Pimp your brain: which drugs can improve thinking and memory

Successfully prepare for a difficult exam, quickly make urgent work finally become more intelligent. Advertising claims that everything is possible if you take nootropics.

For the development of new neuroprotective drugs (psychotropic drugs that affect higher brain functions - memory, attention, intelligence) are taken as a former semi-secret Soviet research institutes, and companies in Silicon Valley. What really must admit: the need to improve the work of the brain, which in the present population is only growing, can be a good idea to cash. On the one hand, the rhythm of life in the young so that sustain it just like that, without difficult any external assistance. On the other hand, more and more people live to a ripe old age and experiencing the typical problems of old age, including the reduction of the reaction rate, care, ability to recall and remember information. While the person is out of his mind and feels that he is not as good as before, he wants something to do with it. And then it come to the aid nootropics.

Since pharmaceutical companies constantly produce "solutions to improve the mind," and people use them in large quantities, it is logical that there had to be many articles confirming the efficacy of nootropics. On Web sites devoted to a particular drug, why these publications do not. Manufacturers prefer in general terms to describe the effects of their creations. However, on the Russian website in the section "Information for specialists only" sometimes it appears several scans of the domestic medical journals.

In practice the scanned articles are reviews, that is a retelling of others' research. (Ironically, by the way, that one and the same information migrates from publication to publication, so that the "information is only for experts" may not be an overview and review of reviews.) Delving into these studies, the inquisitive reader discovers that they are all devoted not healthy people who for some reason needed urgently become more intelligent, or attentive, and patients with brain injuries, stroke, and other unpleasant states, which requires therapy room at the hospital. But this turn of events workaholics, careless students and pupils, as well as other young potential consumers of nootrops hardly wish.

This is at best. In the worst reviews are described in the so-called model systems which can not be called a healthy person. For example, one of the domestic drugs reduce mortality slice of hippocampal cells of the mouse if this section were subjected to "stress glutamate." That is, the mouse was killed, she cut a small part of the brain, put into the medium and were "watering" neurotransmitter glutamate, simulating rough activity of hippocampal neurons. As far as the results of this experiment are applicable to humans? It is difficult to say exactly.

Mouse - it is a good option. Nootropics tested and snails, and other very remote from human creatures. More often than not in this case it looks for the behavior of the whole body, as to how thin vary its operating parameters of the nerve cells. But it is worth considering that these cells in any organism, hundreds of thousands, millions, or even billions. The question whether it is possible to transfer the results obtained on a small cluster of cells of a ganglion edible snails, humans. After all, despite the fact that in a number of articles as necessary nootropics alter the functioning of neurons, analogue Algernon has not yet been announced.

Most of the evidence on the effectiveness of nootropics - a story about personal feelings, subjective experience, not confirmed by objective experiments. Forums, which are trying to prove the benefit of nootropics, downright full of them. But from the "official representatives" of certain medications or an answer, not a greeting. Strange, is not it?

Improves or simply treats?

The list of substances that have the potential to improve mental ability is impressive. Here and caffeine, and fish oil, and extracts of magnolia, and mate, and blueberries, and many less "vegetable" substances like creatine. It is believed that some of them improve concentration, and some inhibit the process of degeneration of nerve cells that beset the body in old age.

Most often in the instructions to the drugs stated as nootropics, found the phrase "has a neuroprotective effect." It just means that these products support the work of nerve cells in the mode, if nothing had happened, as if there were no age-related changes and the neurons were not exposed to different phenomena such as oxidative stress. That's great, but we must understand that about any improvement of the intellect it does not go here. Such nootropics only help mental faculties remain still for a while at the same level.

The only popular substance, which studies suggest its effectiveness - is, oddly enough, a banal caffeine. It really improves concentration, increases attentiveness, makes it easier to remember, and even, it seems, is the prevention of dementia in women. But we know that its effect does not last long, there are side effects such as anxiety, tremor, and sweating, and he does not fit all. Someone does not from him "excited", and someone enough not have one cup of strong coffee in the morning to not go to sleep until late at night. What to do?

If you think "The authorities hiding something!" and you want to try to disperse the mind banned substances like amphetamines, have bad news for you. The effectiveness of "AIDS" and similar substances in terms of improving intelligence has long been denied. It happened during the Second World War. At that time, the British learned of Hitler's predilection to tablets with methamphetamine, decided to test the "magic pill" for yourself. They have collected a lot of subjects, gave them to the substance and to assess how they cope with the standard tests for intelligence, as well as muscle coordination.

Subjects under "AIDS" to solve puzzles is not better or worse than when their mind was not changed. However, the subjects themselves did not. They thought that their capacity is much higher than usual. Scoring was not not only in quality but also in quantity: test solution of methamphetamine in the company took no less time than without it. The test results related to the coordination, quality and did not differ. Coordination of the subjects under "AIDS" did not improve, but they feel much more confident and therefore on average to better cope with the tasks. In the same way a drunk person passes quietly where scared sober. So, if you suddenly apply methamphetamine exam preparation (but it is better not to do), you will remember the material is not faster or better than normal, but will be less to worry about putting.

Another detail: the chemical structure of many of permitted neuroprotective drugs poorly fit in with their physiological properties. Rather, the properties of these compounds are very difficult to predict by their chemical structure. This applies mainly to peptides - molecules of several amino acids. Somehow, even very similar in structure to peptides can produce very different effects. This in itself, of course, does not mean that such nootrop necessarily ineffective. Drawing an analogy, it is possible to use a computer and know nothing about electricity, or even about the programming, the main thing - to press the right buttons. If the analogy further, it will look strange case where the same document in Word 2007 will open with the Russian letters, and in Word 2013 - from the Latin. So it is with nootropic peptides

In general, it would be nice to know, due to what effect a particular drug. Frankly, it even necessarily need to know to be able to fight his overdose and understand what it is not necessary to combine the drug. But in the case of an overdose nootropics somehow it did not happen. In addition, some of them, for example, a favorite with many knowledge workers Phenotropil (Phenylpiracetam) entirely excreted unchanged for about a day after the reception. To which it operates and why from exposure does not change itself, it is not known.

Placebo effect
The general answer to the questions at the beginning of the article is this: it all depends on your attitude. If you believe that the medicine really can work wonders with the mental capacity, the nootropics you are likely to help. What exactly will provide them with a positive effect - your attitude or real biochemical mechanisms - not so important, more importantly, it would help and, most likely, will not make worse. And if you treat Nootropil critically, search for scientific articles about their effectiveness and, not finding it, draw conclusions, it is best not to upset yourself and these pills do not buy. Indeed, in this case, not only does not work the placebo effect, but also your negative bias against the drug in any way make you believe that nothing has changed for the better.