Subject: Re: Looking for Nootropics FAQ
From: [email-masked] (Chris Beaumont)
Date: 31 Aug 91 04:48:10 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.drugs

Cognition-Enhancement Drugs

This text has been excerpted from MEGABRAIN REPORT: THE

PSYCHOTECHNOLOGY NEWSLETTER. Included here are dosages,

precautions, and mail-order sources for three intelligence and

memory enhancing substances. Please feel free to duplicate this

excerpt and put it onto other bulletin boards or conference

systems. For a copy of the full length article, including

references, contact MEGABRAIN REPORT, POB 2744, Sausalito, CA

94965, Phone: (415) 332-8323, FAX: (415) 332-8327. 

The authors of this article are Michael Hutchison and John

Morgenthaler.  Michael Hutchison is the editor and publisher of

MEGABRAIN REPORT and can be contacted there (see the address

above). He is also the author of the books, MegaBrain: New Tools

and Techniques For Brain Growth and Mind Expansion, The Book of

Floating, and the recently published Anatomy of Sex and Power: An

Investigation of Mind Body Politics.

John Morgenthaler is the co-author with Ward Dean, MD, of a full

length book on over thirty cognition enhancing compounds. The book

includes an index, references, and sources of compounds. John can

be contacted at POB 483 Santa Cruz, CA 95061, Phone: (800)

669-2030, MCI mail address: 3144541.  A free copy of the book goes

to anyone who posts this article to another bulletin board or

conference system.

COGNITION-ENHANCEMENT DRUGS

by Michael Hutchison and John Morgenthaler

Picture this: You have a business meeting tomorrow with your

Japanese distributor. This meeting requires that you be in top form

for some critical negotiations. You have several reports to go

over, many facts to memorize, and above all you have to get some

rest.

Your first step? A trip to the drug store, of course. A meeting

like this is much too important to take on without fine-tuning your

biochemistry. You must create the optimal neurochemical conditions

for learning and creativity. You ask the druggist, who then points

you towards the shelf of cognitive enhancement

compounds. You load up your basket with bottles of piracetam,

vasopressin, hydergine, choline, DMAE, and maybe a little

centrophenoxine.

After arriving home, and taking the appropriate doses of each of

these you go into your study to slip on your cranial electric

stimulator along with your light and sound device. You know from

your experience and that of many pioneers in the consciousness

revolution that this particular combination of chemicals and brain

machines has a synergistic effect that will create the optimal

psychobiological state for the tasks that lie ahead. You can be

sure that your Japanese counterparts are engaged in a similar

manner.

After an hour in your study you feel very different. You are

relaxed, yet alert and creative. Your brainwave activity has

altered, and an EEG would show that it has become more regular and

has increased in amplitude in certain frequencies, causing you to

feel simultaneously profoundly relaxed yet in a state of intense

concentration, loose and creative as well as mentally quick and

alert. A brain-mapping device would show that the two hemispheres

of your brain were in a state of "superconnection," with an

enormous increase in the amount of information flowing between the

hemispheres. At the same time, the rate of metabolism and the

energy level of your brain cells has sharply increased. You are now

in the optimal state to imprint new memories, to plan new and more

creative strategies, to visually rehearse every detail of your

upcoming meeting...

Sound far-fetched? Well, both the brain machines and the

cognitive enhancement compounds already exist. Megabrain

described a variety of devices that show evidence of enhancing

cognition (for a summary of several recent studies suggesting that

CES devices can have clear cognition-boosting effects see the

"Research Update" elsewhere in this issue); and the book also

mentioned the cognition-enhancing effects of such neurochemicals

as vasopressin and MSH-ACTH 4-10. Since then other mind-

magnifying drugs have emerged as well as even more astonishing

evidence of their ability to amplify learning, memory and

thinking. What we don't know is how to best use them together, or

even whether they should be used together.

That's what we want to find out. The problem, as many of you are

aware, is that it is extremely difficult for those interested in

performing research into the effects of brain machines to obtain

the necessary funding and support. Mainstream science,

particularly those elements in control of doling out grants and

funds to support research, and many of the universities and

institutions engaged in research, seem to have little interest in

investigating these machines. What research is done usually

involves the therapeutic applications of the devices rather that

the induction of peak performance brain states.

