I have been using your Brain Stack 2.0 for a couple months now. I swapped the Coke Zero out for phenylalanine (600mg) and coffee and the effect is roughly the same. I find the Coke Zero hits faster, but my version lasts longer and is more even (N=1).
I'll echo your statement about modafinil and burning synapses. Moda is definitely the best of the classic prescription "smart drugs" and far superior to eg. Adderal, but it's not for every day usage and def feels like overclocking your brain. It also affects sleep quality, and caffeine significantly enhances it, so take early in the day and watch the coffee intake.
I love coffee (black) and hot tea (with lots of lemon), but have had to change to decaf in both and cut back due to urinary issues from age. I just added Berberine twice a week. Does that affect heart rate? All of a sudden my heart rate is 57, down from 67.
Some always talk about the ALpha-GPC or Citicoline, but both forms here are expensive. I am, really really expensive. And I often recommend taking the stack with food, so... I guess a positive uninteded consequence hehe.
I pay $10 for 500gm of powder = $20kg. 1 level tablespoon pid. If you can take the soy its cheap. Think outside the box: food, cooking or restaurant supply. If you can, buy in bulk with others and cut costs. These guys have sunflower & soy in powder or liquid and soy NGMO (transgenic) also... https://www.adicel.com.br/lecitinas-e-emulsificantes
Oh I thought I needed a different form of it. That is extremely affordable, I can get 2 pounds for very cheap. Thank you !!!! For comparison the non-soy (mostly sunflower, imported) bottles go for 8x that price. EACH.
Brain stack has me laughing more then trying to realize it .happy to live it through your writing . Maybe I’ll try it some day . But comes across as having serious valley potential . Does it come with cravings too?
Just try it a couple times to see how your brain responds. At least with my friends, myself and people who sent me messages on the effects of the Brain Stack, no, no craving.
The valleys experienced during the brain stack are somewhat still above the normal baseline, the peaks are when you go into turbo mode. The valleys on the Ultra+ are way above the baseline, you still produce a lot. It is quite remarkable.
If one day I have the necessary tools I will measure everything and see exactly what the hell is going on under the hood lol. I can only infer by the scattared research.
Maybe you could post all 4 stacks at once: 2 brain, 1 covid and 1 recovery. Also, I know it might not help everyone but if you have sources for some of supplements it could be useful. Great stuff as always.
The 2 brain stacks are here, the 2.1 and the 2.0. Covid and recovery are the same but right now ? It is an undisputable mess, it is one of the reasons I didn't write an update, and simplified article.
It is extremely unique not only to each person, but to each situation, even changes from person to person. There is just a tsunami of confounders now, too many subsequential infections within months in some people.
Sources for some supplements you meant vendors/sellers ? I buy almost every single one locally (Brazil), whenever someone asks me, I advise the same, read the reviews online and buy what you are confortable with. I don't have preferred brands, even here I change producers all the time just to test.
Not a mistake, since I say "Monster Energy Drink already has Niacin added, probably not the best form, same effects".
I want to read the paper itself, but it is paywalled, I will try to see if I can find a way around it, but it is legit, it talks about a recent discovered metabolite created when there is excess niacin it can induce endothelial inflammation.
If I'm reading the study correctly, the implication is that *any* NAD booster, not just niacin, may contribute to what it calls "excess NAD." "Excess NAD," in turn, contributes to increased levels of 2PY and 4PY, which is what was found to be associated with a higher risk of heart disease. So presumably, if "excess NAD" is the issue, it follow that NR, NMN and the other NAD boosters are also implicated. Further, the most significant "boosters" of NAD are things like exercise, being young, etc. What to make of this? It seems contrary to everything I've seen, indicating that NAD *deficiencies* are a primary cause of aging and age-related diseases.
Yes, excess niacin, flooding the NAD Pool above a certain threshold (per the study) would lead to the increase of the two PY, with 4PY being the "most problematic one", higher levels slightly increase the chances of CVD, but here is always in the context of supplementation and supplemented foods.
After spending a couple hours delving into this, you sent me into a rabbit role LOL, so as usual, the paper has caveats, there is a lot more to it, yet the gene responsible for this plays a centra role on
*check notes
Kynurenine Pathway
The only question remaining is, how much of excess NAD people truly have now, when SARS-CoV-2 and its Spike Protein basically drains it, to the point people complain to me for 2 to 3 weeks after infection. Well, I will now certainly look deeper into this. As usual, it is always more complex than we think =P. Thank you for sharing the entire paper btw.
