(Part 3) Top products from r/Nootropics

> Peanut butter is actually one of the worst culprits for Omega 6 fatty acids.

Whoops! There's stuff like like this which has greatly reduced fat: https://smile.amazon.com/PB2-Powdered-Peanut-Butter-6-5/dp/B002GJ9JWS

A serving has 1.5g fat compared to about 16g for actual peanut butter. It only has 5g protein compared to 8g for regular peanut butter, though, so if you ate the equivalent amount it would probably be around 2.6g fat.

> But it looks like Macadamia nuts are nearly free of Omega 6, and they are lower in fiber than the other nuts.

Just keep 'em away from your dog, if you have one. They're pretty toxic to dogs. They're pretty high in fat, so you probably couldn't get a lot of protein from them without exceeding your caloric requirements but variety is always nice.

These are the kind I've had in the past: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OBIL8SU

I'd recommend them, but they are pretty expensive. They were the best deal for reasonably rated hemp hearts at the time I investigated. 10g protein to 1g fibre. They taste similar to wheat germ, just with a bit of a nuttier/sharper taste.

> I also saw seaweed can be great if you can actually eat enough of the stuff.

I'm not really a fan, but if you enjoy it!

> What do you use in substitution for eggs? Most substitutes I see are high fiber and I'd prefer not to use those.

For baking? I usually don't use anything, but I don't bake a lot of stuff like cakes. Apple sauce and mashed banana are two substitutes that come to mind which are frequently used in baking. You might be able to use silken tofu or arrowroot powder (mostly starch, I don't think it would have much fiber.)

There are also dedicated egg replacers, like this stuff: http://www.ener-g.com/egg-replacer.html
It doesn't seem to have any significant fiber. I don't think I've ever tried it myself.

By the way, if you crave the eggy taste for non-baking stuff there's a salt called kala namak which has a very sulfery-eggy taste. I like to toss some cubed tofu with a bit of cornstarch, kala namak, and black pepper then fry it in a hot pan with some olive oil. Tastes a lot like fried eggs and the texture is pretty much like egg whites.

This is what I have: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001O1VDXM/

Not sure if it's still the best deal, but a little goes a long way. I bought the 1lb package back in 2012 and still have a decent amount left.

By the way, the Amazon links aren't affiliate links or anything like that. Just a possible place to acquire it if you're interested. I'd certainly recommend doing a little independent research before buying.

I spent some time looking into this awhile back.

Mycelium is part of the mushroom. You would never have fruit bodies without mycelium and fruit bodies are basically just densely layered, laminated mycelium that have started to lose vitality as they move away from active growth and into spore production.

And of course, you can read the label and see that while Host Defense widely uses mycelium, they also include fruitbodies, even in their top product:

https://www.amazon.com/Host-Defense-MyCommunity-Capsules-Mushroom/dp/B002WJ1BZK/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1519140270&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=Host%2Bdefense&th=1

The Amazon reviews are super positive, it seems there are huge numbers of people that love the product - whatever the debate may be about fruit body vs mycelium. And you see their product line everywhere, it seems it is very popular with health food store buyers,

A third party immunology lab also tested their stuff, and the products tested very well:

http://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/Immune-Benefits-of-Mushroom-Mycelium-Cultured-Substrate-Confirmed-1002362606?op=1

Part of what this research showed is that the mycelium works.... and the rice cultured by the mycelium also works to support the immune system. Rice is often considered a healthy food on its own... and data suggests that mycelium transforms the rice into something even healthier.

This is actually a really cool gateway into understanding the complexity of mushroom organisms. Fruit bodies are great sources of nutrients and the mycelium itself contains many of the same compounds. But why would cultured rice have more immune benefit than plain rice? What is going on?

You have to think about how the organism actually works. Mushrooms are decomposers. They break down organic matter, absorb it and use that energy to grow. As mycelium grows in its environment, it is releasing digestive enzymes from the mycelium.