On the other hand, huge amounts of money are being spent for

research into cognition enhancing drugs. But much of the research

is being done by the big pharmaceutical companies, who are racing

with each other to develop patentable memory enhancement drugs and

to obtain FDA approval for these compounds. Since the FDA is

primarily oriented toward treating diseases in a medical context,

and has not shown much interest in giving its approval to drugs

that simply improve people's memories or boost intelligence, the

pharmaceutical companies are directing their efforts toward gaining

approval for their cognition-enhancement drugs as

treatments for medical problems such as Alzheimer's disease,

multiple-infarct dementia and senility. Since financial analysts

estimate that such cognitive drugs could quickly produce sales of

well over a billion dollars a year in the U.S. alone, and

ultimately outsell antibiotics and tranquilizers, the competition

is fierce, and these companies are in no mood to investigate ways

their substances might work synergistically or in combination with

other substances or other mechanisms such as mind machines.

Also, since their efforts are directed toward drugs that are

patentable, these companies have little interest in exploring the

cognition enhancement properties of substances that cannot be

patented. Vitamin C is a good example: in a controlled study in

which healthy individuals were tested both for levels of vitamin

C and IQ, those with higher levels of the vitamin averaged 5 points

higher in IQ; when those with the lower levels of the vitamin were

given vitamin C supplements, their IQ scores

increased by over 3.5 points. In some way, Vitamin C is a

cognition-enhancing substance. But, of course no one can patent

vitamin C, which is cheap and readily available.

In another example, one widely available and unpatentable

substance (DHEA) is rumored to have demonstrated in a recent study

some success in, among other things, treating AIDS, as well as

cognition enhancement; however, the drug company involved in the

experiments is now apparently trying to conceal the

discoveries about DHEA until it can develop some variant that is

patentable (i.e. has commercial value), and has obtained a court

order forbidding the scientist in charge of the study to even speak

with anyone about the matter.

WE HAVE MET THE GUINEA PIG AND IT IS US

And so, MEGABRAIN REPORT has concluded that if we really want more

research into mind-machine mind-food interactions we'd better start

doing it ourselves. Thus we ask you to join us in a series of

surveys, tests and assessments designed to explore the interactions

between brain machines and cognitive enhancement compounds. This

is not to say we are advising you to take any of the cognition-

enhancement substances we describe. No! We do not advise you to

take these compounds, just as we do not advise you to use mind

machines or do anything to enhance your mental

functioning. High level mental functioning can be exceedingly

dangerous and have frightening and unpredictable side effects, as

individuals from Socrates to Jesus to Galileo have discovered.

However, we do have reason to believe that many of you are by

nature curious, given to exploration and even experimentation--

that, in fact, many of you are already making use of some of these

cognition-boosting nutrients. This being so, it seems clear to us

that you have information that would be of interest and value to

the rest of us. It's also clear that if there are

hundreds or even thousands of you with such information, then by

gathering it together, we can synthesize it, analyze it, begin to

search for trends, tendencies, proclivities, and perhaps even make

some important connections.

The first part of the survey is intended to be an open-ended

exploration rather that a rigorous scientific study or an attempt

to confirm an existing hypotheses. We hope not for solid

conclusions or hard data, but rather to discover and delineate some

interesting avenues for future research.

In a later issue, we will report on the early survey results. It's

possible--though we cannot guarantee it--that in

investigating the subjective responses we hope to receive from

MEGABRAIN REPORT readers we will discover some trends. We can use

this information to guide us in designing a more focused study for

part two of the survey.

For example, we might receive many reports that the effects of

piracetam are amplified when used with the light and sound

devices. Then we could plan to focus more deeply on the

particular machine/compound interaction, investigating the

interactive effects over differing periods of time, using

different sound and light frequencies and modes, and in various

areas, such as memory, reaction speed, creativity and so on.

In this issue, we will introduce some of the more interesting

compounds for cognitive enhancement, provide information about how

to obtain each of them, present some methods for assessing and

evaluating your own brain state and tracing your progress, and

present a simple questionnaire. These self-assessment methods and

our initial survey appear at the end of this article. First we will

describe a few of the most promising cognition enhancing

substances.