I think that instant release flush nicotinic acid is the best form of B3. I like the flush although it goes away if you take it regularly. The forms that they found problems with were two kinds of nicotinomide/niacinanide called N1-methyl-2-pyridone-5-carboxamide (2PY) and N1-methyl-4-pyridone-3-carboxamide (4PY).
In the comments on another one of your posts you had written something like that everything in your stack should taste neutral or good (sorry; I don't remember your precise wording, nor can I find your post).
Anyway, I have found that N-acetyl-L-cystein tastes bad (for me anyway). Everything else you had mentioned indeed tastes good (or has no taste).
Now I tried two different brands, and hence don't think that my N-acetyl-L-cystein had spoiled. Is N-acetyl-L-cystein an exception to a general rule?
N Acetyl Cysteine and Piracetam are both the exception if you take them in powder form, which has a fast absorption but they get direct contact with your taste buds. NAC only spoils in powder form if molds grow in it, otherwise "spoiled" NAC become diNAC, one of if not the world most powerful clot bursting compound.
NAC is a sulfur-donor amino acid, so it can both smell and taste bad.
Finally gunna try this and see how much it helps me with my CAD work I’m doing for starting my business. Found a research chem site that has the pyracetam and Flmodafinil may need to get both for research lol
JP I know you mentioned nicotine before, I just read a few papers on the interruption of the Aec2 receptor. Do you know how long, what dose to use nicotine? What about totally blocking this receptor somehow?
I need to read the papers, each person especially with Long Covid uses a different dosage, a few papers I read they used the minimal dosage (7.5 mg per day), I would say start there, I have written about Nicotine before and the benefits often come from "chronic" usage, meaning long term, above weeks, a few months.
Many people experience improvements in their symptoms on the first few days though, which is great.
You can't and you SHOULD NOT totally block ACE2, just down-regulate it, many of the supplements I recommend do this effect.
According cocacola europe it has. I will check label next time because honestly I don't remember it is mentioned anywhere. Very strange. Also I remember in the 90s this was a big topic and I remember that time they have removed it from everywhere.
In preparation my girlfriend is currently tapering off of SSRI (Seraltrine 50mg; now cut to 25mg daily, after that to 0). I don't want to risk SSRI during pregnancy because of one article i read on your substack about that very topic. So I wanted to help her get off of it.
I've given her a daily prescription of:
- NAC 3g / day; split in 2 doses during the day
- Glycine 3g / day; split in 2 doses during the day, one part on empty stomach
- Taurine 3g / day; biggest dose before bed
- Magnesium 720mg / day; before bed
- Vitamine D
- Fishoil omega 3
Going great so far. Hardly any side-effects. Thought you might find that interesting. Tapering period will be about a month. After that I'll cut back the supplements.
Add Thiamine and Choline to that, don't cut back on these during pregnancy and breastfeeding, add the B9 and B12. You are going to have a smart baby 😎 Glad it is working for you.
Will look into adding those, appreciate the feedback. I will probably lower the dose on some of the ones i mentioned purely out of financial reasons. Otherwise might run a bit expensive month-to-month, but i'll look into it.
I've bought you a 'nice' coffee ;) as a tip for all the work you do.
Thank you, you didn't need to but I do appreciate it. And I have been there, multiple times some years ago, when I even counted my pills had to really pace myself.
Prioritize the B vitamins (1,9,12) and Choline during the period, for the most part these are the best "long-term investments" on babies health, if you have to choose, thiamine and choline.
Plastered all over the text, and the older article, and in almost every single neurological related article I have written. Enhanced cognition and faster recovery from, well, multiple conditions.
If you knew how much brain damage I had you would be surprise that I can even think, let alone write. Partially why I am better (cognitively-wise) now than years ago is exactly what is described in both brain stacks.
Everyone is free to do whatever they want, I am here to help the outlier, that like me was sentenced to being a moribund and a cripple for life because "the science is settled, the doctors said". If each one of my articles helps one people, especially outliers, that is a win to me.
Otherwise I very much enjoy your researching and connecting dots in multiple registers.
People in general are so much exposed to expecting a "pill" to remedy all ails, that its never enough to emphasize what is for casual purposes and what condition is where there is no other means than some synthetic stuff. (I am a pharmacist btw)
I don't think I openly criticize in an article the "pill solution" behavior, but in many comments I replied in a similar veneer. Pill won't cure you, supplements in a similar manner are there to supplement and accelerate the journey into "health".