If you follow Stamets’ work (he creates Host Defense), he is really focused on these enzymes from the mycelium. There are a lot of new compounds found there that appear to be very powerful. His work with the Dept of Defense BioShield program focused on these types of extracts.

And, he’s on to this whole new exploration around mycelium extracts and bees. Washington State University has partnered with Stamets and his team and they are finding that mycelium extracts help reduce viruses in bees and keep them alive longer. They’re only using mycelium extracts, not fruit body!

https://youtu.be/Y_lqIUlON1s

https://news.wsu.edu/2015/02/17/video-can-mushrooms-save-the-honey-bee/

With Host Defense, you get product that is widely used and popular, tested to actually work for immune support and the people that make it have decades of experience and are pushing some really amazing research forward. If you look at the bigger picture, it’s a great choice.

Ideas about your current stack:

Maybe drop the oxiracetam for a while, I've read a few anecdotes on the racetams (and also bacopa, interestingly enough) about them "dulling" your emotions, while not always a bad thing, it can be to a degree in some people.

Consider going half alpha-gpc and half cdp-choline (300mg alpha-gpc, 250mg cdp-choline) here or here, some people notice more benefit with CDP-choline for mood

Switch out your multivitamin, ashwagandha, b-complex, zinc, next time in favour of Legion Triumph. It's got a few adaptogens in it (lavender, rhodiola, garlic might be one too, a small amount of acetylcysteine)

Drop the caffeine for a while and just try the theanine on it's own. A lot of people don't realize that caffeine can have a negative impact on your mood when used regularly, and not intermittently (a few times a week)

10,000IU of Vitamin D long term might be excessive, try tapering down to 5000IU (and Triumph also has 2000IU in it right now, so maybe even just 1000-3000IU or from an independent supplement)

Definitely drop the yohimbe/yohimbine. Maca can be good, tribulus I've read reports of it negatively effecting mood in people as well (agitation/irritability).

For the zinc/magnesium, they're both good, but if you're already getting enough zinc in your multi, you might be overdoing it. Magnesium is fine in large doses (as long as you don't get diarrhea! Then split up your doses more).

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Obviously the light box will help. I'd also advise some quick HIIT in the morning time (4 sets of 10-20 squats as fast as possible, depending on your level of activity, with minimal rests in between) to get you up and about for the day. You can even do squats, push ups, glute bridges, and burpees, or something (one or two sets of each). This will take the absolute piss out of you for 5-10 minutes after, but that's a perfect opportunity to stand in the shower and pant like a dying dog.

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Improve your sleep too! It's not just about getting up and doing crap, make sure you're sleeping at least 7 hours a day, or try for the next two weeks getting at least one hour more of sleep every single day, and see how that makes you feel. Get flux/twilight all that crap, turn off all the brightness on your laptops/phones after it gets dark outside, turn off the lights in your room 1-2 hours before bed, all that jazz.

If you're drinking heavily (14+ standard drinks a week in men, or 9+ in women) or even drinking to help you get to sleep some nights, definitely stop doing that. Even if it isn't to improve your sleep, it's got a shit load of negative health effects. Same thing goes with smoking, but it can be hard to quit/reduce both of these things. Try to avoid smoking/drinking less than 3 hours before bed, at least. Also avoid doing the same 3 hours after waking up.

Definitely avoid caffeine within 8 hours of bed time. Honestly I think cutting this out for a couple of weeks might help a decent amount (cutting out yohimbine more)

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Next comes potential supplements:

Taurine, 1-3g/day (I prefer to take 1g pre-workout and 1g at night before bed) here or here (or much much much cheaper in bulk from powder city)

Inositol 0.5-2g/day (some people notice it actually reduces the drive to do things in higher doses. here or here <--- you can also just eat more citrus fruits instead (oranges or cantaloupes are good sources), some grains are also good sources. <--- consider taking the same time as taurine

Acetylcysteine (0.6-2.4g/day), I take 0.6g in the morning and 0.6 around dinner time, I've noticed it's help a shit ton with my cravings for cigarettes too. It's a decent mood stabilizer in general, and glutamate excitoxicity = bad news bears for a lot of things. here or here. Also much cheaper in bulk, but whereas taurine/inositol have a pleasant taste, acetylcysteine smells and tastes a little bit like rotting eggs (sulfur smell, although it's funny taurine doesn't have that)...

