Overview
Noöracetam — If you enjoy being a dingbat, stay away from this stuff!
NoöRacetam is LifeLink’s brand of piracetam, a derivative of the neurotransmatter GABA. Piracetam is a noötropic — i.e., a
cognitive enhancer.
Piracetam, first of the noötropics, has been in clinical and
popular use in Europe and elsewhere since the early 1970s. In
the U.S., however, government bureaucrats tried for many years
to prevent U.S. citizens from having access to cognitive enhancers,
despite their well-known effectiveness and excellent safety
record. Fortunately, U.S. supplement companies prevailed over
the bureaucrats, and piracetam became available to Americans as
a nutritional supplement in 2006.
During its more than 30 years of use in Europe, piracetam has been used to treat a variety of conditions, and benefits have
been reported in the following areas:
- cognitive enhancement for students
- dyslexia
- stroke
- epilepsy
- myoclonus
- dementia
- alcoholism
- lipofuscin build-up (a cause of aging)
- Raynaud’s syndrome
- deep vein thrombosis
- tardive dyskinesia.
The recommended dosage of piracetam ranges from 1.6-9.6 grams per day, taken in divided doses. For blood disorders the usual
dosage is 4.8 to 9.6 grams per day divided into three doses about 8 hours apart.
Piracetam should be avoided by people with severe impairment of liver or kidneys, or with a history of cerebral hemorrhage.
If piracetam is to be discontinued, the dosage should be reduced gradually over a period of several days.
Read NoöRacetam Monograph
NoöRacetam is LifeLink’s brand of piracetam. Piracetam, a derivative of the neurotransmatter GABA, is a racetam — a category of cognitive enhancers that includes aniracetam, pramiracetam, oxiracetam, and others. Cognitive enhancers are
also called “noötropics”.
Piracetam
was first of the noötropics. Discovered in 1964, it has been in
clinical and popular use in Europe and elsewhere since the early 1970s.
In the U.S., however, government bureaucrats have waged a campaign
against piracetam and other noötropics, using scare tactics and gestapo-type actions
to prevent U.S. citizens from having access to them. Despite the
harrassment, many people have quietly imported small quantities from
Europe for their own use.
In view of the fact that piracetam is a simple derivative of the neurotransmitter GABA and has a proven lack of toxicity,
it was adopted in 2006 as a nutritional supplement by U.S. supplement companies.
What we can’t tell you
In
the U.S. and some other industrialized countries, government agencies
like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have adopted censorship as a
method for intensifying their control over supplement users and their
suppliers. Thus, FDA regulations prohibit us from telling you that any
of our products are effective as medical treatments, even if they are, in fact, effective.
Accordingly, we will limit our discussion of NoöRacetam to a brief summary of relevant research, and let you draw your own
conclusions about what medical conditions it may be effective in treating.
Applications
During its more than 30 years of use in Europe, piracetam has been used to treat a variety of conditions, and benefits have
been reported in the following areas:
- cognitive enhancement for students
- dyslexia
- stroke
- epilepsy
- myoclonus
- dementia
- alcoholism
- lipofuscin build-up (symptom of aging)
- Raynaud’s syndrome
- deep vein thrombosis
- tardive dyskinesia
Mechanism of action
Piracetam’s effects on both nerve cells and on blood may be explained by the fact that it alters the fluidity of membranes
of cells.
Such a change in fluidity would affect the function of various proteins
that float in these membranes — proteins such as ion channels in nerve
cell membranes, and metabolic enzymes in mitochondrial membranes. Cell
membrane fluidity would also affect the ability of blood cells to pass
through small veins and capillaries.
Reviews
Among the many good reviews of this topic are the ones at UC Berkeley’s Sulcus website, at Wikipedia, and the one by Winnicka.
Safety
Piracetam has an excellent reputation for being nontoxic. Many clinical studies have shown this supplement to be safe to use, even in very high doses. Human oral doses as high as 45 grams during 12 hours have been reported to be without ill effects.
Dosage
The recommended dosage of piracetam ranges from 1.6-9.6 grams per day, taken in divided doses. For blood disorders the usual
dosage is 4.8 to 9.6 grams per day divided into three doses about 8 hours apart.
A question to ponder
Why
has the U.S. government tried to prevent its citizens from having
access to noötropics like piracetam? The official reason is “to keep
the public safe” — this is the standard excuse given for police-state
behavior. A more plausible explanation might be “to keep the public
from becoming too smart”. A smarter public would be less tolerant of
corrupt and incompetent government officials.
