Humans have an innate feeling that they are not the best what they could be and always try to keep improving their performance in all walks of life. Naturally, this leads to them being interested in finding out ways of being better at what they do so that they can improve themselves. From coaching to therapy to meditation, a wide range of performance enhancement tools are available that people use in addition to having to-do strategies and a life schedule, proper sleep, and exercise. Another tool that people are relying upon are nootropics that can dramatically improve human abilities by boosting brain functions. Those who have problems with focusing and suffer from poor memory and mental fatigue benefit enormously by using smart drugs that improve cognitive functions. It also improves creativity and motivation in healthy individuals.
From enhancing brain energy, cerebral circulation, neurotransmitters to offering neuroprotection and more, smart drugs help to improve human performance significantly. Students use smart drugs rampantly because of their ability to help them improve grades. Professionals who want to climb up the career ladder faster and achieve more in life do not hesitate to experiment with nootropics. It is evident from its use among the high performers of the Silicon Valley. But relying only on nootropics to boost performance would be a big mistake because the substances work well only when you have a healthy body.
Have a healthy body first
Performance and productivity enhancement with nootropics like the ones you would find at BestNootropicsNow are only possible when you have a healthy body. It means that you must exercise regularly, eat well, and sleep well to provide the right foundation for smart drugs to work effectively. Only when you give, the right foundation nootropics can work wonders for your brain that can turn you into an incredible performer. As long as you are eating well, getting an adequate amount of quality sleep and exercising, nootropics can significantly reduce your anxiety level, improve mood, and boost productivity. But if you are not taking care of your primary health, nootropics will never work as expected.
Individual or blended nootropics?
Since nootropics act differently on different people, what works in a certain way for others may not work in the same way for you. That is the reason you must experiment with a few nootropics to find out which works best for you. Moreover, people may have different reasons for using nootropics and might want to achieve multiple benefits at the same time. It would entail the use of more than one nootropic, but combining different nootropics can be a cumbersome task. To overcome the problem, people are turning to blended nootropics as swallowing a single pill can serve multiple purposes in brain-boosting.
The appeal of blended nootropics is in its composition of different substances. It aims at a specific effect, but since the same nootropic acts differently on different people, it is difficult to find a general blend that can work correctly. Moreover, blended products can have many other things included in it. That can either have some positive or negative results that can make it difficult to analyze what caused what and how much of it was responsible for it. To understand the effects of nootropics, it is always better to use a specific nootropic instead of trying out the blended ones.
How to begin with nootropics
Getting into nootropics can be hard for beginners because of its various action on different people as our brains are wired differently. The only way to find out the nootropics that work for you is to start experimenting and then to give up those that do not work to your satisfaction. Learning about nootropics by trying it out is the best way to get the ones that you are looking for.
Let us now focus on some nootropics that have a proven track record of boosting performance even though it acts differently on the brain.
Caffeine with Theanine
One of the most popular nootropics is a combination of caffeine and theanine as it is one of the most well-studied and safest smart drugs. It is the first to try nootropic for beginners. Caffeine needs no introduction as we are all aware of the natural stimulant found in tea, coffee, and cacao plants. But L-Theanine or Theanine is an amino acid analog of L-Glutamate and L-Glutamine. It produces a calming effect on the brain besides contributing to the savory flavor of green tea. The calming effects reduce jitteriness and anxiety, which are the side effects of caffeine and the reason why green tea has milder effects than the effects of caffeine in other types of tea.
The ideal combination of caffeine and theanine is in the ratio of 1:2 that translates into a dosage of 100mg of caffeine and 200mg of theanine. The theanine contained in the combination is much higher than what usually is available in tea that generally has a higher content of caffeine almost 2 to 10 times more than theanine. Taking 100mg caffeine per day is the maximum limit. Exceeding it would start building caffeine tolerance in the body, and it is best to start with half the dosage early in the morning and then scale it up with time.
Piracetam
In terms of popularity, Piracetam is at par with caffeine + Theanine because people consider it as the granddaddy of all nootropics. Belonging to the group of racetams, although it has been around since the 1950s people still do not have enough understanding about it. Its best use is to prevent cognitive decline, and piracetam often forms the benchmark when studying the effectiveness of other anti-dementia drugs. Some studies point to memory enhancement by piracetam in the long term. Many users reported improvement in cognition and ability to focus and mood betterment, but there are no results available from studies to back the claim. Starting with 400mg three times a day is the recommendation of experts that can go up to 4800mg/day.
Modafinil and Adrafinil
Modafinil is the most trending nootropic over the past few years. It's a drug that people recognize as the go-to smart drug despite being a prescription drug for keeping narcoleptics awake. The attraction of Modafinil has turned it into a fad. On the other hand, Adrafinil is available online and is a drug that converts into Modafinil in the body. Modafinil keeps you awake, drives away fatigue, and improves working memory, cognition, and motivation besides adding a feelgood factor of your overall well-being. However, the benefits are more pronounced in sleep-deprived people than in people who sleep well. As compared to most stimulants, Modafinil has a dosage of 100mg – 200mg per day and is less physical and more mental with only slight increase in reaction time and blood pressure. Since the effect remains for 15 hours, you should take it before breakfast in the morning.
300mg Adrafinil would convert into 100mg to 200mg of Modafinil, and it is safe to start with a dosage of 200mg. Like Modafinil, it is the first thing that you should take in the morning.
Choline
Unlike other smart drugs, Choline is a naturally occurring essential nutrient available in many food sources in a vitamin-like and water-soluble form, especially in egg yolks. Choline's inclusion among nootropics stems from the fact that it is the primary building block of acetylcholine, the brain neurotransmitter responsible for learning. Choline also helps in the treatment of fatty liver because deficiency of Choline results in fat accumulation in the liver. Choline is a safe and affordable nootropic that constitutes a part of stacks of other supplements. It acts on the cholinergic system as Choline can activate any other element that promotes the production of Acetylcholine.
Ashwagandha
Ashwagandha is an ancient herb used in Indian Ayurveda that has the capability of reducing anxiety and enables the body to adapt to stressors. Several studies have shown the effectiveness of Ashwagandha in reducing stress and anxiety. It also reduces cortisol, the stress hormone as well as C-reactive protein which is a measure of inflammation. The recommended dosage is 300mg -500mg either taken with breakfast or divided, but if you take a lower dosage of 100mg, then it must be in combination with other anti-anxiety agents. However, it is better not to combine it with other prescription drugs.
Recommendation for starters
New users of nootropics should start the day with Caffeine (50mg – 100mg) and twice as much Theanine combination as it provides the thrust to increase productivity. Taking 300mg Ashwagandha during breakfast should take care of anxiety management and 0.5mg Melatonin at bedtime should help to improve sleep.
However, nootropics are just like any other dietary supplements and can never be a substitute for a healthy lifestyle and diet. Take care of your primary health, food, sleep, and exercise duly balanced with an active social life. That gives mental fulfillment that nootropics can boost it further. Relying on nootropics alone is the biggest mistake that people make and fail to derive the benefits.