NOOTROPIC DRUGS

PIRACETAM

"Last year a friend took me to hear Sun Ra and his Intergalactic

Arkestra as a birthday present. I had just received a bottle of

800 mg tablets of Piracetam. My friend and I each took nine of the

tablets (an "attack dose" they call it in the literature) before

entering the hall. The music began 30 minutes later. I found myself

able to concentrate as never before. I was

completely lucid with absolutely no sense of intoxication. For the

first time in my life I could hear each individuals horn's timbre

(Sun Ra has about 10 horn players, often all playing massed

harmonies.) My friend has worked as a professional

saxophone player. He, too, reported extraordinary hearing and

concentration abilities. My ears felt as though the were being

stimulated from all directions at once, but the feeling was

entirely pleasant. I was enthralled."

Piracetam has been the subject of intensive research for over 15

years, and has not only proven to be a powerful intelligence

booster and cerebral stimulant, but also, even in massive acute

and chronic dosages, appears to be nontoxic and to produce no side

effects (it's so nontoxic one FDA employee reportedly

claimed that since huge doses produce no toxic effects, it can't

possibly have any pharmacological effects and must be

physiologically inert). It is so remarkable in its effects and

safety that its discovery by UCB Laboratories in Belgium sent

virtually every other major pharmaceutical company scrambling to

develop its own cerebral stimulant. This "Smart pill race" has

resulted in the creation of a new drug category called the

nootropics, from the Greek words noos (mind) and tropein (turn),

meaning "acting on the mind".

Some of the nootropic drugs being tested now on humans include

vinpocetine (being developed by Ayerst Laboratories), which speeds

up learning, improves memory and recall and seems to block the

action of substances that disrupt memory; aniracetam

(Hoffman-La Roche), which appears to be about ten times more potent

in improving and protecting memory than piracetam,

pramiracetam (Warner-Lambert/Parke Davis), which seems to improve

learning and memory by enhancing the firing of neurons in the

hippocampus (a key to the formation of long-term memories), and

oxiracetam (Ciba-Geigy), apparently two to three times as

powerful as piracetam (intriguingly, research shows that when

oxiracetam is given to pregnant rats their offspring proved more

intelligent that control groups--similar findings have been

reported for the offspring of pregnant rats kept in "enriched

environments," as described in the "Research Update" elsewhere in

this issue). All of these substances seem remarkably nontoxic and

free of side effects.

As yet, there is no nootropic drug that is approved by the FDA for

sale in the US, but, keenly aware of the multi-billion dollar

potential of nootropics, the drug companies are pouring big bucks

into research that will satisfy FDA requirements by proving how

they work (still not well understood), and by proving their

effectiveness in treating medical problems such as Alzheimer's

disease and senility. In this article we will focus on the most

extensively tested and widely available nootropic compound,

piracetam.

Piracetam has been proven to boost learning and memory in normal

subjects as well as those who suffer cognitive deficits, and is

also a cognitive enhancer under conditions of hypoxia, or too

little oxygen (recent expeditions to climb Mt. Everest have

included piracetam as an "essential" medication to treat

frostbite and memory lapses causes by altitude). A variety of

clinical studies with human subjects, including studies of young

healthy volunteers, healthy middle-aged subjects with some memory

decline, elderly subjects, elderly subjects with senility, and

alcoholics, have proven that piracetam enhances cortical

vigilance, improves integration of information processing,

improves attention span and concentration, and can produce

dramatic improvements in both direct and delayed recall of verbal

learning.

It's effective in the treatment of dyslexia, stroke, alcoholism,

vertigo, senile dementia, sickle-cell anemia, and many other

conditions, enhances the brain's resistance to various injuries

and boosts its ability to recover from injuries, protects the brain

against chemicals such as barbiturates and cyanides, and is widely

used throughout Europe and Latin America (where it is sold over the

counter).

The subjective effect described by a lot of people is that it

"wakes up your brain". In fact, it selectively stimulates the

anterior or frontal part of the forebrain--that part of the brain

that has evolved most recently, rapidly and remarkably in the

course of our evolution from ape to human, and which is the seat

of our "higher functions."

Piracetam works in a number of ways to increase energy within the

brain. First, it steps up the production of adenosine

triphosphate (ATP), the energy storage and energy generating

molecules within our cells. It also boosts cerebral metabolism by

improving cerebral microcirculation (blood flow), increasing the

brain's use of glucose, and increasing the brain's oxygen

utilization. It also seems to enhance protein syntheses in the

brain (it's been proven that protein synthesis is an essential step

in laying down long-term memories).