Cautions
Piracetam should be avoided by people with severe impairment of liver or kidneys, or with cerebral hemorrhage. If piracetam
is to be discontinued, the dosage should be reduced gradually over a period of several days.
Conclusion
Is NoöRacetam useful for the conditions and purposes mentioned above? We aren’t allowed to tell you, so you should take a
look at some of the references cited here, and then decide for yourself.
References
[1] Using "Smart" Drugs and Drinks May Not Be Smart U.S. Food and Drug Administration website Victor Lambert
[2] FEDERAL-STATE INVESTIGATION OF ILLEGAL DRUGS U.S. Food and Drug Administration website; 1993 Don McLearn
[3] Automatic Detention of Drugs from the Hauptmann Institute Vienna,
Austria U.S. Food and Drug Administration website; IA #66-27; 1994
[4] Increase in the power of human memory in normal man through the use of drugs. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 1976 Sep 29; 49(3):307-9
[5] Piracetam and dyslexia: effects on reading tests. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 1987 Aug; 7(4):230-7 Wilsher CR, Bennett D, Chase CH, Conners CK, DiIanni M, Feagans L, Hanvik LJ, Helfgott E, Koplewicz H, Overby P
[6] Current status and perspectives of neuroprotection in ischemic stroke treatment. Cerebrovasc Dis. 2001; 11 Suppl 1:60-70 Martínez-Vila E, Sieira PI
[7] Piracetam
relieves symptoms in progressive myoclonus epilepsy: a multicentre,
randomised, double blind, crossover study comparing the efficacy and
safety of three dosages of oral piracetam with placebo. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1998 Mar; 64(3):344-8 Koskiniemi M, Van Vleymen B, Hakamies L, Lamusuo S, Taalas J
[8] Piracetam--an old drug with novel properties? Acta Pol Pharm. 2005 Sep-Oct; 62(5):405-9 Winnicka K, Tomasiak M, Bielawska A
[9] [Cognitive function in alcoholics in a double-blind study of piracetam] Lijec Vjesn. 1990 Mar-Apr; 112(3-4):111-4 Buranji I, Skociliç Z, Kozariç-Kovaciç D
[10] The effects of piracetam on lipofuscin of the rat cerebellar and hippocampal neurons after long-term alcohol treatment and
withdrawal: a quantitative study. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1991 Oct; 15(5):834-8 Paula-Barbosa MM, Brandăo F, Pinho MC, Andrade JP, Madeira MD, Cadete-Leite A
[11] Treatment of the Raynaud's phenomenon with piracetam. Arzneimittelforschung. 1993 May; 43(5):526-35 Moriau M, Lavenne-Pardonge E, Crasborn L, von Frenckell R, Col-Debeys C
[12] The treatment of severe or recurrent deep venous thrombosis. Beneficial effect of the co-administration of antiplatelet agents
with or without rheological effects, and anticoagulants. Thromb Res. 1995 Jun 15; 78(6):469-82 Moriau M, Lavenne-Pardonge E, Crasborn L, von Frenckell R, Col-Debeys C
[13] Efficacy
of piracetam in the treatment of tardive dyskinesia in schizophrenic
patients: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover
study. J Clin Psychiatry. 2007 Jul; 68(7):1031-7 Libov I, Miodownik C, Bersudsky Y, Dwolatzky T, Lerner V
[14] Piracetam: novelty in a unique mode of action. Pharmacopsychiatry. 1999 Mar; 32 Suppl 1:2-9 Müller WE, Eckert GP, Eckert A
[15] SMART DRUGS: ENHANCING COGNITIVE FUNCTION WITH PIRACETAM UC Berkeley's Sulcus website, Spring 1999
[16] Piracetam Wikipedia website
[17] (Search for "piracetam", then click on "Full Record") ChemIDplus Lite website
[18] Piracetam and other structurally related nootropics. Brain Res Brain Res Rev. 1994 May; 19(2):180-222 Gouliaev AH, Senning A
[19] Long-term efficacy and safety of piracetam in the treatment of progressive myoclonus epilepsy. Arch Neurol. 2001 May; 58(5):781-6 Fedi M, Reutens D, Dubeau F, Andermann E, D'Agostino D, Andermann F
[20] Piracetam in the treatment of cortical myoclonus. Pharmacopsychiatry. 1999 Mar; 32 Suppl 1:49-53 Genton P, Guerrini R, Remy C
[21] The clinical safety of high-dose piracetam--its use in the treatment of acute stroke. Pharmacopsychiatry. 1999 Mar; 32 Suppl 1:33-7 De Reuck J, Van Vleymen B
[22] Nootropics & Brain Enhancers forum Immortality Institute website
