5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take Most of them are actually recreational drugs, causing addiction & withdrawal By: John Tilton Admin of the Facebook group Nootropics are for Women too 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 01 Before You Read Know what a nootropic is A nootropic is a drug, supplement, or other substance that gives cognitive benefits to the human brain The problem is that only two of the substances I mention in this guide have been proven to enhance cognition Thus, they are the only nootropics included But due to false advertising and misinformation that is exchanged through subreddits , Facebook groups, YouTube videos, etc , you may falsely believe that the other three substances are nootropics as well This can potentially get you into a world of trouble due to the inherent dangers of these three substances You may believe that just because something is labeled as a ‘nootropic,’ that it is inherently safe But as you will learn in this guide, that is far from the truth Let’s start at number five with one of the substances that is misidentified as a nootropic By The Way I have included what I believe to be a harsh truth about the nootropic community at the very end of this guide. It’s kind of sad! APOAEQUORIN 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 03 Apoaequorin (or Prevagen ) Prevagen (sold as a supplement) is a synthetic version of Apoaequorin , a calcium - binding protein isolated from the jellyfish Aequorea Victoria Out of all the substances listed in this guide, Prevagen is the only one that does not have the potential for abuse Nevertheless, it can still be dangerous to use as a nootropic As a matter of fact, I’d be willing to bet that you have seen the commercial for Prevagen before You know, the one where a man claims that a protein originally found in jellyfish can improve your memory (with clips of jellyfish in the background) You can watch it by clicking here (surely it will ring a bell) While Prevagen may not be heavily discussed in the nootropic community (despite its notoriety elsewhere), it is sold on the premise that it has a nootropic effect, meaning it can improve memory Let’s investigate that claim and the potential dangers of Prevagen - use below Can Prevagen Improve Your Memory? According to the Madison Memory Study , Prevagen can, in fact, improve your memory More specifically, it can improve verbal memory, reduce the need for reminders, and improve memorization of driving directions Therefore, it does support better memory, right? Not so fast There are two major flaws in the Madison Memory Study The first is that the company that sells it (Quincy Bioscience) sponsored the study This is known as a funding bias, which means the study results were most likely bias toward Quincy Bioscience’s interests The other flaw is the study was never published in a peer - review journal In a peer - review journal, experts in that particular field review the study for accuracy This was not the case for the Madison Memory Study, as a non - bias expert never critiqued it I am not the only one to pick up on those flaws of the Madison Memory Study In fact, the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) did as well, and even went as far as confronting Quincy Bioscience about it In the end, the FTC concluded that the Madison Memory Study failed to show an improvement in the treatment group (those taking Prevagen ) over the placebo group (those not taking it) [ 1 ] The FTC also went on to make the following statements regarding Prevagen : • There is not “competent and reliable scientific evidence” to support Prevagen’s claims • The claim that Prevagen is clinically proven is false But it doesn’t stop there Quincy Bioscience also faced a lawsuit alleging deceptive marketing practices [ 1 ] That is, based off the fact that Apoaequorin is unlikely to be absorbed to a significant enough degree and degrades into amino acids instead of improving memory New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman went on to say, “The marketing for Prevagen is a clear - cut fraud, from the label on the bottle to the ads airing across the country ” Federal Trade Commission 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 04 Why Women Should Not Take Prevagen Even if the Madison Memory Study proved that Prevagen improves memory, it would still be dangerous to take it One of the reasons is that it has never been tested for safety on humans, only on rodents [ 2 ] and Petri dishes [ 3 ] Being the sketchy, deceptive company they are, Quincy Bioscience labeled their testing on rodents and Petri dishes as “extensive safety testing ” Another reason Prevagen is dangerous comes from a scary finding that FDA inspectors discovered about Quincy Bioscience that was revealed in this warning letter They found that they had only reported two of more than 1 , 000 adverse effects users had reported from Prevagen - use These adverse effects included heart arrhythmias, chest pain, vertigo, tremors, seizures, strokes, and worsening of multiple sclerosis Scary Stuff, but not as scary as the dangers of using the next substance 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 05 Apoaequorin Citations [ 1 ] Van Laack , Riëtte , “District