SUPERCONNECTING THE BRAIN. Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of

piracetam is that it has been proven to increase the flow of

information between the right and left hemispheres of the brain.

As a result of experiments with human subjects one researcher

concluded that piracetam causes the hemispheres to become

"superconnected." Since there's increasing evidence that high level

brain states--brilliance, insight, creativity, flow, peak

performance, being "in the zone"--are a product of the integrated

and synergistic functioning of both hemispheres simultaneously, we

might suspect that piracetam enhances not only simple learning and

memory but creative or syntheses thinking.

Piracetam's capacity to superconnect the hemispheres becomes even

more intriguing in light of the evidence indicating that many of

the most widely used mind machines and techniques for brain

enhancement (such as binaural beat frequencies and the sound and

light machines) function in part by facilitating integrated

hemispheric functioning. This raises the possibility that since

both the machines and piracetam seem to facilitate

interhemispheric communication, there might be a potentiating or

synergistic effect when such mind machines are used in

combination with piracetam, resulting in a quantum leap in brain-

enhancement effects.

PRECAUTIONS: Piracetam may increase the effects of certain drugs,

such as amphetamines and psychotropics. Adverse effects are rare

but include insomnia, psychomotor agitation, nausea, headaches and

gastrointestinal distress.

DOSAGE: Piracetam is supplied in 400mg or 800mg tablets. The usual

dose is 2400-4800 mg per day in three divided doses. Some

literature recommends that the first two days a high "attack" dose

should be taken. We have noticed that when some people first take

piracetam they do not notice any effect until they take a high

dose. Thereafter, they may notice that a lower dosage is

sufficient. The drug takes effect in 30 to 60 minutes.

SOURCES: piracetam is not sold in the US. It can be purchased over

the counter in Mexico or by mail order from the address below.

. 

. 

. 

HYDERGINE

"I first tried Hydergine six years ago during a visit to see my

Dad at Christmas. He and I started taking 9mg and results were

apparent to us both within two days. He was in his 40s, and began

to remember events from when he was in his 20s as clearly as if

they'd happened yesterday. What was interesting was that the events

were nothing outstanding--just ordinary times. In other words, the

everyday events had been stored away all these years, it just took

some chemical prodding to jog them loose into the conscious mind.

I was in my early 20s and had similar memories going back to my

childhood years. A unique opportunity had been presented to us to

sit down and really share in the joys that our life had brought us.

What a gift!"

A wealth of research going back over 20 years suggests that

Hydergine may be what psychologist-pharmacist Ross Pelton calls

"the ultimate smart pill." The substance, whose generic name is

ergoloid mesylates, is made from a natural, organic source: the

ergot fungus of rye plants (it was discovered at Sandoz

laboratories by the visionary chemist Dr. Albert Hofmann, also

known for his discovery of another ergot derivative, LSD 25). It

increases mental abilities, prevents damage to brain cells, and

may even be able to reverse existing damage to brain cells.

Hydergine acts in several ways to enhance mental capabilities and

to slow down or reverse the aging processes in the brain. A few of

the huge number of beneficial effects scientists have

attributed to Hydergine include: increased protein syntheses in

the brain; reduced accumulation of lipofuscin in the brain;

increased quantities of blood and oxygen delivered to the brain;

improvement of memory, learning and intelligence; beneficial

improvements in brainwave activity; increased metabolism in brain

cells; normalization of blood pressure; and increased production

of such neurotransmitters as dopamine and norepinephrine

(neurochemical messengers essential to the formation of memory,

and also associated with arousal, alertness, elation and

pleasure). Hydergine also functions as a powerful antioxidant and

thus protects the brain against the damage caused by those

infamous rascally free radicals (unstable and extremely reactive

molecules produced by normal metabolism, which cause damage

associated with aging, cancer and cardiovascular disease).

One way that Hydergine may enhance brain functioning is by

mimicking the effect of a substance called nerve growth factor

(NGF). NGF promotes the growth of dendrites--the long branching

fibers by which neurons receive information from other neurons.

Scientists studying the effects of learning on the brain have found

it is directly related to dendritic growth. Hydergine seems to work

by the same neurochemical pathway as NGF to produce neural growth.

