Nootropics

	B	C	D	E	F	G	H	I	J
1	Name	Common Positives	Common Negatives	Low Daily Dose	High Daily Dose	Comments - ROA/Interactions	Comments - Mode of Action	Comments - Other	Link/Info

2	5-HTP	Mood elevator, Sleep enhancer, Replenishes Seretonin	Stomach pain, Serotonin Syndrome	100mg	200mg	nausea can be alleviated with serotonin-antagonist antiemetics; smaller dose spaced out helps alleviate problems.	Serotonin precursor that can cross the blood-brain barrier	Cheap. Beneficial following use of drugs with serotonergic effects. Tolerance/dependency over time	Older paper: http://www.thorne.com/altmedrev/.fulltext/3/4/271.pdf
3	Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALCAR)	Enhances alertness and mental energy.	Large doses require supplementation with an antioxidant (usually Alpha Lipoic Acid) to counteract pro-oxidant effects. Some reports of depression and sleepyness.	500mg	3000mg	increases aldosterone?	L-Arginine precursor
4	Acetyl-L-Tyrosine	More bioavailable than L-Tyrosine	Often comes with folate
5	Acorus calamus	Memory enhancing activity
6	Adrafinil	Not controlled, precursor to Modafinil. Decreased sleepiness, increased mood, focus and attention	Slow onset of action, consistent use can lead to an increase in liver enzymes (monitoring highly recommended)	200mg	600mg	Must take on empty stomach, effects start after 2 hrs	Metabolized to modafinil	Not controlled in US
7	Afamelanotide (Melanotan I)	Sunless tanning, skin cancer prevention, antioxidant	Tanning			Requires subcutaneous injection	Alpha melanocyte stimulating hormone analog	Watch out for counterfeits, Melanotan II is different
8	Afobazol(e)	Anxiolytic	Unknown	0				Shipped from Russia only?
9	Alpha GPC	Counteracts Racetam headaches and brainfog. Boosts HGH levels.		300mg		Probably only need one choline source. Better bioavailability		Expensive
10	Alpha Lipoic Acid	Reduces oxidative damage caused by ALCAR, recycles vitamin C		100mg	300mg	Able to cross the BBB.
11	Amantadine	Reduces fatigue, helps fight influenza (new flu is fairly resistant), antiparkinsonian, prevents L-DOPA caused dyskinesia	May cause arrythmias (long QT syndrome), anticholinergic, highly toxic in overdose				NMDA blocker, anticholinergic, DA and NE effects
12	Amla berries
13	Aniracetam	Memory, focus, anti-anxiety	Headaches, Brain-fog			Fat soluble.	Also an Ampakine	Bitter taste, stronger than Piracetam, shorter duration
14	Armodafinil	Alertness and anti-fatigue. Is considered more effective than its racemic predecessor, Modafinil, as it contains only the active R-enantiomer. Also has a longer half-life than Modafinil.	same as Modafinil	25-50mg	150mg	same as Modafinil	Active enantiomer of modafinil	Nowhere near becoming generic (possibly won't be)
15	Ashwagandha	Muscle growth, Sleep, Confidence, Alertness		500mg
16	Aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid)	Antipyretic, analgesic, improved cardiovascular and ischemic stroke risk, food preservative	Increases clotting time, slightly worsened hemorrhagic stroke risk, large doses can cause gastrointestinal upset and gastric ulcers	25mg (cardioprotective)	1000mg	Counterindicated in children with flu-like symptoms, some people are sensitive	Irreversible COX inhibitor	Contrary to ibuprofen and naproxen, improves cardiovascular risk
17	Atomoxetine (Strattera)						NRI (Norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor)
18	Avena Sativa
19	Bacopa	Long-term benefits to Memory (increase noticed quicker when using daily high doses), Sleep/dream enhancer, anxiolytic. Some have reported immediate and subtle gains to clarity of thought.	Residual drowsiness	100mg	700mg	Some find it preferable to take at night due to drowsiness.	Active chemicals are Bacosides. Extracts of 45% (Bacognize) and 50% available commercially	Effects and quality may vary from brand to brand. Higher percentage of bacosides don't necessarily indicate a better product; other active molecules have been identified.
