Posted by Rick on February 10, 2002, at 4:57:49
In reply to Re: Provigil- Adrafinil » Rick, posted by IsoM on February 9, 2002, at 12:33:43
IsoM
Thanks for yet another thoughtful and interesting post with helpful (and insightful) ideas. I have some comments/questions lined up, but I won't have time to post them until later...a few days to a week or even longer. Things are suddenly getting mega-busy at both work and home. Hardly have time to think! But briefly:
-- That story about that poor Rusian guy is wild, and sad. That would be sheer torture. I'm already too focused on trivia as it is!
-- Thanks for the "memory-rejuvenation tips. I'll have to look further into this, although I've seen some discouraging (in terms of efficacy) reports on the "racetams." Funny how all there's an incredible amount of stuff written about memory-boosting supplements and exercise, but it's virtually never about countering *med-induced* memory deficits.
I was intrigued by the recent placebo-controlled study on Bacopa (Medline abstract plus link to full study below.) It suggests pretty impressive stuff about Bacopa's memory boosting benefits. But I've learned the study was sponsored by an Australian distributor of much-higher-potency Bacopa than is available in the U.S. (Although I found a place in Australia that will take online orders. BTW, the people at a New Zealand university who did the study, as well as the distributor, provided friendly and detailed answers to some questions I emailed them.) The fact that it was mfr-sponsored doesn't mean the results are false -- in fact the researcher is the person who freely offered up the fact that the study was distributor-sponsored -- but I do have to wonder if it was completely objectve. Also, I know nothing about the long-term safety.
Rick
Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2001 Aug;156(4):481-4The chronic effects of an extract of Bacopa monniera (Brahmi) on cognitive function in healthy human subjects.
Stough C, Lloyd J, Clarke J, Downey LA, Hutchison CW, Rodgers T, Nathan PJ.
Neuropsychology Laboratory, School of Biophysical Science and Electrical Engineering, Victoria, Australia.
RATIONALE: Extracts of Bacopa monniera have been reported to exert cognitive enhancing effects in animals. However, the effects on human cognition are inconclusive. OBJECTIVE: The current study examined the chronic effects of an extract of B. monniera (Keenmind) on cognitive function in healthy human subjects. METHODS: The study was a double-blind placebo-controlled independent-group design in which subjects were randomly allocated to one of two treatment conditions, B. monniera (300 mg) or placebo. Neuropsychological testing was conducted pre-(baseline) and at 5 and 12 weeks post drug administration. RESULTS: B. monniera significantly improved speed of visual information processing measured by the IT task, learning rate and memory consolidation measured by the AVLT (P< 0.05), and state anxiety (P< 0.001) compared to placebo, with maximal effects evident after 12 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that B. monniera may improve higher order cognitive processes that are critically dependent on the input of information from our environment such as learning and memory.
http://web.iol.cz/lscentrum/brahmi.pdf
poster:Rick
thread:93083
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020208/msgs/93560.html