There are only two drugs I openly recommend, one is Metformin (and now I suggest cycling too), and Modafinil, but echoing the article, Modafinil is not for everyone and most are not even up to the hurdle of getting it, but I do think it can have a very positive effect in many people.
I am biased on "hard cases" because for the most part I am always being messaged and e-mailed by people with complex cases, so I guess one should take that into consideration too. It skews my perspective, inevitably.
If you have Modafinil and doesn't use it, you can send me LOL. =P
Email me an address and I’ll mail some in carbon paper.
I have been using your Brain Stack 2.0 for a couple months now. I swapped the Coke Zero out for phenylalanine (600mg) and coffee and the effect is roughly the same. I find the Coke Zero hits faster, but my version lasts longer and is more even (N=1).
I'll echo your statement about modafinil and burning synapses. Moda is definitely the best of the classic prescription "smart drugs" and far superior to eg. Adderal, but it's not for every day usage and def feels like overclocking your brain. It also affects sleep quality, and caffeine significantly enhances it, so take early in the day and watch the coffee intake.
So adding phenylalanine works too, glad to know. Your second comment on creatine, yes I also suggest adding creatine for overall health benefits 🧐
To be honest I thrive on the N=1 😆 I am weird. Thanks for sharing 🫡
I should mention in my modified Brain Stack 2.0 I also include Creatine: 5g in morning and sometimes another 5g in afternoon.
Whooo, law! Just thinking about all that caffeine makes my arrhythmia kick in!
Am I the only person that the blood pressure remains unchanged with all the caffeine ?
Funny part I don't even like coffee lol
I love coffee (black) and hot tea (with lots of lemon), but have had to change to decaf in both and cut back due to urinary issues from age. I just added Berberine twice a week. Does that affect heart rate? All of a sudden my heart rate is 57, down from 67.
Berberine can in fact lower your heart rate a little bit yes, not in everyone, but it can, it is often a positive effect on most people.
I think I am reaching that age lol, or I just need to give my kidneys a break, they been working extra hard for years and years now.
Professor - Glucose + choline + (assist) choline acetyltransferase = acetyl coenzyme A = Acetylcholine. Boost? 600-1200mg alpha-GPC (L-alpha-glycerylphosphorylcholine), citicoline (CDP-choline), or just a snack... https://youtu.be/M1b2v_Lls3A?
Some always talk about the ALpha-GPC or Citicoline, but both forms here are expensive. I am, really really expensive. And I often recommend taking the stack with food, so... I guess a positive uninteded consequence hehe.
Professor - is Lecithin expensive? Has all the substrates you need, and is a fountain of youth.
Lecithin made out of any other thing besides soy = incredibly expensive, usually imported.
The ones made out of soy (soy here has an absurd amount of pesticides sprayed on them) - affordable
I may have to look into other sources and see if the places I buy supplements make it themselves.
I pay $10 for 500gm of powder = $20kg. 1 level tablespoon pid. If you can take the soy its cheap. Think outside the box: food, cooking or restaurant supply. If you can, buy in bulk with others and cut costs. These guys have sunflower & soy in powder or liquid and soy NGMO (transgenic) also... https://www.adicel.com.br/lecitinas-e-emulsificantes
Oh I thought I needed a different form of it. That is extremely affordable, I can get 2 pounds for very cheap. Thank you !!!! For comparison the non-soy (mostly sunflower, imported) bottles go for 8x that price. EACH.
Brain stack has me laughing more then trying to realize it .happy to live it through your writing . Maybe I’ll try it some day . But comes across as having serious valley potential . Does it come with cravings too?
Just try it a couple times to see how your brain responds. At least with my friends, myself and people who sent me messages on the effects of the Brain Stack, no, no craving.
The valleys experienced during the brain stack are somewhat still above the normal baseline, the peaks are when you go into turbo mode. The valleys on the Ultra+ are way above the baseline, you still produce a lot. It is quite remarkable.
If one day I have the necessary tools I will measure everything and see exactly what the hell is going on under the hood lol. I can only infer by the scattared research.
Maybe you could post all 4 stacks at once: 2 brain, 1 covid and 1 recovery. Also, I know it might not help everyone but if you have sources for some of supplements it could be useful. Great stuff as always.
The 2 brain stacks are here, the 2.1 and the 2.0. Covid and recovery are the same but right now ? It is an undisputable mess, it is one of the reasons I didn't write an update, and simplified article.