20	Benfotiamine						Thiamine (B1) derivative
21	Boron	Promotes alertness, enhances response time, improvement in short-term memory		< 3 mg.	> 3 mg.
22	Bromocriptine		Cognitive impairment. Nausea
23	Caffeine	Focus, attention and stimulation, possible euphoria (at high doses)	Jitteriness, anxiety, tolerance, withdrawal headaches, heartrate increase, increased BP	50mg (cup of tea)	300mg however doses up to 1.5g aren't uncommon			Complete tolerance after 2 days to 2 weeks depending on dosage and frequency. Headaches/fatigue upon cessation.
24	Carnosine	Anti-oxidant, neuroprotective.		100mg	600mg
25	CDP Choline	Counteracts Racetam headaches and brainfog				Probably only need one choline source. Not quite as good bioavailability, but faster acting than AlphaGPC
26	Celastrus paniculatus	Improvement in learning and memory attributed to its antioxidant effects
27	Centrophenoxine	Counteracts Racetam headaches and brainfog. Also improves mood				Probably only need one choline source
28	Cerebrolysin		Accumulation of LDL carrier protein can lead to plaque buildup in arteries
29	Cholesterol	Necessary for cell membranes, major component of bile, HDL can reduce atherosclerotic plaque					Stabilizes cell membranes, source of most sex hormones,	LDL/HDL ratio is the best risk predictor for long term cardiovascular health
30	Choline Bitartate	Counteracts Racetam headaches and brainfog				Probably only need one choline source. Low bioavailablity.		Cheap.
31	Choline Citrate	Counteracts Racetam headaches and brainfog		500mg	3000mg	Water soluable, probably only need one choline source. Low bioavailablity.		Cheap. Tastes SOUR
32	Citrulline	Vasodilator, Arousal, Sleep enhancer?	Arousal		10g	(Best absorbed on an empty stomach)
33	D,L-Amphetamine (Adderall)	Focus, attention	Loss of creativity, inability to rapidly switch track between concepts, sometimes slow memory retrieval, elevated blood pressure, tolerance, tunnel vision, motor tics, hypomania, insomnia - in rare cases may cause excitotoxicity long-term, stimulant-induced psychosis	5mg	60mg	IR lasts 4-5 hrs; XR equivalent to two doses 4 hrs apart. Arousal effects last longer than cognitive effects	inhibits re-uptake of NE/DA, and requires stimuli to release DA/NE into synaptic cleft.	controlled drug unless prescribed. Not easily available online
34	Desmopressin (Vasopressin)	Enhances recall	Hypotension, increased urination
35	Dimethylamylamine/ Methylhexaneamine	Thermogenic, fast acting	Easy to exceed effective dose	25mg	60mg (per dose)			short acting, similar feel to (and popular substitute of) ephedrine, but can be taken late in the day. Vasoconstrictor,
36	DLPA (D,L Phenylalanine)		hyperactivity/jitteryness in some users. DPA (D-Phenylalanine) is supposed to be better for those users.				Converts into PEA more than L-Phenylalanine alone; more sustained but subtler effect than PEA alone
37	DMAE	Reduce and/or prevent DNA damage. Enhance brain activity.Enhance ability to fight stressors.Improve learning, memory, creativity, and verbal fluency.Reduce and/or remove lipofuscin - age spots.	There are no known negative drug or nutrient interactions. It is thought that DMAE can make epilepsy and bipolar depression worse	100mg			the benefits of therapy are seen only after long term use. Studies lasting only four weeks showed no improvement..
38	Donepezil (Aricept)						Reversible ACh-ase inhibitor	Generally a choline source is preferred to an ACHeI for people under 50. Too much acetylcholine can cause major depression.
