Smart drugs. Brain boosters. Cognitive cognitive enhancement supplements. Name them whatever you want – nootropics have slowly shuffled out of the fringe biohacker forums and into mainstream medicine cabinets, and frankly? The dialogue is long overdue.

We shall come to it. Any substance, synthetic or natural, which enhances mental performance is known as a nootropic. Reminder, concentration, imagination, drive, even cheerfulness. Romanian psychologist Corneliu Giurgea actually determined that the term “brain pill” was not sufficiently serious. Fair point, Corneliu.

This is where the interest lies.

Not all nootropics are created equal. Others are so common as your morning coffee. Strictly speaking, caffeine is a nootropic. L-theanine, the substance in green tea that mollifies caffeine jitters, is no exception. It is likely that you have been taking nootropics your entire life without knowing it. Surprise!

Then there is the further side of the pool.

Some of the very first synthetic nootropics to be taken seriously were racetams, such as piracetam and aniracetam. They seem to tune the acetylcholine receptors which are central to learning and memory. These compounds have been poked at by researchers over decades. Results? Mixed. Promising. Confusing. Welcome to neuroscience.

Adaptogens are in a totally different league. Ashwagandha, Rhodiola rosea, Lion’s Mane mushroom. These vegetable substances do not hit you on the face with stimulation. They resemble more like a slow, steady hand on your shoulder during a stressful week. Rhodiola, specifically, is supported by a reasonable clinical evidence in alleviating mental fatigue. Not folklore – real, double-blind studies.

The Mane of Lion should have its own paragraph. This fungus is, actually, a mushroom; it prompts the production of Nerve Growth Factor (NGF). NGF helps to maintain the survival and proliferation of the neurons. It is now showing signs of even promoting recovery in mild cognitive impairment. It is some kind of mushroom that makes you think more clearly, and this kind of mushroom is a part of a video game, but here we are.

A different animal is prescription-grade nootropics.

Originally created as a treatment for narcolepsy, modafinil has become a sort of legend in the productivity community. It keeps one awake but without the jolt caused by the traditional stimulants. According to some users, it is like flicking a light when in a dark room. Surgeons, military personnel and, frankly speaking, overworked college students have long since used it off-label. It’s not a magic pill. But it’s not nothing, either.

Both of the ADHD medications Adderall and Ritalin are stimulants that focus the brain by flooding it with dopamine and norepinephrine. They work. They are also associated with actual risks – dependency, cardiovascular stress, rebound crashes. Prescription stimulants can be used without a prescription but it is not a productivity hack. It’s a gamble.

This is the one thing, that most nootropic content is not telling you: sleep and exercise are the most evidence-based cognitive enhancers on earth. Full stop. There are no supplements that can be compared to regular quality sleep. When you are working all-nights and then follow it with a few supplements, you are sweeping the floor as the tap is running.