Melatonin, 300mcg at night here or here (try this even if you feel like you sleep fine, seriously)

You could also consider switching out your oxiracetam for some ALCAR/Carnitine (at 0.5-2g/day, avoiding it later in the evening) and Carnitine also might have some mild mood boosting effects in addition to it's cognitive benefits, and exercise benefits.

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Oh if you'd like, you can use my coupon code from iherb for some $5 off your first order, it's JIT328... but a decent amount of this crap is actually cheaper on amazon if you buy it from there (or in bulk from other places like powdercity), so just do whatever is cheapest for you.

I generally try to keep changing it up, switching between one type of stimulant or another, gauging my complimentary supplementation based on how I feel.

The one thing I do always use would be GoL Better Brain, which has the perfect ratio of bacopa to vinpocetine--an important ratio, indeed.

For emergencies (i.e. any sort of serious loss of focus or resultant brain fog hitting me in the middle of the day) I keep both fasoracetam and noopept on hand in the same compartmentalized container, along with the necessary red and blue microscoops that streamline the dosing process. I'm always a short snort away from a more fulfilling intellectual experience, if my best efforts to set up the current parameters for the day are found wanting. Noopept is a great drug for banishing the brain fog that arises from overstimulation (except with tryptamines) since its function hinges mainly on inhibitory processes.

Fasoracetam, on the other hand, is one of my favorites for the opposite reason of noopept. Faso is great for when you could use more stimulation but aren't looking for a simple cardio-stimulant. I rate Faso the highest of all racetams for working memory, which is something that I struggle with often. The Fasoracetam-aided respites from my normal difficulties allow me to see certain situations much more clearly, or just to do a lot of math or other tasks that require a large and stable capacity for working memory.

A friend of mine recently involved himself in a Tibetan Medicine vendor that's actually proven very effective among the products I tried. The Bimala and the meditation water are two very interesting and unique products, with very unique interactions to normal supplements and drugs, and on their own.

Regular bacopa supplementation will result in an increased predisposition towards racetams, which means that as long as I take it I'm charged and ready for a powerful response to piracetam at a moment's notice. It's a worthwhile boost in capacity.

Honestly anything that is an SSRI could be both considered a nootropic and might help with those conditions but i would highly recommend trying other things first and seeing a doctor.

You might also want to look into bibliotherapy. The book "Feeling Good" has been used for depression and anxiety and research has shown it to be rather effective and much cheaper than many other options.

http://www.amazon.com/Feeling-Good-The-Mood-Therapy/dp/0380810336

I also found this book to have some useful information for general lifestyle changes that are good for people who have these issues

http://www.amazon.com/Depression-Cure-6-Step-Program-without/dp/0738213888

Also there are now free online programs to help with these conditions

https://moodgym.anu.edu.au/welcome

There are a few cheap electrolyte mix options out there that you could look into, I've tried this one and liked it, tasted pleasant. It doesn't have any sodium so you may want to grab some sodium bicarbonate to throw in.

Nuun isn't terrible either, lesser amounts of everything but has some sodium, couple of the flavors are pretty good.

As mentioned taurine helps, it's also dirt cheap at bulk powder sites.

Lastly, watch how much you take at once and the speed with which you drink it. Keep the doses sane and you'll be fine.

https://www.amazon.com/Now-Foods-L-Tyrosine-500mg-120-Capsules/dp/B0013OUPSE

This is what I take. I bought it from a local nutrition store.

The effects are subtle but extremely effective. For me, it took a few days to notice anything. Then I realized in class that I was speaking up more. I also started hitting on girls in class. Things like that. Anyways, one of the best supplements I've ever tried.