39	Eggs	Cheap, lots of protein in whites and choline in yolk	Risk of salmonella (low) and slimy if eaten raw. Yolk is high in cholesterol. Common allergy and intolerance to egg whites.			Drink from a glass, poach, boil, whatever really. Raw are less effective. Overdose of raw egg whites can cause skin and hair damage due to avidin interaction with biotin.		Everyone loves Eggs!! (except vegans and people not liking chicken batteries)
40	Entacapone	Increases L-DOPA delivery to brain when used with Carbidopa					Inhibits peripheral COMT	Does nothing by itself, and very little without L-DOPA and Carbidopa
41	Ephedrine	Good bronchodilator, burns fat, vasoconstrictor (good for common cold)	Difficult to sleep if taken late in day, hurts sleep quality.		90mg	Caution with MAO inhibitors		Controlled in most countries (still available in US in combination with expectorants). See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ephedrine#Legality	Available in US OTC as Bronchaid and Primatene (and store brands)
42	Fisetin	Enhances long-term memory.
43	Fursultiamine
44	GABA	Purported relaxation	Poorly traverses BBB. Some users report brain fog.		5000mg	Picamilon is a derivative designed to cross BBB better. There are other derivatives?		Also consider valerian for similar effects
45	Gabapentin	anxiolytic, possible euphoria
46	GABOB		Diarrhea
47	Galantamine	vivid dreams	Increases REM sleep		16mg		Reversible ACh-ase inhibitor	Available w/o Rx in US
48	GHB	Euphoria, relaxation, anxiolytic, boosts HGH levels, latent dopamine release (anti-hangover!)	Strong sedative - unconcsiousness and breathing difficulties in high doses					Scheduled in many jurisdictions. Can be substituted with GBL.
49	Gilatide	Activates various memory genes
50	Gingko Biloba	Enhances cerebral blood flow, vasodilator	Takes a long time to show effects. Some users report swollen testicles.	40mg	240mg
51	Ginseng	Increased Energy	There are some reports of nosebleeds and vaginal bleeding.
52	Glycine	Neuroplasticity, Sleep enhancer					Required for activation of NMDA receptors by glutamate
53	Gotu Kola	Energy Level boost
54	Green and white tea	Enhances angiogenesis and retention of spatial information. Contains L-Theanine an anti-anxiolytic. Antioxidant. Anticancer in large doses (ECGC).	Obstipation, see caffeine for high doses	1 double brewed cup	5 double brewed cups		Polyphenols, ECGC, caffeine. ECGC may be weak MAO-B inhibitor	Caffeine-free formulations available for bedtime use or if stacking
55	Huperzine A	Memory, Vivid dreams	Headaches	50mcg	1000mcg		Acetylcholinesterase inhibition and NMDA receptor antagonism
56	Hydergine	Enhances cognition, promotes dendrite growth & is neuroprotective - considered a good "all-rounder" nootropic.	Sustained use could lead to fibrosis.	4.5mg		tolerance develops fast
57	Idebenone	Prevents lipid peroxidation (cell membrane degeneration), reported cognitive benefits	Relatively expensive (but usually cheaper than CoQ10)	30mg	200mg	Percent bioavailability decreases with larger dose. Fat soluble.	Bioavailable form of CoQ10
58	Kratom	feels great!	rapid tolerance and addiction potential					At lower dosages, acts like a stimulant. At higher dosages, acts as a sedating agent, which feels similar to many opiates.
