Smart Drugs / Brain Hacks - Page 4

On March 12 2013 07:37 Grumbels wrote:

There's also certain drugs that can give you different dreams. I acquired a batch of something known as Dream Herb once and I had occasional success with it. I didn't even know what would be a proper dosage and at what time of the day I should take it, or whether I should take it as a supplement in lower doses for a few weeks, and so on. It wasn't that expensive, so I thought that I could gradually increase the dosage and take it daily, but I didn't trust it would be safe to use this long-term given the lack of research available, furthermore, the taste is utterly vile, so it's only usable in capsules, which adds another level of complexity.

The one time where it did had the promised effects was really interesting. I had very vivid dreams the entire night. I was actually really happy with it for that time, I mean, wouldn't it be wonderful if the 8 hours a day we spend sleeping were more interesting? ^^

On March 12 2013 05:16 HunterX11 wrote:


I'm pretty sure pharmacology isn't pseudoscience. Okay, well modern practices in marketing drugs are pretty close, but it's still fairly well-established that drugs exist that affect the body in fairly predictable ways.

On March 12 2013 10:48 Avtonikov wrote:
Anyone have any experience with noopept and CDPcholine? I'll probably start a small stack with those, a little resveratrol, and maybe some fish oil or something. Though I have thought about modafinil, too.

On March 12 2013 06:38 Grumbels wrote:

Med students starting their career by abusing prescription drugs?

Honestly though, sometimes I feel that universities having these big tests that require you to study so much material is pretty difficult for students and that it's almost okay to try and manage these things that reward an unnaturally high level of concentration (for a day or two to make deadlines) by using drugs in a responsible manner just during these moments.

Like, what is coffee use if not this in so many cases?

On March 19 2013 07:51 calgar wrote:
Here's my 2 cents as a PharmD student.

First of all, it seems as though people are talking about both prescription drugs like modafinil, selegiline, galantamine, and vasopressin interchangeably along with random dietary supplements and chemicals like piracetam. Prescription drugs have been studied by drug companies and scientists for 15 years in order to make it through a very comprehensive 3-stage FDA approval process. They are proven safe and effective in double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled trials in patients with the medical condition the drug is designed to treat. This is a high standard so you can be certain that the drug works when taken properly.

This is compared to supplements and whatever else you buy online. I would never take any of this (vitamins/minerals excluded) or advise a family member of friend to, either. This stuff is not tested for safety or efficacy and in general any evidence for the use is very weak/conflicting. It is unregulated, potentially dangerous, and unlikely to work. Companies aren't required to prove efficacy to market a product so they often don't bother in order to save money. I think people are tempted by broad claims and a quick/easy fix but I would say stay away. Taking random shit like this is how you end up as a yahoo news story for someone that died of contaminated/adulterated whatever.

Having said that, the drugs mentioned are indicated for use in actual medical conditions, not to 'boost intelligence'. Drugs can have nasty side effects and this is a reason that one of guiding principles in medical treatment is to use as few drugs as possible. Is somebody on something they don't need? Cool, take them off of it right away.

galantamine is indicated for treatment of alzheimers. vasopressin has already been mentioned by the ER guy... you don't want to take that if you're healthy. selegiline is an antidepressant/MAO-B inhibitor and has a black box warning (serious FDA warning) for causing suicidal thoughts, also something you would never want to take if healthy. modafinil is a CNS stimulant, so getting a little warmer as far as magically increasing intelligence, but you would still want to use something like adderall (also a CNS stimulant), but actually designed to treat ADHD instead. creatine is for body builders, how would that possibly make you smarter? I don't think anything mentioned in the OP would make you smarter.

The general thought for how a drug works is to correct an imbalance that is making you sick. If you're already healthy then it's likely to not work. Kind of like a person with normal blood pressure would never want to be on a blood pressure med... there's no reason and it can only cause harm. You'll probably be able to pay better attention on adderall, but really if you get enough sleep, exercise, and eat right then you could also boost your energy and attention span. adderall can cause things like insomnia and headache in 1/4 of users, as well as decreased appetite, abdominal pain, dry mouth, etc.

As fun as it is to think that Limitless may be possible, that's not the world we live in today.