It is extremely unique not only to each person, but to each situation, even changes from person to person. There is just a tsunami of confounders now, too many subsequential infections within months in some people.
Sources for some supplements you meant vendors/sellers ? I buy almost every single one locally (Brazil), whenever someone asks me, I advise the same, read the reviews online and buy what you are confortable with. I don't have preferred brands, even here I change producers all the time just to test.
You know it’s inevitable so I’ll just get it out of the way.
Adderall + monster + brain stack. When is this field test happening? From experience, you may be able to hear your synapses sizzling 🥵 😆
Perhaps the closest to NZT? (limitless ref) as meth does appear to age you like in the movie 😬
Personal exp. Best to use conservative doses of addi with the brain attack, 5mg- 10mg. Anything higher for a few days on will def fry your brain.
Your stack says 0 mg of Niacin. Was that a typo? Also, what do you make of this new study claiming "too much" niacin causes heart disease? https://www.upi.com/Health_News/2024/02/19/study-finds-link-between-too-much-niacin-intake-heart-disease/6791708366223/?fbclid=IwAR1lwbPs1YE7EOffR87Mz_s-o-twIPbP5fDVIF88w2chfMA6GXjPy-0tmdA
Not a mistake, since I say "Monster Energy Drink already has Niacin added, probably not the best form, same effects".
I want to read the paper itself, but it is paywalled, I will try to see if I can find a way around it, but it is legit, it talks about a recent discovered metabolite created when there is excess niacin it can induce endothelial inflammation.
Thank you, if you want to delete the link I already got the article, reading it now, I will get back to you soon.
Thank you. Look forward to your thoughts.
If I'm reading the study correctly, the implication is that *any* NAD booster, not just niacin, may contribute to what it calls "excess NAD." "Excess NAD," in turn, contributes to increased levels of 2PY and 4PY, which is what was found to be associated with a higher risk of heart disease. So presumably, if "excess NAD" is the issue, it follow that NR, NMN and the other NAD boosters are also implicated. Further, the most significant "boosters" of NAD are things like exercise, being young, etc. What to make of this? It seems contrary to everything I've seen, indicating that NAD *deficiencies* are a primary cause of aging and age-related diseases.
Yes, excess niacin, flooding the NAD Pool above a certain threshold (per the study) would lead to the increase of the two PY, with 4PY being the "most problematic one", higher levels slightly increase the chances of CVD, but here is always in the context of supplementation and supplemented foods.
After spending a couple hours delving into this, you sent me into a rabbit role LOL, so as usual, the paper has caveats, there is a lot more to it, yet the gene responsible for this plays a centra role on
*check notes
Kynurenine Pathway
The only question remaining is, how much of excess NAD people truly have now, when SARS-CoV-2 and its Spike Protein basically drains it, to the point people complain to me for 2 to 3 weeks after infection. Well, I will now certainly look deeper into this. As usual, it is always more complex than we think =P. Thank you for sharing the entire paper btw.
I think that instant release flush nicotinic acid is the best form of B3. I like the flush although it goes away if you take it regularly. The forms that they found problems with were two kinds of nicotinomide/niacinanide called N1-methyl-2-pyridone-5-carboxamide (2PY) and N1-methyl-4-pyridone-3-carboxamide (4PY).
*niacinamide
In the comments on another one of your posts you had written something like that everything in your stack should taste neutral or good (sorry; I don't remember your precise wording, nor can I find your post).
Anyway, I have found that N-acetyl-L-cystein tastes bad (for me anyway). Everything else you had mentioned indeed tastes good (or has no taste).
Now I tried two different brands, and hence don't think that my N-acetyl-L-cystein had spoiled. Is N-acetyl-L-cystein an exception to a general rule?
N Acetyl Cysteine and Piracetam are both the exception if you take them in powder form, which has a fast absorption but they get direct contact with your taste buds. NAC only spoils in powder form if molds grow in it, otherwise "spoiled" NAC become diNAC, one of if not the world most powerful clot bursting compound.
NAC is a sulfur-donor amino acid, so it can both smell and taste bad.
Finally gunna try this and see how much it helps me with my CAD work I’m doing for starting my business. Found a research chem site that has the pyracetam and Flmodafinil may need to get both for research lol
I hope it works as well for you as it did to others. Best of luck on your new business 🙏🏻
AMEX not supported?
I don't know. Again they don't tell you anything, especially the issuing bank.
Remember, I am Brazilian, that probably is one of the reasons even though everything goes through American companies lol.