59	L-Arginine	Vasodilator, Arousal, Sleep enhancer	Arousal	500mg	3000mg
60	L-Lysine	Stress reduction, mood elevator.		500mg	3000mg
61	L-methylfolate	Memory, recall					Precursor to THB/BH4
62	L-Theanine	Anti-anxiety. Increases dopamine. Promotes relaxation		100mg
63	L-Thyroxine (T4)	Increases arousal, metabolism, deficiency causes depression	Overdose: Increased BP and heart rate, sweating, stress-like symptoms	25ug	200ug		Thyroid hormone	Vitamin D deficiency can cause thyroid deficiency
64	L-Tryptophan	Mood elevator, Sleep enhancer	Stomach pain			Interacts with MAOI	5-HTP precursor	Cheap, known cases of bacterial contamination
65	L-Tyrosine	Alertness, replenishes NTs. Increases dopamine	Downregulation of dopamine receptors. Sleepyness, brain fog.	500mg	4g	Competes with tryptophan for crossing BBB	Precursor to dopamine, norepinephrine, epinephrine, thyroid hormones
66	Levetiracetam
67	Levodopa+Carbidopa	Well-being, focus	Dyskinesia	depends on a lot			Carbidopa inhibits peripheral AADC	Antiparkinsonian drug
68	Lion's Mane	NGF promotion	Expensive, can induce fatigue in some users.	500mg	5g			Not from a lion, not an herb, actually a mushroom. Takes months of daily use for effects to be noticeable
69	Lithium	Neuroprotection, mood stabilization	Sedation, apathy, Can affect Kidney Function
70	Maca	Dopamine Level enhancement
71	Magnesium Aspartate	Dopamine Level enhancement	mghjhmnbmbnmbn				Commonly found in ZMA
72	Magnesium Glycinate	High bioavailability. Magnesium is a strong muscle relaxant and thus is also helpful to counteract jawclenching or muscle tension from other supplements. Also contains glycine, which can help neuroplasticity	Larger pills than other Mg formulations		400mg	Magnesium competes with calcium for absorption; do not take together with calcium sources	Blocks NMDAR at specific binding site
73	Mega BC5	Counteracts Racetam headaches and brainfog				Probably only need one choline source
74	Melanotan II, Bremelanotide	Sunless tanning, skin cancer prevention, antioxidant, counters erectile dysfunction, increases sexual arousal	Tanning, spontaneous erections			Intranasal administration causes increased BP	Alpha melanocyte stimulating hormone analog	Watch out for counterfeits
75	Melatonin	Promotes sleep (helps reset circadian rhythm), antioxidant, promotes immune function	Changes in sex hormone levels and prolactin in large doses, headaches, depression, delayed gut transit	.3 mg	60mg	Counterindicated in autoimmune conditions		Take at night after turning off the light for maximum effect
76	MEM 1414	Memory enhancement by acting on a gene called CREB					Phosphodiesterase blocker
77	Memantine	May improve memory (proven in moderate-to-advanced alzheimer's) Slows amphetamine tolerance	Possible drowsiness and temporary worsening of short-term memory	10mg	30mg	Can be used safely with ACh-ase inhibitors	NMDA blocker (displaced by appropriate stimulus)	Short-term memory deficits are rectified by upregulation in nAChR7 receptors.
78	Methylcobalamin (methyl-B12)	Short-term memory improvement	physical anxiety (symptom your body is saturated?)	1mg	10mg	Sublingual	Injections also available via Rx	It's identical to normal vitamin B12 in mode of action, only slightly better retained
79	Modafinil	Large increase in focus, alertness, motivation and agility.	Irritability, tunnel vision, panic, adverse skin reactions (rare), talking to yourself, circular thoughts, emotional dulling.	25-100mg	400mg	Strong wakefulness promotor - sleep difficult within 8 - 12 hours		Prescription only in most countries (Ok to import into UK). Can cause short term paralysis ( 50mg personal experience), so take in a low dose if first time to find out if you are hypersensitive/allergic	http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modafinil
80	Mucuna Puriens (Velvet bean)	Growth hormone release, Libido, Relaxation and focus (for some)	Peripheral dopamine side effects	50mg L-DOPA content	400mg L-DOPA content (very high end)		Source of L-DOPA	60% extracts available.