Court Dismisses FTC Lawsuit Regarding Marketers of Prevagen ; FTC Failed to Carry Burden,” FDA Law Blog , [ 2 ] Daniel Moran, Palma Ann Marone , Mark Bauter , Madhu Soni “Safety assessment of Apoaequorin , a protein preparation : Subchronic toxicity study in rats ” Food and Chemical Toxicity 57 , ( 2013 ) : 1 - 10 URL : https : //www sciencedirect com/science/article/pii/S 0278691513001567 ?via % 3 Dihub [ 3 ] Daniel Moran, Afua Tetteh , Richard Goodman, Mark Underwood "Safety assessment of the calcium - binding protein, apoaequorin , expressed by Escherichia coli ” Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology 69 , no 2 ( 2014 ) : 243 - 249 URL : https : //www sciencedirect com/science/article/pii/S 0273230014000671 ?via % 3 Dihub MODAFINIL 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 07 Modafinil In the intro, I mentioned that two of the substances in this guide are proven nootropics Modafinil is one of them, but there is no denying that it can be dangerous The dangers of modafinil - use are covered below, but for now, let’s discuss what exactly Modafinil is (no it’s not a limitless pill ) Modafinil is undoubtedly the most popular nootropic within the industry Why? It works extremely well and its effects are noticeable As a wakefulness - promoting agent (or stimulant), it’s most commonly used for treating narcolepsy Modafinil also goes by the brand name Provigil and is marketed as an alternative to amphetamines in some cases But as you will learn (if you keep reading), it is not the safe alternative to amphetamines that it some claim it to be Yes, Modafinil Is A Nootropic Unlike Prevagen , Modafinil has proven nootropic effects For women who experiment with nootropics, this can be enticing, especially since the effects of most other nootropics are not immediate or obvious According to a paper that reviewed all modafinil - related studies on healthy, non - sleep - deprived humans (most likely you), Modafinil was found to enhance executive function (a set of mental skills that help you get things done) and improve attention, learning, and memory in half the studies [ 1 ] However, there is also a significant amount of anecdotal evidence to support the nootropic effects of Modafinil Some people report that it heightens motivation, boost energy, and even makes you more talkative To demonstrate how powerful the focusing effects of Modafinil are (according to users), I’m going to share with you someone’s experience from Reddit It’s funny but also a bit scary at the same time This Is How Powerful Modafinil Is... This man (whose experience report I found on Reddit) had been doing Christmas shopping prior to taking Modafinil Even after finishing his Christmas shopping, he still had a lot of work left to do It was around 8 PM when he took Modafinil However, he wanted to let the effects of the Modafinil kick in first before he started working He decided to watch some YouTube videos while he waited That turned out to be a huge mistake Before he knew it, it was 1 AM ( 5 hours later) and he was still on YouTube watching videos about “diode pulsed solid state lasers ” The point is that Modafinil can have such a strong focusing effect that it becomes easy to get distracted by something irrelevant to your work for hours on end While Modafinil does have fewer side effects than amphetamines like Adderall [ 2 ] it still has dangers Those dangers are covered below 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 08 Why Women Should Never Take Modafinil First things first, although Modafinil is marketed as an alternative to amphetamines, it still works in a similar fashion More specifically, it increases dopamine in the nucleus accumbens [ 3 ] That mechanism is similar to other drugs that have potential for abuse, including cocaine and amphetamine Since Modafinil use can become addictive, withdrawal is also a possibility Of course, one time or occasional use of Modafinil is not going to send you into withdrawals However, you still have to be careful due to it’s addictive properties Withdrawal from Modafinil is typically characterized by the following symptoms : • Brain fog • Fatigue • Depression • Shortness of breath • Sleepiness In addition to potential addiction and withdrawal, Modafinil has other dangers, some of which occur as side effects from simply using it These side effects from general use can include : • Insomnia • Headaches • Skin rashes • Anxiety attacks Finally, there are no studies on the long - term effects of Modafinil - use There’s no way of knowing if using it now may come back to bite you later Your best bet is to stay away from this nootropic altogether 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 09 Modafinil Citations [ 1 ] R M Battleday , A K Brem “ Modafinil for cognitive neuroenhancement in healthy non - sleep - deprived subjects : A systematic review ” European Neuropsychopharmacology 25 , no 11 ( 2015 ) : 1865 - 1881 URL : https : // www sciencedirect com/science/article/pii/S 0924977 X 15002497 ?via % 3 Dihub [ 2 ] R Pigeau , P Naitoh , A Buguet , C McCann, J Baransk , M Taylor, M Thompson, I Mack “ Modafinil , d - amphetamine and placebo during 64 hours of sustained mental work ” Journal of Sleep Research 4 , no 4 ( 1995 ) URL : https : //onlinelibrary