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Health See other Health Articles Title: Can You Boost Your Brain Power without Using Memory Supplements? Highya There are just as many causes of memory loss as there are types of mental decline, although some of the most common include normal aging, certain types of medication, lack of sleep, poor diet and exercise habits, and alcohol and tobacco use. This is in addition to more obvious causes such as head trauma, dementia, and Alzheimer’s disease. Regardless of what’s causing your memory loss though, there are a variety of methods you can use to help boost your brainpower and to avoid mental decline, while avoiding brain-boosting supplements altogether. Most of these relate to maintaining good health, including reducing the number of medications you’re taking, quitting smoking and excessive alcohol use, controlling blood pressure and diabetes, making sure you get a good night’s sleep, eating a well-balanced diet, and watching your weight. In fact, according to this Harvard University article, "My strongest recommendations [for improving brain function] are a Mediterranean-style diet and regular physical exercise." On top of physical exercise, there are several websites that feature brain games and activities that are claimed to help boost your brain’s power, and to keep it strong as you age, some of the most popular of which are Lumosity and Posit Science. However, it’s important to note that, much like brains supplements themselves, the clinical evidence showing that these “brain training” sites is murky and far from definitive. What Should You Look for When Buying a Memory Supplement? Lack of scientific evidence notwithstanding, memory supplements represent a huge market segment in the industry, and don’t appear to be going away anytime soon. As such, if you’ve decided to give a brain-boosting supplement a try, here are five pointers that you can use in order to choose the best one. Step 1: Talk with Your Physician As with any new supplement you’re thinking about taking, the first person you should speak with is your physician. This is because they’ll often be familiar with some of the more popular memory supplements on the market, as well as how they may interact based on your current medications and your medical history. In fact, if you’ve narrowed your decision down to only a couple supplements, be sure to learn as much about them as you can, and then present this to your doctor. Step 2: Does the Manufacturer Back Up Their Claims? With this in mind, one of the first things you should do after landing on a brain supplement’s webpage is to find out what their claims are, and then to locate supporting documentation on their website. As we mentioned above, the FDA does not require these companies to back up their claims, so those that do are going above and beyond these requirements in order to support the efficacy of their supplements. In addition, providing evidence also shows that these manufacturers stand behind their product and the claims they make about it. Step 3: Find Out Exactly What’s In the Brain Supplement Another key piece of information that needs to be included on any brain supplement’s website is a full ingredients list and/or product label. After all, this is something you’ll be putting in your body, and you deserve to know exactly what’s in it. Unfortunately, many supplements websites do not include this information, or may even list ingredients as a “proprietary blend,” which then allows them to list their ingredients but not how much of them their supplements contain. In addition, be sure to find out whether or not a memory supplement is manufactured in an FDA approved and GMP certified facility, as well as if they’re submitted to third-party testing in order to verify efficacy and potency. Step 4: Learn What Other Consumers Have to Say Outside of the manufacturer’s website, you should also thoroughly search online for other customer reviews about the brain supplement you’re thinking about purchasing, and a great place to start is here at HighYa. This way, you can get direct feedback from other individuals just like you, while learning about their experiences with the product. While the most common customer complaints associated with brain supplements are failure to work and high price, it’s important that you learn to differentiate between legitimate customer reviews and those found on affiliate websites. This is because the former are meant to make you a more informed consumer, while the latter are simply intended to mislead you. Step 5: Avoid Autoship Programs & Free Trials Finally, if you ultimately decide to pull the trigger and purchase a brain-boosting supplement, avoid manufacturers who offer free trials and autoship programs, as these are almost always intended to separate you from as much of your hard-earned money as possible. If you see either of these offered on a supplement you’re thinking about purchasing, remember that these can immediately tell you just how little faith these manufacturers have in their brain supplements. What’s Your Experience with Brain-Boosting Supplements? At HighYa, we exist not only to help make you a more informed consumer, but also to give you a place where your voice can be heard around the world. Because of this, if you’ve