81	NAC (N-Acetyl-Cysteine)	Brain repair, addiction reduction, prevents liver damage from alcohol and paracetamol, antioxidant (recycles glutathione), mucolitic, protects hearing, helps fight influenza, chelates heavy metals	Vasoconstrictor/Heart issues?, too much mucolysis, in very high doses - nausea	500mg	2000mg		More stable analog of cysteine	Fairly low bioavailability, sour smell and taste
82	Nicergoline	A milder Hydergine		10mg			Alpha-1 adrenergic antagonist
83	Nicotine	Stimulation, anxiolytic	Addiction (Only if taken with MAO Inhibitor), tolerance, vasoconstrictor Acute: lightheadedness, vertigo	1 mg (one cigarette or half a piece of regular-strength gum: see links)	Chainsmoking leads to physical fatigue	Smoking=bad in a lot of ways. Transdermal, buccal (gum), and electronic cigarettes(e-cigs safety still not properly evaluated, may be even more dangerous) safest ROA.		New research shows that nicotine is not addictive unless administered with an MAOI. (MAOIs are found in tobacco)	http://www.ftc.gov/foia/frequentrequests/foia2007-00482.pdf
84	Noopept	Supposedly 1000x more potent than piracetam		10mg?	50mg?	Multiple small doses needed
85	Omega 3 Fatty Acids (EPA, DHA) (Fish Oil, Flaxseed Oil)	Promotes muscle growth and general health, neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory						Good sources are canola and olive oil, certain fatty fish (e.g. cod family)
86	Omega 6 Fatty Acids (GLA) (Borage Oil, Evening Primrose Oil)		Pro-inflammatory
87	Oxiracetam	Memory, Recall		300mg	1200mg	Water soluble.		Almost tasteless. More Expensive.
88	PEA (Phenylethylamine)	Focus, attention and stimulation, euphoria	10-minute half-life without MAO-B inhibitor	250 mg	2.5 gr	Often combined with selegeline (MAO-B inhibitor)	6	best when 500 mg PEA taken on empty stomach along with 1 cap of Rhodiola extract (GAIA herbs)
89	Phenibut	Relaxation without sedation	Addictive - severe withdrawal syndrome for about a week, insomnia, panic attacks, unrelieved by benzos	500mg	3000mg		GABA derivative - GABA-B agonist	Cheap
90	Phentermine	Weight-loss drug	(Don't know if it belongs on this list; there are lots of other amphetamine-like compounds)					short acting, similar feel to (and popular substitute of) ephedrine, but can be taken late in the day. Vasoconstrictor,
91	Phenylpiracetam (Phenotropil)	Improves tolerance to cold weather and increases productivity						Available only in/from Russia. Expensive.
92	Phosphadiyl Choline (PC)
93	Phosphatidyl Serine (PS)	Lower cortisol levels, reduced stress, improved mood	Expensive, from soy			Fat soluble (usually comes in oil base)		Seems ineffective to supplement
94	Picamilon	Improves cerebral blood flow and relieves stress/anxiety, facilitates the transport of GABA through the BBB				GABA source that crosses BBB	Also provides niacin
95	Piracetam	Clarity, Memory, Verbal Fluidity, anti-vertigo	Headaches, Brain-fog, Hyperactivity, paradoxical sleepiness	1000mg	6000mg	Water soluble. Leads to hyperactivity when taken with caffeine.		Can cause vivid dreams. May also prevent sleep. Tastes bitter.
96	Piribedil	Increased attention and focus		50mg			D2, D3 agonist
97	Pramiracetam	Memory, focus, verbal fluidity, stimulating goal-oriented behaviour	Expensive; Stomach pain	100mg	1200mg	Fat soluble.		Foul taste, stronger than Piracetam
98	Pregnenolone			5-10mg	100mg	May cause hair loss and skin problems.
99	Pseudoephedrine	Good decongestant, increased BMR (weight loss), Focus improvement (for those with ADHD), Increased energy levels	High blood pressure, Sweating, cannot buy in bulk (precursor to methamphetamine and regulated)	30mg				Controlled in most countries (Available OTC in US). Tolerance builds over about 2 weeks. Cycle 1 week on 1 week off to avoid adrenal fatigue
100	Purslane	Neuroprotective?