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Smart Drugs & Nutrients:

How to Improve Your Memory and Increase Your Intelligence Using the Latest Discoveries In Neuroscience

VOLUME 1 in the Smart Drugs Series

by Ward Dean, M.D. & John Morgenthaler
$12.95 - 224 pages, softcover (Out of Stock)

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Sec 5: Other Cognitive Enhancers

Acetyl­L-Carnitine (ALC) | Caffeine | Centrophenoxine (Lucidril) | Choline & Lecithin | AL721 (Egg Lecithin) | DHEA | DMAE | Gerovital (GH­3) | Ginkgo Biloba: A Nootropic Herb? | Ginseng | Hydergine | Idebenone | Phenytoin (Dilantin) | Propranolol Hydrochloride (Inderal) | Thyroid Hormone | Vasopressin (Diapid) | Vincamine | Vitamins | Xanthinol Nicotinate

Vitamins

Vitamins are substances that are essential to life. All of the biochemical reactions in our bodies rely on vitamins in some way. Some vitamins delay aging‑related intelligence decline and improve intelligence and reaction time. We include in this section a few examples of the relationship between vitamins and intelligence. For more information, please refer to the resources we list in Appendix E (see page 185). Sources for vitamins are listed in Appendix A (see page 165).

A survey of 37,875 Americans found that 80% of the subjects consumed less than the Recommended Daily Allowances (RDAs) of at least one vitamin each day (Pao, 1981).

Choline, in all its different forms, is often referred to as a vitamin. We have accorded choline its own section in this book due to its value as an intelligence-enhancing and memory-enhanc­ing agent.

Antioxidants

Many of the vitamins and some of the other substances in this book, such as Hydergine, are antioxidants. This means that they prevent uncontrolled oxidization of molecules in our bodies. Uncontrolled oxidization is caused by free radicals that are generated by ultra‑violet rays from the sun, certain foods that we eat, cigarettes and other drugs, and even natural biological processes. Oxidization can create a number of different problems in our brains and nervous systems.

One example is alcohol-induced oxidization. Alcoholics often have wrinkles and leathery skin caused by the oxidization of collagen and other important molecules in the skin. Likewise, alcoholics are prone to Korsakoff's syndrome, a condition similar to senility. Korsakoff's is caused by overindulgence in alcohol and a lack of vitamin B-1, a powerful antioxidant.

For excellent treatments of the subject of antioxidants and aging, see Pearson and Shaw's Life Extension, Linus Pauling's How to Live Longer and Feel Better, Sheldon Saul Hendler's Complete Guide To Anti‑Aging Nutrients, and Lord Lee-Benner's Physician's Guide to Free Radicals, Immuni­ty, and Aging listed in the references below and reviewed in Appendix E on page 185.

B Vitamins

B vitamins are necessary for the health of your nervous system, for proper mental functioning, and many other processes. Because of their many uses, we have included individual descriptions of five B vitamins. However, the B vitamins are an interlocking complex. Thus, even if you are most interested in the role that one of them plays, you should be sure that you are getting others in the complex by including a B-complex, or a multiple with B-complex, in your daily regimen.

B vitamins exert a great influence on fine motor control. One double-blind placebo-controlled study found that normal, healthy volunteers who were experienced marksmen improved their aim significantly by taking a vitamin B formulation containing vitamins B-1, B-6, and B-12. (Bonke, 1986).

Improvement in shooting accuracy in normal, healthy subjects given a B vitamin complex with B‑1, B‑6, and B‑12 (EMD) versus a placebo. "W" marks a competition day. (Redrawn from Bonke, 1986.)

B vitamins, like vitamin C, are water soluble in your body. This means that they are not stored in your fat cells. If you take them, divide the dose into three or four parts and take them with each meal.

Vitamin B-1

B-1, or thiamine, is a powerful antioxidant. As mentioned previously, B-1 can protect your nerve tissues against the oxidizing effects of alcohol, but it also protects against many other oxidizing agents. Many of the studies we cite in this book refer to the treatment of organic brain syndrome, much of which is caused by long‑term alcohol abuse.

Dosage: 50mg-1000mg per day. Best taken in 3 or 4 divided doses with meals.

Vitamin B-3 (Niacin)

Niacin, also called vitamin B-3, has many interesting health benefits including memory enhancement. In one study, 141.7mg of niacin three times per day improved memory in both young and middle-aged normal, healthy subjects by 10-40% (Loriaux, 1985). The study was conducted as a double-blind placebo-controlled study.

Precautions: If you have diabetes, high blood pressure, ulcers or porphyria, niacin should be taken under the supervision of a physician experienced in vitamin therapy. Niacin is very acidic. People with ulcers may need to take an antacid such as bicarbonate of soda (avoid antacids containing aluminum) with niacin. Some people experience a skin flush or redness and tingling, dizziness or headache for 10 or 20 minutes when first taking niacin. Flushing is much more likely to occur if the niacin is taken on an empty stomach. The flushing is not harmful, and should disappear after niacin is taken for several weeks or so.