While Hydergine is widely used for the treatment of senility,

scientists have also studied its effects, both short term and long

term, in normal healthy humans; these studies noted

significant improvements in a variety of cognitive function,

including alertness, memory, reaction time, abstract reasoning and

cognitive processing ability.

PRECAUTIONS: If too large a dose is used when first taking

Hydergine, it may cause slight nausea, gastric disturbance, or

headache. Overall, Hydergine does not produce and serious side

effects, it is non-toxic even at very large doses and it is

contraindicated only for individuals who have chronic or acute

psychosis.

DOSAGE: The US recommended dosage is 3mg per day, however, the

European recommended dosage is 9 mg per day taken in three

divided doses. Most of the research has been done at levels of 9

to 12 mg per day or higher, and there is some evidence that 3 mg

per day is simply insufficient for significant cognition-

enhancement effects. It may take several weeks or even months

before Hydergine produces noticeable effects. Hydergine (though

not its generic counterpart) is available in a sublingual form,

and there is evidence that sublingual doses reach the brain in

greater quantity.

SOURCES: Hydergine is available in the USA with a doctor's

prescription, and approved by the FDA for the treatment of senile

dementia and insufficient blood circulation to the brain--your

doctor may not be familiar with the uses discussed. It can also be

purchased over the counter in Mexico or by mail order from overseas

(see below). In many cases these mail order companies sell the

generic form, Ergoloid Mesylates. The FDA has rated the generic as

biologically equivalent to the Sandoz product. More testing needs

to be done on the question.

. 

. 

. 

VASOPRESSIN

"The most immediate result I get from using vasopressin is

increased clarity and alertness. I can be logical without the usual

speediness associated with caffeine use. After five minutes I've

noticed that I'm busily accomplishing tasks that I'd been putting

off for a week. The duration is about two hours for the energetic

feelings. Overall, I feel my short-term memory recall improving

over the past two weeks of using vasopressin. It seems that the

longer I use it, the more I can rely on my mind to be a portable

note pad."

"I have smoked pot on a more or less (usually more) daily basis

for 20 years. When I read that vasopressin is inhibited by pot, I

found a source for buying some. Now I notice that when I use

vasopressin with marijuana I still get stoned, but I have little

or none of the 'dummying down' effect of the pot. And what a

surprise to find that vasopressin intensifies orgasms!"

Vasopressin, called "the memory hormone," is a natural brain

peptide, stimulated by acetylcholine and released in the

pituitary. It actually helps create, imprint, and store memories,

and is essential to remembering. Apparently vasopressin is

involved in picking out and chunking together related bits of

information from the stream of consciousness, integrating these

chunks into coherent structures, and then "imprinting" these images

or concepts into long-term memory by transforming

electrical impulses into complex proteins that contain memories

and are stored away in the brain. The act of remembering the stored

information is also mediated by vasopressin.

Over 20 years ago scientists discovered that vasopressin had

extraordinary effects on the memory of laboratory animals--

preventing chemically and electrically induced amnesia, actually

reversing amnesia, and dramatically boosting the memory and

intelligence of normal animals. These findings spurred much

research into the cognition-enhancement effect of vasopressin on

humans. Among the key findings are that small doses of the

hormone can have striking success in quickly reversing traumatic

amnesia (amnesia caused by injuries such as car crashes), can

reverse age-related memory loss and actually restore lost

memories, and can produce sharp improvements in learning and memory

using measures such as abstract and verbal memory,

organizational capacities, recall, attention, concentration, focus,

short-term memory, optical memory, and long-term memory. It also

boosts performance in such areas as reaction speed, visual

discrimination, and coordination.

Vasopressin pours out during moments of trauma or extreme

arousal, which may explain why those times seem to be so deeply

imprinted in our brains, and are remembered with such clarity.

Vasopressin is also released by cocaine, LSD, amphetamines,

Ritalin, and Pemoline (Cylert). Those who make frequent use of

these drugs deplete their brain's vasopressin supply. The result

is depression, and a decline in cognitive function. The frequent

user's response to this depression is to take more of the drug,

thus trying to wring more vasopressin out of their depleted brain:

ultimately the well runs dry. Vasopressin, however, is not a drug

but the actual brain hormone that has been depleted, so it can

produce dramatic and virtually instantaneous improvements in mood

and mental functioning.

