A while ago, I made a post about nootropics, covering what they are, the benefits, risks, and side effects, and when to take them. I also mentioned a few types of nootropics, from medicinal mushrooms like Reishi to herbs like Gotu kola and amino acids like GABA. (There are also foods that act as adaptogens, which include chocolate or raw cacao and matcha tea!) But because I could only mention these adaptogens, I thought that for today’s post we could cover some of the top brain nootropics in greater depth. Ready to find out which make it to the top of the list? Then read on!

Ginseng

Ginseng is one of the most famous nootropics and was often used in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). And it’s still used today! According to the research, ginseng helps to improve mental performance, particularly during complicated or stressful activities (such as studying).[1] In Korea, numerous studies conducted on ginseng show that it has a ton of potential for a variety of applications out of the brain (although they do point out that it’s incredibly effective for brain health, clarity, protection, and performance), from lowering blood sugar to improving cholesterol. [2]

The cons? Sourcing. Many companies don’t use the right variety or choose to a poor-quality species of ginseng. Be very suspicious when it comes to price; you get what you pay for. People with autoimmune disease are advised to avoid ginseng due to its immune-stimulating properties. Finally, ginseng contains ginsenosides, which are chemicals with estrogen-like effects. Best avoid ginseng if you have any hormonal imbalances or conditions such as breast/uterine/ovarian cancer, fibroids, or endometriosis. [3]

Rhodiola

Rhodiola, or rhodiola rosea, is a powerful herb that lives up to its adaptogenic title. It’s excellent for the average person to even elite athletes. It contains more than 140 active constituents, with two of the most powerful ones being rosavin and salidroside.
What makes rhodiola so special is its effects on cortisol. During stressful events, it can lower cortisol, thereby helping to reduce stress. However, for those dealing with low energy or adrenal imbalances, it’s been also shown to increase energy. Other research shows it can improve depression, too (by supporting the feel good hormone serotonin).

A cool study focusing on night-duty physicians shows that rhodiola helped to reduce stress-induced fatigue while also improving areas of short-term memory, concentration, audio-visual perception, and mental energy. [4] Pretty neat, huh?

There’s very little to say as far as the cons go. According to WebMD, do not take rhodiola if you already have low blood pressure (since it may lower it even further) and/or autoimmune disease (because, like ginseng, it can stimulate immune activity). [5]

Bacopa

Fun fact: bacopa (full name bacopa monnieri) is what’s known as a creeping marsh plant, and its use can be found in ancient Ayurveda (the sister science of yoga), where it also goes by the name Brahmi. Bacopa contains many antioxidants that neutralize the inflammatory effects of free radicals. Most notable are its protective effects against brain damage and neurodegeneration. [6] [7]

Outside of protecting the brain, it’s also known to enhance its function, with a 12-week study showing that in healthy adults just 300 mg of bacopa per day helped to increased memory, visual processing, learning rate, cognition, and memory, outperforming placebo. [8]

A final noteworthy benefit of bacopa is its effects on mood. While the research is a bit mixed, both the positive studies and ancient ayurvedic texts show that it may improve anxiety and depression. The jury is still out, but centuries of use and positive research do show its potential. What needs to be done is more research to decide the best scenarios for its use. [9] [10]

Ashwagandha

Hands down, ashwagandha is one of the strongest adaptogens you could use. The benefits are so effective that I choose to include it in my new Pre & Post Workout Blend. While I won’t be going into too much detail about ashwagandha here, I’ll cover some its top benefits.

As another staple herb of Ayurveda, ashwagandha has been used to lower stress and anxiety, as well as support healthy hormone function (especially in the thyroid). [11] Ashwagandha also helps to support the adrenals, whether that be increasing energy or balancing cortisol. A study on chronically stressed patients fond that ashwagandha use helped to significantly lower cortisol (as much as 30%) ,especially compared to a control group that wasn’t taking it. [12]

As far as brain function goes, ashwagandha may help to boost memory, reaction time, task performance, and attention span (although the research is limited by studies focusing on small groups of people). [13]

People undergoing thyroid treatment or who have thyroid disorders should avoid taking ashwagandha due to its ability to increase thyroid hormones. And like I wrote before; autoimmune disease patients shouldn’t take immune-stimulating herbs like ashwagandha.

As always, check with a qualified doctor and/or herbalist. [14]

Honorable Mentions

Because there are so many adaptogens to choose from, I’m going to give a loud shout-out to the following honorable mentions:

• Gotu Kola
• Maca
• Astragalus
• Holy Basil
• Eleuthero
• Licorice
• Schisandra

As you can see, there are plenty more where these came from! I didn’t even cover things like GABA, Inositol, or CBD. In fact, I could dedicate an entire post just to adaptogenic mushrooms like cordyceps, chaga, and reishi. If you’d like me to go more into detail about these other adaptogens, please let me know down in the comments! Otherwise, I hope you enjoyed today’s post, and please tell me which one of these herbs is your personal favorite!

Sources:

[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15982990
[2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6151615/
[3] https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-1000/panax-ginseng
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11081987
[5] https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-883/rhodiola
[6] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4564646/
[7] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12208348
[8] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11498727
[9] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12957224
[10] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12093601/
[11] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/pharmacology-toxicology-and-pharmaceutical-science/adaptogen
[12] https://blog.priceplow.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/withania_review.pdf
[13] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28471731
[14] https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/12-proven-ashwagandha-benefits#section12