wiley com/doi/abs/ 10 1111 /j 1365 - 2869 1995 tb 00172 x?sid=nlm % 3 Apubmed& [ 3 ] Nora D Volkow , Joanna S Fowler, Jean Logan, David Alexoff , Wei Zhu, Frank Telang , Gene - Jack Wang “Effects of Modafinil on Dopamine and Dopamine Transporters in the Male Human Brain ” JAMA, ( 2009 ) URL : https : //jamanetwork com/journals/jama/fullarticle/ 183580 NICOTINE 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 11 Nicotine Nicotine is one of the most notorious drugs out there, mainly because of its presence in tobacco Similar to Caffeine, it is an alkaloid found in plants More specifically, nightshade - family plants such as tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplant contain Nicotine However, Nicotine comes in much smaller amounts than tobacco, which is also a member of the nightshade family These nightshade plants contain Nicotine as a protective mechanism against herbivorous bugs For these little bugs, Nicotine is a deadly poison For us, it is also akin to a poison, although its deadly effects are not as immediate When we ingest Nicotine, it can either act as a stimulant (in higher doses) or as a depressant (in smaller doses) [ 1 ] Some even say Nicotine can act as a nootropic Discover how below Smoke A Cigarette To Focus? It’s hard to admit, but Nicotine is technically a nootropic According to a study published by the Department of Psychology at the University of Reading (UK), Nicotine exerted two different nootropic effects on healthy test subjects by improving both their attention and immediate long - term memory [ 2 ] It’s important to note that these test subjects were not animals, they were humans like me and you As someone who has sadly used Nicotine, I have to agree with the findings of the University of Reading’s study Whether I vaped or chewed Nicotine gum, I would immediately feel sharper and had better recollection, despite the sometimes overwhelming head rush Of course, these nootropic effects of Nicotine are short - lived, and in my experience, I noticed it gives you a mini - crash afterward During this mini - crash, you physically feel drained and exhausted with little motivation to do anything In turn, you want to ingest more Nicotine to achieve the previous effects This is why I believe there is no such thing as using it in moderation, regardless of your intentions Overall, using Nicotine for nootropic purposes is counterproductive, even with a small dose Not to mention, the dangers of Nicotine (which you will find below) make it not worth trying even once, especially for women Women: Beware of Nicotine Many of Nicotine’s dangers depend on the delivery system you are using For example, using any tobacco products as a delivery system is particularly dangerous With regard to cigarettes, you are not just inhaling Nicotine, but also thousands of other harmful chemicals, of which, over 70 are known to cause cancer [ 3 ] Dip not only contains more Nicotine than cigarettes, but it also contains 30 other chemicals that are linked to cancer [ 4 ] But let's focus on the dangers of nicotine by itself, without the added dangers of a particular delivery system 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 12 One obvious danger of Nicotine is that it is addictive In fact, it might just be the most addictive substance mentioned in this guide To put into perspective how addictive Nicotine can be, an orgasm from sex raises your dopamine level approximately 200 units [ 5 ] Nicotine, on the other hand, raises your dopamine between 100 and 225 units [ 6 ] , making it comparable to sex in terms of pleasure Of course, most people are not addicted to sex Also, after using Nicotine over time, it will not be as pleasurable as when you first used it Another danger of Nicotine is that it’s accessible (or easy to get) You can find it at essentially every gas station or mini - mart Unlike sex, you can do it whenever you want and wherever you want to While your initial intention to use Nicotine may be to enhance cognition, your intention will soon be to get a head rush or relieve stress After that stage, you will use Nicotine just to feel normal A Nicotine addiction that starts with gum or vaping could even lead you to using tobacco products, which are known to cause cancer For women, an addiction to Nicotine is especially dangerous because it tends to affect them more than men There are a few reasons behind this For one, a woman’s body is faster at processing Nicotine than a man’s body due to higher levels of the sex hormone estrogen [ 7 ] Since this is the case, the perceived positive effects of having a cigarette wear off faster for a woman, thus creating a shorter time window for them in between smoking, vaping, etc Secondly, women tend to use Nicotine when they are stressed [ 8 ] as opposed to men who tend to use it when they are content Since women tend to be more stressed than content throughout the day, you can see how it would be tough for a woman addicted to Nicotine to give it up Regardless of gender, there are more inherent dangers to Nicotine itself aside from addiction To demonstrate this, Indian researchers at the Institute of Indian Medicine searched the databases of Medline and PubMed for “All the animal and human studies investigating only the role