: exercise can also help with these things). While these aren’t direct markers of cognitive performance, they certainly can influence it.
Do nootropics work? We’ll cover some of the most popular nootropics as well as the scientific studies that support their claims.
Choline Boosters
Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter. What does that mean? It helps neurons communicate.
Your body makes acetylcholine from healthy fat in your diet which contains the precursor choline. Of course, you can also take supplements like Citocholine (aka CDP-Choline), Alpha GPC, and choline citrate to boost this even further.
And the science backs this up. When pregnant mothers eat choline-rich diets, children have better cognitive abilities later in life.
We also have some indirect evidence of choline’s effects on cognition thanks to studies on nicotine. Studies of smokers versus nonsmokers revealed that nicotine improves memory consolidation.
But that doesn’t mean you have to start smoking to experience these positive effects! Nicotine gum has been shown to benefit working memory as well.
Nicotine enhances the cholinergic system by improving the efficacy of acetylcholine receptors. This means that acetylcholine is more efficient. Choline boosters are thought to work in a similar fashion.
Racetams
These are synthetic nootropics, so they aren’t natural, but they are typically based on the chemical compounds found in natural substances. The most popular nootropics in this category are piracetam and aniracetam. These are cyclic derivatives of GABA, a neurotransmitter produced in the body.
Piracetam restores cell membrane fluidity which helps modulate neurotransmission and improve neuroplasticity. Again, this basically means that it helps your neurons communicate more efficiently. And it has been shown to improve cognitive performance in patients experiencing a deficit due to coronary bypass surgery.
Aniracetam is a similar compound that has been shown to combat cell death that results from too much excitation. The net result is a neuroprotective effect. Learn more about the benefits of aniracetam.
Ayurvedics
These nootropics are a group of cognitive enhancers that can be traced all the way back to ancient Indian medicine. Ayurvedics are derived from the Medhya Rasayana plants.
One of the most well-known Ayurvedic is ashwagandha (aka winter cherry). Ashwagandha is a GABA mimetic, so it works similarly to racetams. It can combat cognitive degeneration associated with Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s disease.
Another popular Ayurevdic is water hyssop (aka thyme-leaved gratiola, Indian pennywort, or herb of grace). For centuries, this drug has been used to treat things like memory dysfunction, pain, and epilepsy. It’s been proven to improve memory in Alzheimer’s disease and is thought to work by protecting neurons in key brain regions from cytotoxicity.
Chinese Herbs
Traditional Chinese medicine has a history of herbs it uses for nootropic purposes. The most popular of which is ginkgo biloba, derived from the Chinese maidenhair tree. Ginkgo biloba stimulates neuronal growth, a process important for learning and forming new memories.
Another important Chinese nootropic is DSS (Danggui-Shaoyao-San). It reduces cell death in the hippocampus (the region responsible for memory). It also helps fix dysfunction of the cholinergic system, which as stated earlier, is important to neuronal communication.
Caffeine
I’m sure we’ve all had some caffeine at some point, but did you know it’s also a well-known nootropic? Scientific studies have demonstrated that it can improve memory in college students and is believed to have beneficial effects on Alzheimer’s disease.
But be careful: ingesting purified caffeine is not recommended, because it can be really easy to overdose. It’s better to drink coffee or green tea, which contain caffeine and have several additional compounds that supply additional benefits, such as antioxidants and anti-inflammatory molecules.
Do Nootropics Work?
So, do nootropics work? We hope the scientific studies covered above can speak to that!
Now, we can’t cover everything about nootropics. For example, certain combinations, called a “nootropic stack”, can be used to best achieve your desired cognitive enhancements. Still, we hope we’ve given you enough background to decide if they’re right for you.