Unlike stimulants, alcohol and marijuana do not deplete but

actually suppress the release of vasopressin, which could account

for the loss of memory many have noticed when drunk or stoned, or

when trying to remember events that occurred while they were high.

Vasopressin can reduce the harmful effects of these drugs and

enhance alertness, reaction speed and concentration.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that vasopressin can produce a state

of euphoria accompanied by self-confidence, energy,

assertiveness, and a sensation of extreme mental clarity. Many

believe it is ideal for situations in which lots of new

information needs to be processed and remembered--such as

studying for an exam, learning a language, ploughing through

difficult or complex works. Some use it for more mundane

purposes, such as when they have to drive late at night and want

to remain alert.

PRECAUTIONS: Vasopressin can occasionally produce the following

side effects; runny nose, nasal congestion, irritation of the nasal

passages, headache, abdominal cramps, and increased bowel

movements. Angina sufferers should not use vasopressin, since it

can trigger angina pains. Vasopressin has not been proven to be

safe for use during pregnancy.

DOSAGE: Vasopressin usually comes in a nasal spray bottle. Most

studies showing memory improvement have been done with a dose of

12 to 16 USP per day, which is one whiff in each nostril three to

four times per day. Vasopressin produces a noticeable effect within

seconds.

SOURCES: Vasopressin (known as Diapid and produced by Sandoz) is

available in the USA with a doctor's prescription, but keep in mind

that your doctor may not be familiar with the uses we have

discussed (it is approved by the FDA for treatment of diabetes

insipidus). It can also be purchased over the counter in Mexico or

by mail order from overseas (see below).

. 

. 

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HOW TO OBTAIN COGNITION-ENHANCEMENT SUBSTANCES BY MAIL ORDER.

While some of the substances described above are not available in

the U.S., or are available only by prescription, it is easy and

quite legal to obtain these substances by mail order. One reason

some of these substances are not available in the U.S. is that they

have not yet gone through the extraordinarily expensive and lengthy

process required to obtain FDA approval. This does not mean however

that it is not quite legal to use these substances. And some of the

substances have been approved by the FDA for limited medical

application. This does not mean that it is not quite proper to use

these substances for "unapproved" purposes.

In the April, 1982 issue of the FDA Drug Bulletin, the agency

included a policy statement clarifying the question of

"unapproved" uses for drugs, clearly stating that "'unapproved'

uses may be appropriate and rational in certain circumstances, and

may, in fact, reflect approaches to drug therapy that have been

extensively reported in medical literature... Valid new uses for

drugs already on the market are often first discovered

through serendipitous observations and therapeutic innovation." In

sum, the FDA clearly approves of the "unapproved" uses as an

important means for innovation and discovery.

Also, though it is not widely known, a July, 1989 FDA ruling now

makes it quite legal to import effective drugs used elsewhere but

not available in the U.S. The FDA now allows the importation and

mail shipment of a three month supply of drugs, for personal use,

as long as they are regarded as safe in other countries. The new

ruling, FDA pilot guidelines chapter 971, was made as a result of

heavy pressure from AIDS political action groups, which insisted

AIDS sufferers were denied access to potentially life-saving

substances that were widely used abroad but were still unapproved

for use in the U.S.

InHome Health Services, a mail order pharmacy in Switzerland, is

one of a number of companies established in response to this new

FDA ruling. InHome carries a wide variety of drugs for cognitive

enhancement, life extension, and the treatment of AIDS which are

not available in the US.

All of the drugs discussed here can be purchased without a

prescription. You can request a full price sheet by writing to:

InHome Health Services, Dept. E, POB 3112, CH-2800 Delemont,

Switzerland. Those who want to order some of the substances

described above right away may send a personal check for the amount

of the item(s) plus $13 for shipping. Some sample prices (in June,

1990) are:

* Centrophenoxine (250mg x 60) $19

* Hydergine (4.5mg x 28 tablets) $16.50

* Phenytoin (Generic Dilantin, 100mg x 100) $8.80

* Piracetam (800mg x 60 tablets) $16.60

* Sulbutiamine (200mg x 30) $12.50

* Vasopressin (5ml spray) $8.75

You must include the following signed statement with your order.

"I hereby declare that the products I am purchasing are not for

commercial resale. They are for my personal use only. The supply

ordered does not exceed three months usage, and they are used with

the consent of my physician."