Dosage: Most people start off at low doses of niacin (not niacinamide) and gradually build up to 100 to 200mg per day (For cholesterol-lowering effects, the dosage is usually 10 times this much). The dosage should be divided into 3 or 4 doses and taken with meals. Some people may get a niacin flush with this dose. With continued daily use, you will develop a tolerance for the flush.

Vitamin B-5

B-5, or pantothenic acid, has many functions in the body, including being a powerful antioxidant and stamina enhancer. B-5 is essential for the formation of steroid hormones, making it particularly important for individuals under stress, since such persons secrete more adrenal cortex hormones than others (Newbold, 1975). Note that B‑5 is essential for the conversion of choline into acetylcholine.

Precautions: Large dosages may at first cause diarrhea. This effect disappears with continued use.

Dosage: Most people start out at 100mg and slowly work up to 250mg-1000mg per day in 3 or 4 divided doses with meals.

Vitamin B-6

Vitamin B-6, or pyridoxine, is necessary for the manufacture of many neurotransmitters. Without sufficient B‑6, your body may not produce enough norepinephrine, serotonin or dopamine. These neurotransmitters are essential to optimum mental functioning. Since B-6 is used in protein metabolism, a high-protein diet often causes an elevated need for B-6 (Newbold, 1975).

Precautions: People using the drug L‑Dopa for the treatment of Parkinson's disease should not take vitamin B‑6 except under the supervision of a physician. Dosages greater than 200mg per day have caused peripheral neuropathy and should never be taken without the recommendation of a physician.

Dosage: 50mg-200mg per day in 3 or 4 divided doses.

Vitamin B-12

B‑12, or cyanocobalamin, stimulates RNA synthesis in nerve cells and increases the rate of learning in lab rats. (Pearson and Shaw, 1982). Many vegetarians do not get enough B‑12 in their diets. The drug Dilantin may cause a marked depletion of B-12. Low thyroid can reduce B-12 absorption.

Precautions: People with gout should use B‑12 only with extreme caution.

Dosage: 1mg (1000 micrograms) per day. Since some people have difficulty absorbing B-12 orally, it is also available in sublingual form as well as in a nasal applicator. It can also be given by injection by your doctor.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C, also called ascorbic acid, is a key antioxidant in our bodies, and is necessary for the manufacture of neurotransmitters and cell (including nerve cell) structures.

Precautions: If too much vitamin C is taken gas and diarrhea can result. This effect disappears when the dosage is reduced.

Dosage: 2000-5000mg per day in 3 or 4 divided doses.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is a powerful fat‑soluble antioxidant. This may be its only function in our cells. By preventing the oxidation of important molecules in our cells, vitamin E may retard the aging process. Vitamin E is found in high concentration in the lipid fraction of cell membranes. This is where prostaglandins are synthesized. Prostaglandins are extremely fast acting hormones that mediate all biological processes, including thought. The oils from which prostaglandins are synthesized, and the prostaglandins themselves, are extremely susceptible to oxidation, hence the high concentrations of protective vitamin E in the cell membranes.

Precautions: Vitamin E has no known toxicity. People with heart disease or high blood pressure should start at low dosages and only with a doctors supervision. This is because vitamin E can cause a rise in blood pressure when it is first taken.

Dosage: 100-1000 I.U. per day.

Dosage For Vitamins

The "recommended daily allowances", or RDAs, of the vitamins were originally formulated by measuring the quantity of each vitamin Americans normally consumed. Due to the difficulty and expense of establishing the optimum dose of each vitamin for humans, the RDAs are actually a statement of how much of each vitamin a human needs in order to avoid vitamin deficiency diseases like scurvy. As we mentioned in the introduction to this section, a recent survey of the eating habits of 37,785 Americans established that 80% consumed less than the RDA of at least one vitamin (Pao, 1979).

There is much research which indicates that doses much higher than the RDAs have many beneficial effects. By dividing the dose of the water-soluble vitamins, you will assure that your cells have the vitamins they need all day long.

References:

Bonke, D. "Influence of vitamin B-1, B-6, B-12 on the Control of Fine Motor Movement." Bibliotheca Nutritio et Dieta. 1986, 38, pp. 104‑9.

Hendler, S.S. The Complete Guide To Anti‑Aging Nutrients. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1985.

Lee-Benner, L. Physician's Guide to Free Radicals, Immunity, and Aging. Newport Beach: World Health Foundation, 1991.

Loriaux, S.M., Deijen, J.B., Orlebeke, J.F., De Swart, J.H. "The Effects of Nicotinic Acid (Niacin) and Xanthinol Nicotinate on Human Memory in Different Categories of Age, a Double Blind Study." Psychopharmacology. 1985, Vol. 87, pp. 390‑395.

Newbold, H.L. Meganutrients for Your Nerves. New York: Berkeley Books, 1975.

Pao, E., Mickle, S. "Problem Nutrients in the United States." Food Technology. September, 1981. pp. 58-69, 79.

Pauling, L. How to Live Longer and Feel Better. New York: W. H. Freeman, 1986.

Pearson, D., Shaw, S. Life Extension: A Practical Scientific Ap­proach. New York: Warner Books, 1982.

Pelton, R., Pelton, T.C. Mind Food & Smart Pills. New York: Doubleday, 1989.