Phosphatidylserine s a nootropic that has been the subject of a large number of studies intended to take a closer look at the variety of phosphatidylserine benefits. Some of these benefits stand out as particularly strong.
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Theobroma cacao can be translated as chocolate, food of the gods. This tree is native to the tropical regions of the Americas. The beans are the source of the cocoa used to make chocolate. But this extract is more than simply a pleasure for our tastebuds. Over the past decade chocolate has had a blossoming reputation as being heart healthy. As it turns out, it might also be good for our mitochondrial structure and function.
Cinnamon is one of the world's oldest spices. Along with pepper and ginger, it was a big part of the spice trade between Asia and Europe. Cinnamon trees are native to India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and Burma. What we think of as cinnamon comes from the inner bark of several different tree species from the genus Cinnamomum.
Citrus × sinensis is the group of oranges that includes the commonly eaten navel orange and the blood orange. The peels and fruit are a rich source of citrus bioflavonoids. But our interest went beyond just including a generic citrus bioflavonoid mixture. What we were really interested in is a specific polymethoxylated flavone called nobiletin. Nobiletin has been identified as clock-enhancing small molecule, so is a key nutrient to support body clock functions.
The main role of vitamin B3 is to make NAD molecules. This is important because the NAD molecule sits at the crossroads of mitochondrial energy production (i.e., ATP), cellular repair and signaling, and cellular defenses. Unfortunately, NAD+ levels decrease with age. This is the bad news. The good news is that there are strategies that can be used to make more NAD+. One of these is vitamin B3.
Strawberries are a good source of polyphenols. The seeds are an even better source. We made sure to source an extract standardized for at least 2% polyphenols. Studies of this extract suggest it might support healthy skin, weight, metabolism, and other functions needed for healthy aging.* Strawberry polyphenols would also be expected to support antioxidant defenses and overall cellular health.* But the main reason we included the strawberry seed extract is because it is a source of a specific flavonoid called tiliroside.
Rosemary is a member of the mint family. Its common name derives from Latin and translates as “dew of the sea,” because it thrives close to the coast in dryer areas throughout the Mediterranean. It was used as a spice and folk medicine by Egyptians, Greeks, and Latin cultures. While rosemary contains a range of health-supporting polyphenols, including carnosol, carnosic acid, and rosmarinic acid, our main interest was in a triterpene in rosemary called ursolic acid, which supports muscle performance.
Ashwagandha is an Ayurvedic herb often referred to as “Indian ginseng.” Within this system of it was classified as a general tonic and strength promoting. Its uses included infusing energy and vigor in circumstances characterized by exhaustion or a lack of physical energy.
BioVin® is a premium quality grape extract made from the juice, seeds, and skins of red grapes grown in France. It's rich in both trans-resveratrol and grape polyphenols.
Huperzine A is commonly used as an ingredient in nootropic supplements and is found naturally in Chinese club moss Huperzia serrata, from which the nootropic gets its name.
D-calcium pantothenate is a form of pantothenic acid, or vitamin B5. Found in plants and animal tissues as well as cereal grains, eggs legumes, and milk. Most known for protecting cells against peroxidative damage by increasing the level of glutathione--an important compound aiding in the oxidation-reduction of cells.
Apigenin belongs to the flavone class of polyphenol compounds. It is one of the more common flavones in the diet, found in many fruits and vegetables, including celery and parsley. It’s also found in high amounts in the flowers used to make chamomile tea.
L-tryptophan is an essential amino acid. This means the body cannot synthesize it: it must be obtained from the diet. It’s been known for decades that L-tryptophan has niacin equivalent activity in the body (i.e., we can make NAD+ molecules from it). L-tryptophan is unique because it’s the only way to build NAD+ that doesn’t start from vitamin B3. It does this by a de novo synthesis pathway, which creates a niacin molecule through a series of biological reactions. So, L-tryptophan’s inclusion would seem to be a natural fit in a formulation that wants to support boosting NAD+.
ElevATP® is a proprietary, clinically researched combination of a water extract of “ancient peat” (fossilized plants) and apple extract. The ancient peat contains 70 elements and is especially rich in carbon, magnesium, nitrogen, oxygen, and sulfur. ElevATP® is a clinically tested product with human studies for sports performance, body composition, and elevating ATP.
Rutin is a type of polyphenol called a flavonoid glycoside. It’s composed of quercetin and the disaccharide rutinose. It’s also called rutoside, quercetin-3-O-rutinoside and sophorin. While it’s found in a wide variety of plants, including citrus, foods with the highest concentrations of rutin include capers, black olives, buckwheat, and asparagus. The most common use of rutin has been for supporting healthy veins. But it does much more.
Kaempferia parviflora is found in the upper northeastern regions of Thailand. It is commonly called black ginger, because of the intense purple-black color and similar shape of the roots to ginger. The traditional use has been as a health tonic and energy enhancer leading to it sometimes being called “Thai ginseng.” The novel active constituents are polymethoxyflavonoids polyphenols.
Dietary polyphenols are a family of plant compounds found in common foods including fruits, vegetables, nuts, chocolate, coffee, and tea. These compounds play important roles in the plant kingdom, protecting plants from infections, pests, UV irradiation from the sun, oxidative stress, and toxic metals and chemicals.
Vinpocetine is a synthetically produced alkaloid derived initially from periwinkle plants. To be more specific, it’s derived from a molecule within the plant called vincamine. Vinpocetine goes by many names
A great example of a nootropic that has a lot of benefits, but isn’t examined closely is pyrroloquinoline quinone. While many may focus on the surface level benefits from taking it, understanding how it works reveals the full impact it can have on the human body.
Artichoke extract, sometimes called artichoke leaf extract, has all the benefits of artichokes in a concentrated form. Artichoke extract offers a wide range of benefits. Let’s start by looking at some of the nootropic benefits.
β-Hydroxy-β-Methylbutyrate (HMB) is a metabolite of l-leucine (an essential amino acid). As we get older, muscle size, strength, and performance decline. This can occur even if we continue to exercise. HMB has been used as an ergogenic substance (i.e., something that supports improved sports performance) for more than 20 years, with most of the research focused on supporting muscle performance and helping muscles age better.
Many people who are health conscious have likely heard of the benefits you can get from vitamin B6. Including vitamin B6 in your diet is relatively easy as you can find it in foods such as bread, pork, fish, eggs, and wholegrain cereals. These foods, however, may have depleted amounts of vitamin B6, in part because food preparation can lower that amount. Food that is frozen, canned, cooked, or processed usually leads to a lower level of vitamin B6 that you would get otherwise, so other dietary strategies should be pursued. For that reason, many people are choosing to include pyridoxal-5-phosphate (P5P) as part of their diet.
Gynostemma pentaphyllum (Southern Ginseng) is an herb attributed with having ginseng status. Until fairly recently Gynostemma pentaphyllum was used primarily in mountainous regions of southern China and northern Vietnam. It’s been described as the "immortality herb,” because people within Guizhou Province, where herbal teas made from the plant are consumed regularly, are said to have a history of unusual longevity.
Vitamin K is a family of structurally similar, fat-soluble vitamins. The two main members of the family are vitamin K1 and K2. Our interest in vitamin K was prompted when looking for compounds that might be able to rescue mitochondrial performance. This led us to source vitamin K2, ultimately as MK-7.
DL-Phenylalanine (DLPA) is an amino acid supplement, a synthetic phenylalanine. Phenylalanine is a neutral,non-polar amino acid that plays a crucial role in many functions within the body. One of those functions is to produce tyrosine, a major component for synthesizing hormones.
