Which websites are your best bets for learning about nootropics?
A simple internet search for just about anything related to nootropics, smart boosters, or cognitive enhancement will return hundreds of thousands of results, but it’s hard to know which ones you can trust.
Here are some of the best websites you can count on for the information you need.
PubMed
PubMed is the grand-daddy of biomedical internet research. “A project of the US National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health, PubMed is a free search engine. It accesses a vast and comprehensive repository of biomedical information.”
The core component of PubMed is the MEDLINE database, a bibliographic repository of life sciences and biomedical information. It includes academic journals on medicine, nursing, pharmacy, health care, and more. The core of PubMed is MEDLINE, a life sciences and biomedical database with academic journals on medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and healthcare. It serves as a comprehensive resource for accessing information in these fields.
The PubMed system made the MEDLINE database searchable by the public in 1997. About 500,000 new records are added to PubMed annually. Approximately 13 million records feature abstracts, with over 14 million full-text articles. In some cases, you need to pay fee to access the full article. However, 3.8 million full-text articles are freely available.
PubMed can be searched in various ways. These include standard searches and searches using parameters like publication type, language, and more. PubMed’s interactive search tutorial video will quickly get you up to speed on how to find the information you need.
PubMed is an excellent place to find out about research on nootropics. If you’re comfortable with technical language and willing to sift through studies, it’s an incomparable resource.
Reddit is a vast collection of user-moderated forums or “subreddits.” The following nootropics-related subreddits are excellent sources of information. They also provide an opportunity to connect with other users. The r/Nootropics subreddit is a large (153,000 subscribers) and active community for anyone who wants to learn about nootropics. There are typically over a thousand users online at all times. The post list is constantly growing and changing.
Nootropics Forum: A Diverse Hub of Discussion and Support
Posts cover a wide range of nootropics topics. They include questions about brands, dosage, effects, personal experiences, and news articles. The content is entirely user-generated. Moderators effectively enforce rules against advertisement, self-promotion, and compensated posts. The general vibe is friendly, interested, and helpful; few posts go uncommented, and even fewer questions go unanswered.
If you’re even somewhat familiar with nootropics, this subreddit can go a long way toward expanding your knowledge. However, if you’re new to cognitive enhancement, diving directly into the daily posts could be both confusing and overwhelming. While the community is open and helpful to newcomers, most posts focus on specific, potentially confusing nootropics questions or issues. Reddit’s prime starting point for learning is r/Nootropics’ Beginner’s Guide to Nootropics, an outstanding wiki. This guide covers everything from the basics to detailed descriptions of natural and synthetic nootropic substances, considerations, and supplier information.
If you’re looking for more advanced information on making the most of nootropics by combining or “stacking” them, check out r/StackAdvice. The subreddit focuses on combining cognitive enhancers for maximum positive effects and minimizing adverse reactions and side effects. A typical day’s posts include everything related to stacking, from stack suggestions to questions about combining nootropics with medical prescriptions. The general vibe is friendly and helpful; questions are answered quickly, and rules against advertisement and promotion are enforced.
Examine.com
Examine.com is an absolute gold mine of incredibly detailed, well-researched, and highly technical information on supplements of all kinds, including nootropics. It offers hundreds of articles on health and nutrition, along with over 500 thoroughly documented supplement profiles. Each profile begins with a brief summary of key information about the supplement, covering benefits, effects, dosage, and important facts. The summary is followed by an extensive Scientific Research section, which includes the supplement’s structure and properties, pharmacology, neurology, and more.
A unique feature of Examine.com’s supplement profiles is the Human Effect Matrix, which uses an easy-to-read chart to display the findings of scientific human studies, excluding animal and in vitro research. The Human Effect Matrix shows potential outcomes, the magnitude of effect the supplement has been shown to have on humans, the consistency of research results, and a detailed listing of all studies on humans, with links to the studies or abstracts thereof.
The site is clean, fast, and has an excellent search function. The Scientific Research sections of the supplement profiles are both complex and highly technical, but the information is clearly presented. When you’re looking for in-depth scientific analysis, Examine.com is an excellent resource.
Braintropic
Braintropic is a unique and outstanding resource for anyone who wants to learn more about nootropics. In addition to a broad range of related articles and reviews, the site features scores of in-depth nootropic profiles that combine well-documented primary research with anecdotal evidence. The result is an engaging and accessible format that delivers a wealth of information and makes Braintropic equally valuable to new and experienced nootropic users alike.
Braintropic’s nootropic profiles include a brief summary of each compound’s history and uses, a full exploration of benefits and effects, information on standard dosages and potential side effects, and a “How It Works” section that explains what the substance does in the brain and body and how it affects cognition. Each nootropic profile includes a stacking section that gives solid advice on how to best combine nootropics, and even suggests stack combos tailored to achieving specific effects, such as immediate cognitive boost, long-term cognitive enhancement, etc.
But nootropic profiles are only part of what Braintropic offers. An excellent resources section features reviews of commercial nootropic formulas, along with a series of guides (including a buyer’s guide, a stacking guide, and a thorough beginner’s guide), a well-categorized list of nootropics, and more.
In addition, Braintropic’s stacks section details the creation of custom stacks to meet a variety of needs; there are stacks for students, stacks for beginners, and even stacks for photographic memory.
Whether you’re new to cognitive enhancement or an experienced nootropics user interested in learning more, Braintropic is a resource you can count on.
It’s All About Research
The field of cognitive enhancement is exciting, but it’s also technical and complex. Nootropics are powerful compounds that can have a significant impact on your brain and body, and the only way to make the most of their potential is to learn as much about them as possible. Each of the sites listed above can help you build your nootropic knowledge base.
Also read our blog on Modafinil – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