of nicotine ” Their review found that Nicotine - use increases the risk of cardiovascular, respiratory, and gastrointestinal disorders It also decreases immune response, negatively effects reproductive health, and leads to cancer through cell proliferation, oxidative stress, apoptosis, and DNA mutation [ 9 ] Yikes ! In my experience, one of the biggest dangers of nicotine - use was how it induced anxiety This was especially troubling when I was driving since I would sometimes have to pullover on the shoulder of the road because of Nicotine - induced anxiety Another danger that was quite apparent to me was a rise in blood pressure I specifically remember (during my days of Nicotine - use) that sometimes if I stood up too fast I would get a temporary sense of lightheadedness Sometimes it would be a double whammy, as the lightheadedness would then send me into an anxiety attack Trust me, Nicotine is not worth it, not even once and not even in a small dosage as a nootropic The next substance is not worth it either 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 13 Nicotine Citations [ 1 ] “Nicotine and Tobacco Products ” Ochsner https : // www ochsner org/health - resources/tobacco - free - living - the - legacy/tobacco - free - resources/nicotine - and - tobacco - products [ 2 ] Warburton , DM “Nicotine as a cognitive enhancer ” Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry, ( 1992 ) url : https : //www ncbi nlm nih gov/m/pubmed/ 1579636 / [ 3 ] Government of Canada Carcinogens in Tobacco Smoke [ 4 ] The National Cancer Institute The Dangers of Dip [ 5 ] Rawson , Richard “Meth and the Brain ” Frontline February 14 , 2006 https : //www pbs org/wgbh/pages/frontline/meth/body/methbrainnoflash html [ 6 ] Rawson , Richard “Effects of Drugs on Dopamine Levels ” February 14 2006 online image Frontline https : //www pbs org/wgbh/pages/frontline/meth/body/methbrainnoflash html [ 7 ] Benowitz , Neal L , Christina N Lessov - Schlaggar , Gary E Swan, Peyton Jacob III “Female sex and oral contraceptive use accelerate nicotine metabolism ” Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics 79 , no 5 ( 2006 ) : 480 - 488 doi : 10 1016 /j clpt 2006 01 008 [ 8 ] Torres , Oscar V and Laura E O’Dell “Stress is a principal factor that promotes tobacco use in females ” Progress in Neuro - Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry 65 , ( 2016 ) : 260 - 268 url : https : //www sciencedirect com/science/article/pii/S 0278584615000718 ?via % 3 Dihub [ 9 ] Mishra A, Chaturvedi P, Datta S, Sinukumar S, Joshi P, Garg A “Harmful effects of nicotine ” Indian Journal of Medical and Paediatric Oncology 36 , no 1 ( 2015 ) : 24 - 31 url : http : // www ijmpo org/article asp?issn= 0971 - 5851 ; year= 2015 ; volume= 36 ; issue= 1 ; spage= 24 ; epage= 31 ; aulast=Mishra KRATOM 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 15 Kratom Kratom is a hybrid In small doses it acts like a stimulant, but in larger doses, it’s akin to an opioid Regardless, it should not be mistaken as a nootropic As you will learn below, in no way, shape, or form does it provide cognitive enhancement Despite being a heavily discussed substance among many nootropic users, here is what Kratom really is : Kratom is a tree (also known as Mitragyna Speciosa ) that is prevalent in parts of Southeast Asia In the United States, its leaves are usually sold in powdered form (as a herbal product) at smoke shops and gas stations The reason being that the Kratom tree’s leaves contain about 40 alkaloids in which two of them ( Mitragynine & 7 - hydroxymitragynine) are thought to have psychoactive effects [ 1 ] While there are few people who will overtly refer to Kratom as a nootropic, it is still a common topic on blogs, subreddits , and Facebook groups within the nootropic community That being said, it is easy to mistake Kratom as a nootropic However, it’s actually more of a recreational drug This will become evident to you after reading the next few paragraphs My Unexpected Experience With Kratom Most of Kratom’s effects are similar to those of recreational drugs Many people use it as a way to get “high ” Trust me, I know from experience One of the first times I ever took Kratom was back in high school (this was years ago by the way) I dosed it perfectly, according to several dosage charts I found online (like this one ), and then proceeded to walk into school for the start of class that day As I started my day, the nasty taste of Kratom was still stuck in my mouth (along with green powder in between my teeth) As I got to homeroom and sat in my seat, I really began to feel the effects It was overwhelming, so much so that I felt intense waves of anxiety that disabled me from focusing on my work By the time the anxiety and stimulatory effects had passed, I began to feel tired, further diminishing my ability to focus In fact, I became so tired that I was falling in and out of sleep during class By that time, it was only the second period of the eight - period day Eventually, I returned to a baseline level ; however, one thing was certain : Kratom was counterproductive for not only focus, but also productivity Despite that experience, I would go onto to take Kratom numerous times after that, sometimes in smaller dosages and sometimes