Will go the coffee route, huge appreciation for your intellect.
JP I know you mentioned nicotine before, I just read a few papers on the interruption of the Aec2 receptor. Do you know how long, what dose to use nicotine? What about totally blocking this receptor somehow?
I need to read the papers, each person especially with Long Covid uses a different dosage, a few papers I read they used the minimal dosage (7.5 mg per day), I would say start there, I have written about Nicotine before and the benefits often come from "chronic" usage, meaning long term, above weeks, a few months.
Many people experience improvements in their symptoms on the first few days though, which is great.
You can't and you SHOULD NOT totally block ACE2, just down-regulate it, many of the supplements I recommend do this effect.
Does coke has caffeine in Europe? I don't think so.
Coke Zero has caffeine in most countries but I wouldn't know in Europe. Maybe less quantity than other countries perhaps.
According cocacola europe it has. I will check label next time because honestly I don't remember it is mentioned anywhere. Very strange. Also I remember in the 90s this was a big topic and I remember that time they have removed it from everywhere.
Hi Moriarty,
Fascinating stuff.
I was wondering, what do you recommend to take during pregnancy? You ever consider doing a "pregnancy stack"?
B9, B12, Choline, some vitamin C, a common multivitamin.
Pregnancy is too delicate, babies are too sensitive to chemical changes in your body. The least you do the better to me.
Thanks for the response!
In preparation my girlfriend is currently tapering off of SSRI (Seraltrine 50mg; now cut to 25mg daily, after that to 0). I don't want to risk SSRI during pregnancy because of one article i read on your substack about that very topic. So I wanted to help her get off of it.
I've given her a daily prescription of:
- NAC 3g / day; split in 2 doses during the day
- Glycine 3g / day; split in 2 doses during the day, one part on empty stomach
- Taurine 3g / day; biggest dose before bed
- Magnesium 720mg / day; before bed
- Vitamine D
- Fishoil omega 3
Going great so far. Hardly any side-effects. Thought you might find that interesting. Tapering period will be about a month. After that I'll cut back the supplements.
Add Thiamine and Choline to that, don't cut back on these during pregnancy and breastfeeding, add the B9 and B12. You are going to have a smart baby 😎 Glad it is working for you.
Will look into adding those, appreciate the feedback. I will probably lower the dose on some of the ones i mentioned purely out of financial reasons. Otherwise might run a bit expensive month-to-month, but i'll look into it.
I've bought you a 'nice' coffee ;) as a tip for all the work you do.
Thank you, you didn't need to but I do appreciate it. And I have been there, multiple times some years ago, when I even counted my pills had to really pace myself.
Prioritize the B vitamins (1,9,12) and Choline during the period, for the most part these are the best "long-term investments" on babies health, if you have to choose, thiamine and choline.
Hope your baby is born healthy and super smart =D
I liked the excercise and periodic fasting better than the 54g of sugar/can + artificial "high" experiment treatment.
Interesting. But ... I trust ancient and well tried and tested options better.
Why should one start to experiment so anyway?
Plastered all over the text, and the older article, and in almost every single neurological related article I have written. Enhanced cognition and faster recovery from, well, multiple conditions.
If you knew how much brain damage I had you would be surprise that I can even think, let alone write. Partially why I am better (cognitively-wise) now than years ago is exactly what is described in both brain stacks.
Everyone is free to do whatever they want, I am here to help the outlier, that like me was sentenced to being a moribund and a cripple for life because "the science is settled, the doctors said". If each one of my articles helps one people, especially outliers, that is a win to me.
I am glad it helped.
Otherwise I very much enjoy your researching and connecting dots in multiple registers.
People in general are so much exposed to expecting a "pill" to remedy all ails, that its never enough to emphasize what is for casual purposes and what condition is where there is no other means than some synthetic stuff. (I am a pharmacist btw)
I don't think I openly criticize in an article the "pill solution" behavior, but in many comments I replied in a similar veneer. Pill won't cure you, supplements in a similar manner are there to supplement and accelerate the journey into "health".
There are only two drugs I openly recommend, one is Metformin (and now I suggest cycling too), and Modafinil, but echoing the article, Modafinil is not for everyone and most are not even up to the hurdle of getting it, but I do think it can have a very positive effect in many people.
I am biased on "hard cases" because for the most part I am always being messaged and e-mailed by people with complex cases, so I guess one should take that into consideration too. It skews my perspective, inevitably.
Glad you enjoy the articles and thank you.
All the best.
Would love to know your history.