I always liked the idea of taking lecithin for the full spectrum of phospholipids, but disappointingly, didn't find it gave me the benefits that people report with cholinergics and PS. On the other hand, even standard doses of CDP seem to bring on a rapid, temporary depression.


Fortunately, I've had luck with this guy (http://www.amazon.com/Doctors-Best-Enhancers-Vegetable-Capsules/dp/B00309ZDHS). Seems to clear my head in the morning and stacks well with DHA+uridine. Those, along with tyrosine, caffeine and theanine form a pretty reliable base stack IMO.

I use this one the Philips goLite Blu Light.

I use it primarily as a super effective alarm clock so I'm not sure how effective it is for seasonal depression. It is definitely worth the high price tag for me. It is extremely durable and travel friendly; I've used it for an hour daily for almost 7 years and it has functioned perfectly without a single issue yet. Also it seems to have retained its value considering I purchased it in 2008 for ~$120 CAD and it still sells for $275 CAD in Canada (really not sure how that happened?).

Yup. As someone else pointed out, Optimum Nutrition uses Creapure and is micronized ($14.50 for 600g w/ amazon prime shipping), and this is the stuff I got most recently. It claims to be "ultra-micronized" or something and is even more fine than the ON stuff. It is almost like powdered sugar fine. I don't believe it is "Creapure", but at $15 for 800 grams and free shipping, I'm pleased so far.

I do keto and love it.

If you're suffering from the adjustment period you need to up your electrolytes. I suggest this: http://www.amazon.com/EMERGEN-C-ELECTRO-MIX-Lemon-Lime-4-2/dp/B002HWRY5S/ it's a powder you can mix into any liquid and get your daily fix. If you need something now go to the grocery store and pick up some salt-substitutes, those have almost 1,000mg of potassium in 1/5 a teaspoon which is way more than you'll find in any supplement.

Also remember that low carb isn't just about low carb, it's also about increased fat intake. Pecans, almonds, and avacados always give me a nice boost. I used to read about people dipping their bacon in mayo in order to up their fats and thought they were insane, but when my doctor recommended dipping bacon in guacamole and explained why it all made much more sense.

As far as nootropic-like effects I need a lot less sleep, no morning sluggishness, lots of energy, and less symptoms of ADD. This is all anecdotal of course but if you look at /r/keto and /r/paleo you'll see many feel these benefits as well.

I get my l-tyrosine from amazon, the brand is NOW. I get the extra strength but if i were u just check out their regular strength and then go from there. here

I have purchased those capsules as well as This capsule filler. The capsules weigh about 125mg themselves, and when using the capsule filler I get about 700-750mg of Piracetam in each.

I'm in class right now, I'll double check the weights when I get home in an hour or so.

EDIT: Yeah I was right, about 750 on average per pill. I would also like to recommend you get a choline source to add with the piracetam, here is the one I got. That fills to about 650mg per capsule.

Buy bulk powder on amazon for cheap: http://www.amazon.com/Primaforce-Choline-Citrate-500-Grams/dp/B0030I6KF8 for example. Smells like fish but is good. If you took 1000mg a day, this tub would last you 500 days for only 25 dollars. 5 cents a day is cheap in my opinion (I actually only take 250mg choline a day myself so it is a fraction of the cost).

THIS I have experience with...I would say that it doesn't improve the quality of the sleep but rather the restorative effects of it. Excellent if you exercise a bit. My personal sleep substances are 1-2 Grams glycine, 300-600 mcg sublingual melatonin and 130 mg lithium orotate (1 tab), and 200-400 mg magnesium glycinate or magnesium threonate

I haven't received it yet, but in the meantime I have a few questions. I've mostly just been doing research on individual ingredients and so I came up with these questions.

1. Why is the dosage of Pterostilbene so small? It's practically a microscopic dosage compared to what is available in standalone Pterostilbene supplements. Is it even worth being there in such a small dose?
   
   
2. What is "10:1" Oat Straw, compared to just Oat Straw? When I search for Oat Straw as a standalone product, there are no ratios of any kind mentioned.
   