Another company with higher prices, but possibly faster service is:

INTERLAB

PO Box 587

Newport Pagnell

Bucks MK 16 8AA England

Again include this signed statement with your order: "I hereby

declare that the products I am purchasing are not for commercial

resale. They are for my personal use only. The supply ordered does

not exceed three months usage, and they are used with the consent

of my physician."

~References:

Piracetam

Anderson, K., Anderson, L. Orphan Drugs. Los Angeles, CA: The Body

     Press, 1983, p. 169. 

Bartus, Raymond T., et al. "Profound Effects of Combining Choline

     and Piracetam on Memory Enhancement and Cholinergic Function

     in Aged Rats." Neurobiology of Aging. 1981, Vol. 2, pp.

     105-11.

Buresova, O., Bures, J. "Piracetam-Induced Facilitation of

     Interhemispheric Transfer of Visual Information in Rats."

     Psychopharmacologia (Berlin). 1976, Vol. 46, pp. 93-102.

Bylinsky, G. "Medicine's Next Marvel: The Memory Pill." Fortune.

     January 20, 1986, pp. 68-72.

Chase, C.H., et al. "A New Chemotherapeutic Investigation:

     Piracetam Effects on Dyslexia." Annals of Dyslexia. 1984, Vol.

     34, pp. 29-48.

Conners, et al. "Piracetam and Event-Related Potentials in Dyslexic

     Children." Psychopharmacology Bulletin. 1984, Vol. 20, pp.

     667-73.

Dimond, S.J., Browers, E.Y.M. "Increase in the Power of Human

     Memory in Normal Man Through the Use of Drugs."

     Psychopharmacology. 1976, Vol. 49, pp. 307-9.

Dilanni, M., et al. "The Effects of Piracetam in Children with

     Dyslexia." Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology. 1985, Vol.

     5, pp. 272-8.

Donaldson, T. "Therapies to Improve Memory." Anti-Aging News. 1984,

     No. 4, pp. 13-21.

Ferris, S.H., et al. "Combination of Choline/Piracetam in the

     Treatment of Senile Dementia." Psychopharmacology Bulletin.

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Friedman, E., et al. "Clinical Response to Choline Plus Piracetam

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Parducz, A. "Depletion of Synaptic Vesicle Lipids in Stimulated

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Pearson, D., Shaw, S. Durk Pearson & Sandy Shaw's Life Extension

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Pellegata, R., et al. "Cyclic Gaba-Gabob Analogues." Presented at

     VI International meeting of the International Society For

     Neurochemistry, Copenhagen, August 21-26, 1977.

Pelton, R., Pelton, T.C. Mind Food & Smart Pills.  New York:

     Doubleday, 1989. 

Pepeu, G., and Spignoli, G. Neurochemical Actions of "Nootropic

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Pilch, H., et al. "Piracetam Elevates Muscarinic Cholinergic

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Poschel, B.P.H. "New Pharmacologic Perspectives on Nootropic

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     24-5. 

Stegink, A.J. "The Clinical Use of Piracetam, a New Nootropic

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U.B.C. Laboratories, Pharmaceutical Division. "Basic Scientific

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Wilsher, C.R. "Piracetam and Dyslexia: Effects on Reading Tests."

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Zhang, S., et al. "Effects of Cerebral GABA Level on Learning and

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Hydergine

Branconnier, R. "The Efficacy of the Cerebral Metabolic Enhancers

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Copeland, R.L., Jr., et al. "Behavioral and Neurochemical Effects

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Emmenegger, H., Meier-Ruge, W. "The Actions of Hydergine on the

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Fanchamps, A. "Dihydroergotoxine in Senile Cerebral Insufficiency."

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Hindmarch, I., et al. "The Effects of an Ergot Alkaloid Derivative

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     and Cognitive Processing Ability." The Journal of Clinical

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Hughes, J.R., et al. "An Ergot Alkaloid Preparation (Hydergine) in

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     Vol. 24, pp. 490-97.

Kleimola, T. "Generic Bioavailability Test." Turku, Finland: Leiras

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Vasopressin

De Wied, D., et al. "Vasopressin and Memory Consolidation."

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     Memory." The Lancet. January 7, 1978, pp. 41-42.

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     January 7, 1978, p. 42.