recently used a memory supplement, we want to hear about your experience: Did it work? Did you experience any side effects? Do you feel that is was worth your hard-earned money? Would you recommend it to friends and family members? Whatever it is, we want to know about it. Start a discussion and help others become more informed consumers by leaving a comment below! Derek Lakin Chief Content Creator at HighYa. With more than a decade of experience as a copywriter and former corporate underwriter, Derek takes a detail-oriented, step-by-step approach to helping you shop smarter. Whether it’s nutritional supplements or new scams, he believes an informed consumer is a happy customer. When he’s not writing, you’ll find him enjoying time with his family or biking along Colorado’s magnificent Front Range. Give him a shout: @DALwrites Poster Comment: Kristin Williams • Well, I just started trying out a "brain supplement" and the first to catch my attention was Addium. You've mentioned that they advertise all over and have a fake CNBS or CNN article floating around... These are the reasons I chose Addium. I have taken the whole bottle at 1 pill per day and don't notice much of any difference, besides the feeling of drinking a cup of coffee... I will try something else this month, but can see myself giving up on these "super supplements". kakis • Hello everybody, just finished taking one of the memory boosters on the market "Cogniq". I was curious if any of them work, so spent my $29.99+shipping. This particular supplement was advertised on yahoo news, where an editor of some publication published his diary as he was taking the supplement. Total lie.. I would guess for someone who never drunk coffee, this supplement might produce a noticeable effect (it contains Caffein), for regular coffee drinkers, of course, none. 1 month has no positive effects, even more curious, there were 2 - 3 occasions when I had a total loss of very familiar facts for several hours. I compared content of other brain booster supplements on the market with the Cogniq's content - almost identical. This is a typical situation with a new hot thing, when a lot of people try to make a fast buck by labeling the same supplement with different names and running aggressive marketing. Almost invariably, claims are based on some scientific research. Indeed, if dug deeper one can find a research on one of the ingredients in the supplement, usually rather old news, showing some minor effect. Then, an opportunistic food supplement business adds other well know ingredients and vitamins into the mix an markets the whole thing a s a break through. Shameless exploitation of general population's ignorance. Do not fall for it. Personal info: male, 64yo, a host of age related medical problems, but active and real food diet mindful, losing memory since late twenties. Mike/Derek, I would like to comment about another supplement called L-Argenine... Although I live a healthy lifestyle, eat a healthy diet and maintain a three times a week workout program of 30 min. resistance and 30 min. cardiovascular, my blood pressure still began to climb about 10 years ago at 60. My Doctor put me on Lisinoprel and HCL which brought my pressure down... There are undesirable side effects to these medications..... About six months ago another fellow in the gym suggested I research L-Arginine as he had gotten BP lowering results from that supplement.... Web MD suggested 5 Grams a day... After 90 days, of daily BP monitoring, I have been able to bring my BP down to 130/70 after discontinuing my BP meds about a month ago.. . Derek Lakin HighYa Staff Mike • Whether related to testosterone boosters, male enhancement products, or anything in between, l-arginine (http://www.highya.com/suppleme... is a common ingredient found across dozens of supplements categories. This is because l-arginine is converted to nitric oxide by your body, which widens blood vessels and can reduce blood pressure, treat chest pain, and much more. However, although it’s also commonly found in memory supplements, there is insufficient clinical evidence showing that l-arginine can improve brain function in any way. Derek Lakin HighYa Staff NYaloharose Hi NYaloharose - Great question! We wrote an in-depth review for BioTrust Brain Bright here: http://www.highya.com/biotrust.... Scott Davis • Nootropics do work, but not the crap that gets mass marketed. I order the individual pure ingredients and encapsulate my own. I use the ingredients this article listed as effective except the ginseng, plus several other effective ingredients not listed. It works for memory, focus, energy and motivation. I've put hundreds of hours of research into it plus have a medical background, so I don't recommend you make a lab rat out of yourself trying to find a formula, but certainly don't poo poo nootropics. They have helped me tremendously. jonymor Barry Coleman • Most supplements recommend an insufficient dose for a number of reasons. I have tried ginseng at the recommended dose and felt nothing, but when I increased the dose it did what it was supposed to do. I do not recommend this for all supplements but it's the only way that some of them will be effective. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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