   
3. Is Alpha GPC the same thing as Choline? Or are they different?
   
   Thanks

I order everything from amazon.

(Well everything that I can. I can get this overnighted to my house for free [usually...I have a distro center in my town])

http://www.amazon.com/Now-Foods-Alpha-Veg-Capsules-60-Count/dp/B001RYKA3U/ref=sr_1_4_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1464119145&sr=8-4&keywords=Racetams

and

http://www.amazon.com/NOW-Foods-True-Focus-Vcaps/dp/B000WVW6YK/ref=sr_1_2_s_it?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1464118981&sr=1-2&keywords=noopept

would any of these be good sources of racetams and noopept?

My textbook for my neurotransmission class is really good. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0195380533/ref=redir_mdp_mobile

I've read a lot of papers that implicate protiens found in dairy (casein being a common one) with negative emotions.

There's some solid research I've seen that also hints at certain probiotics being able to help improve mood/energy. Everyone's balance is likely to be so different its hard to say which ones might work for you. Personally, I try too sick to the human-colonizing strands that have research specific to their strain (? Maybe wrong word). This is a good example IMO:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B003GCGM0Q/

There's an argument to be made in favor of living products vs. freeze dried but I'd prefer to sacrifice a bit of potency for storage flexibility.

Smart powders has a 50% powder

$1.15per gram.

http://www.smartpowders.com/phosphatidyl-serine-50-grams.html

Powder city has a 20%.

$1.73 per gram

http://www.powdercity.com/products/phosphatidylserine-bulk-powder

Jarrow PS

$2.33 per gram

http://www.amazon.com/Jarrow-Formulas-Ps-100-Phosphatidylserine-Capsules/dp/B0013OXA8G

yeah, now foods raw maca 750mg is a 6:1 concentrate, gelatinized.

i have read of ppl taken it acutely....like 5 capsules at once....with an effect of wanting sex.

i think the research on it was when ppl took 1-2 of those daily....but appears acute administration can work too.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003O1NUMC/

Just buy them from Iherb. Shipping to the UK is $4 and everything is half the price that it would cost in the UK: http://uk.iherb.com/bacopa-brahmi

You could also try Swansons Ashwagandha from Amazon UK, 100 capsules (450mg) for £5.62+free delivery: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Swanson-Ashwagandha-450mg-100-Capsules/dp/B002MT8R70/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1410950482&sr=8-2&keywords=ashwaganda

Damn, that is a good price. I've been buying these: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0032BH76O/ref=sr_ph?ie=UTF8&qid=1427055578&sr=1&keywords=5000+iu+d3

try now foods nac, here's a link https://www.amazon.com/NOW-NAC-600-250-Capsules/dp/B0013OUQ3S

This was the supplement he was taking.

(According to the story)

I use NOW Foods liquid melatonin. At 0.5 mg a day, it costs $6 for a year's supply.

Jarrow gelcaps have a soy-free sunflower derived too. Click through the 30-cap offerings. I second the Jarrow product.

There's also the Garden of Life fish oils. There's one that includes just astaxanthin and fucoxanthin, and then there's one that includes both plus bacopa, vinpocetine, and some phosphatidylserine.

Link: http://www.amazon.com/Garden-Life-Oceans-Better-Brain/dp/B00280M116

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Swanson-Ashwagandha-450mg-100-Capsules/dp/B002MT8R70

I no longer need to take them because they did their job but I was taking these

Make sure you have your fundamentals down, otherwise the rest will be noise (or worse, appear to be simple),

[Introduction to Neuropsychopharmacology (Iversen, Bloom, & Roth)] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0195380533/)

[Stahl's Essential Psychopharmacology: Neuroscientific Basis and Practical Applications (4e)] (https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1107686466/)

Everybody who has commented thus far is apparently unaware of actual "sun lamps" such as http://www.amazon.com/Philips-goLITE-BLU-Therapy-Device/dp/B001I45XL8/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1380727667&sr=8-12&keywords=sun+lamp

I own this unit but I can't really give a review as I almost immediately lost the power adapter and have only used it a handful of times. It's a cool little gadget albeit, damn, yes it is expensive. I'd forgotten I paid that much.