in larger dosages Every time, the initial stimulatory effects would always lead to a crash characterized by extreme tiredness The only time I ever use it anymore is during my fantasy football league’s draft ritual, and trust me, we don’t take it to be productive 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 16 Kratom : It’s Not A Nootropic As mentioned, Kratom acts as a stimulant when taken in smaller doses In fact, many article posts say a small dose is best for someone trying to achieve nootropic effects However, as we have learned, the effects of a smaller dosage do not actually enhance cognition Instead, the effects of a small dose are increased energy/motivation and improved mood, similar to a strong cup of coffee but even stronger In fact, before gaining popularity in the western world, Kratom was used by farmers in Southeast Asia for those very effects [ 2 ] But compared to an office job the typical American works nowadays, these farmer’s jobs were not nearly as cognitively demanding Instead, they used Kratom more so for physical, not cognitive, enhancement In other words, they knew it did not have cognitive - enhancing effects In larger doses, Kratom acts more like an opioid that’s typically used for chronic - pain management (analgesia) Some of the other effects of large doses of Kratom include euphoria, drowsiness, a dreamlike mental state, and cough suppression However, reducing the symptoms of opioid withdrawal is the best - known effect of taking a larger dose of Kratom This is why many ex - Heroin addicts credit Kratom for helping them get them clean They swear by Kratom , claiming it was what got them through the intense withdrawal symptoms Just check out this video by Vice that shows how Kratom helped a 6 - year Heroin addict kick the addiction in under a month With regard to Heroin users trying to get clean, Kratom can indeed do wonders However, in the scenario of someone who is just looking to enhance his or her cognition, it should be avoided That is, due to the dangers of Kratom discussed below The Dangers of Kratom Kratom is yet another substance within this guide that has addictive properties and can result in withdrawal symptoms Other than the next substance, Kratom’s withdrawals are the most significant These withdrawals are so bad that most online sources do not recommend going the cold - turkey route (complete cessation) Instead, they recommend weaning off it by lowering your dosage by 10 % every month [ 3 ] Yes, a month Of course, the severity of Kratom withdrawal depends on various factors, including how long you used it and the dosages taken Nevertheless, it is nothing you want to go through The following are just some of the effects of Kratom withdrawal (which typically lasts 7 - 10 days) : insomnia, hot flashes, fever, diarrhea, nervousness, hostility, and sadness Even if you are not withdrawing off Kratom , but simply using it on a regular basis, it still has the potential to cause psychotic symptoms, such as mental confusion, delusion, and hallucinations [ 4 ] According to multiple published case reports, it can even cause seizures, regardless of the size of the dosage [ 5 ] Another factor that makes Kratom dangerous is its legal status It’s banned in some states but not in others In fact, a single county in Florida (Sarasota) has banned Kratom (while it is legal in the rest of a state) Individual towns in Illinois (Jerseyville) and California (San Diego) have also banned Kratom (although you would be able to possess it everywhere else in those states) [ 6 ] The following states are where you could be fined, penalized, or even sentenced to jail time if caught in possession of Kratom [ 6 ] : • Alabama • Arkansas • Wisconsin • Tennessee • Vermont • Indiana • New Hampshire (if you are under 18 ) • Illinois (if you are under 18 ) • Banned for members of the US Armed Forces as well 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 17 Kratom is not a nootropic As mentioned, it is more of a recreational drug or a tool for opioid addicts to get clean If you want some of the effects that a small dosage of Kratom can provide (but way less intense), drink a tall cup of coffee in the morning All in all, make sure to stay as far away from Kratom as possible, and same is equally true for the next substance ... 5 Nootropics Women Should Never Take / 18 Kratom Citations [ 1 ] European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction Kratom ( Mitragyna speciosa ) drug profile [ 2 ] Suwanlert , Somsong “A study of kratom eaters in Thailand ” Bulletin on Narcotics 27 , no 3 ( 1975 ) : 21 - 27 url : https : //www google com/amp/s/www researchgate net/publication/ 22112751 _A_study_of_kratom_e aters_in_Thailand/amp [ 3 ] PsychedSubstance “Why I Stopped Taking Kratom ” January 11 2018 online video YouTube https : //youtu be/HedEeSDzNSY [ 4 ] Eduardo Cinosi , Giovanni Martinotti , Ornella Corazza , et al “Following ‘the Roots’ of Kratom ( Mitragyna speciosa ) ” Biomed Res Int , ( 2015 ) doi : 10 1155 / 2015 / 968786 [ 5 ] Bellamy , Josh, “ Kratom : another dangerous ‘natural’ remedy ” Science - Based Medicine, [ 6 ] “Is Kratom Legal in USA 2019 ? The Legality of Kratom ” Endonurse January 5 , 2019 url : http : //www endonurse com/is - kratom - legal/ PHENIBUT