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     Doubleday, 1989.EOF
-- 
--
Chris Beaumont                  | Internet: cgl.ucsf.edu!cca.ucsf.edu!wet!ccat
POB 170156,SF,CA.94117          | uucp:   ...!uunet!hoptoad!wet!ccat
(415) 922-9640                  | Bitnet:    [email-masked]

From [email-masked] Wed Aug 28 02:12:57 1991
Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1991 01:31-EDT
From: [email-masked]
To: [email-masked]
Subject: Mind Enhancers
Status: OR

My experience so far has been with piracetum, hydergine, DMAE,
L-Glutamine (which, I think, is the same as PCA), and choline. So far
the results have been mixed. Of course, so have the substances. My
approach has been to try out some of these first, to try for immediate
(and easily obtained) effects, with an eye toward getting more
scientific over time. My impressions:

PIRACETUM

I have had at least one extraordinarily good experience which I
believe was caused by piracetum. I "attack" dosed at 4g, then took .8g
three times per day for two days. On the third day, out of the blue, I
suddenly started feeling great, energetic, fast, etc. It was a feeling
similar to caffiene, but without as much adrenal response. In keeping
with other accounts that I have heard, music became very intense, and I
had a strong desire to play it very loud. I tried playing the guitar and
it seemed to come more easily to me. Unfortunately, this eventually went
away, and I haven't had a similar experience since, although I haven't
pushed it much. It seems that my verbal memory (vocabulary) has
increased slightly, in keeping with the research, but it is not a clear
difference, if one even exists. 

DMAE

>From what I can tell, DMAE works as advertised, with two main effects:
(1) it seems to slowly build a stimulation, which, while not constant,
is persistant, (2) it seems to regulate and reduce need for sleep. These
effects have appeared while taking ~300mg of DMAE/day, along with 3g
choline (+1g B-5), and varying amounts of piracetum. Therefore, it is
hard to sceintifically attribute the effects to DMAE. However,
intuitively (knowing varying doses, etc), it seems to me that DMAE has
provided the bulk of these effects. 

HYDERGINE

I have yet to experience the much touted synergy between hydergine and
piracetum, even after taking 4.5mg hydergine + 4g piracetum. I do know
that the warnings against taking too much hydergine, esp. at first,
should be taken seriously. It can make you nauseated. 

OTHERS

L-Glutamine was the first thing that I tried. I percieved no effect from
this whatsoever. I'd be interested to hear about experiences with
arginine pyroglutamate, since that is supposed to be the more potent
form. I've always taken the choline + B5 with some combination of the
above, so it would be hard to break out the effect.  My episodic memory
of the past seems enriched, but that remains hard to discern.

That about does it. So far, DMAE seems like the only real win, since it
appears to cut need for sleep by a bit---therefore, more day to work
with. More experimentation will certainly be conducted. 

CB

From [email-masked] Tue Aug 27 15:06:50 1991
To: [email-masked]
Subject: Re: Rolling Stone article (Was: Re: Smart Drugs...) 
Date: Tue, 27 Aug 91 11:23:25 PDT
From: David Krieger <[email-masked]>
Status: OR

--Your message was: (from [email-masked])
  [This is from Max More, who asked me to forward it to the list:]
  >        Has anyone here who's tried these substances had encouraging and 
      vasopressin and other nootropics ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
  >unambiguous results?
  >        Max More

My own experience is with piracetam, centrophenoxine (Lucidril), and
vasopressin (Diapid).  Piracetam might have had some effects, but made my
eyes so red on the days that I took it that I decided it was not worth
continuing.  Vasopressin, as Max said, is mainly useful when the brain's
supply of neurotransmitters is either depleted (following a caffeine or
other stimulant binge) or suppressed (by alcohol or other CNS depressant)
-- I consider it the long-sought "sober-up" treatment.

Centrophenoxine gave me the most dramatic results -- I did not measure
them by any kind of psychometric tests, but I felt more alert, and
experienced faster and more reliable recall than previously.  Since
Lucidril works by making a permanent brain change (enabling brain
metabolism to remove life-long accumulations of the aging pigment
lipofuscin from the neurons), its effects are cumulative -- you continue
to feel sharper even after you quit taking the drug.

						dk
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Views expressed are not those        | Internet: [email-masked]
of Paramount Pictures Corp., RAND,   | "How can you be in two places at once
or the author's Mommy...             |  when you're not anywhere at all?"
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