Here is a recent study; http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-244X/11/17

I use this, it's Creapure; http://www.amazon.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Creatine-Powder-Unflavored/dp/B002DYIZEO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1409322193&sr=8-1&keywords=creatine

My gains prior to my recent surgery were pretty incredible. God damned surgery threw a 6 week wrench into that. I get to work out again next week but I've probably lost 3 months worth of work. Extra awful considering I do martial arts, my technique is probably awful now.

Edit: Actually now I'm hearing that it may or may not be Creapure. My tub no longer says Creapure on it, and according to a brand rep here that could mean a number of things; http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=146457603

I still had great results, though.

Do you have thyroid gland problems? Reishi can enhance those

and: https://www.amazon.com/Host-Defense-MyCommunity-Comprehensive-Resilient/product-reviews/B002WJ1BZK/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_hist_1?filterByStar=one_star&pageNumber=1

This review: "This concentrated tea has huge amounts of a toxic ingredient called Epigallocatechin-3-gallate or EGCG, the most abundant of the naturally occurring compounds with antioxidant properties in green tea, called catechins. There are likely to be a number of factors that might make an individual susceptible to harm from EGCG including genetics, and the way supplements are used. It can cause liver failure. "

https://www.amazon.com/Vitacost-Green-Tea-Extract-Standardized/product-reviews/B0036V0GEU

No mention of Maca? I had to stop taking it after two weeks as it was getting ridiculous, junior high style.

http://www.amazon.com/NOW-Foods-Raw-Maca-750mg/dp/B003O1NUMC/

Well, as far as I know, antidepressants and mood stabilizers aren't for everyone. At least you won't have to worry about being on a pill for a while, potentially for the rest of your life.

>I think that my problem isn't necessarily a chemical one, but a flaw in the way I think

This here is the rockbed foundation of CBT. My uncle is a psychologist that primarily dealt with drug addiction and depression. He recommended that I read Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy by David D. Burns. Supposedly my uncle suggested this book to all of his clients. It's kinda long, but it's a really good insight into the therapy. The premise is that your perception of events that happen in life dictate how you feel physically and emotionally. There are thought "distortions," as he calls them, that depressed/anxious people instinctively call upon -- sometimes without realizing it. The idea is to become mindfully aware of these distortions, analyze them and find flaws with the thinking.

For example, I am generally a calm-on-the-outside kinda guy. In fact, most people are shocked when I tell them I have GAD: "Wow, you appear so cool and collected!" Well, I internalize everything. One of the rare times my shell cracks is while driving. I have incredibly disproportional amount of negative emotions that are driven by road rage. It used to be that I would almost fantasize about taking an aluminum baseball bat and destroying the kneecaps of that "bro" or "soccer mom" that weaves in and out of traffic, cutting me off or just all-around acting like a complete imbecile. To make matters worse, sometimes it would bother me for hours, even days, later. This is probably due to the fact that I have about a -1000% tolerance to idiocy. Anyways, after learning more about CBT, that has quelled quite a bit (though on occasion I can feel my blood boil when someone does something idiotic). What changed? I realized the fact that getting worked up over it is pointless. Why? It could be the case that they didn't see me when they cut me off. Everyone makes mistakes, and I know that I've succumbed to my eyes playing tricks on me. Maybe that person is in a hurry, or their child is extremely sick and they had to rush home. What if the person is one of those BMW-driving, popped-collar douchebags who do this shit intentionally? Well, so what? It's not my fault that his penis is the size of an impotent amoeba. Chances are that he pisses off other people. Therefore, getting agitated over something you absolutely cannot change is completely counter-progressive.

Sorry for the massive reply, but I was hoping to give you a sample of what CBT entails. Feel free to message me if you want to know more.

tl;dr Yes, look into CBT.