AlphaBrain. Who takes it? Feedback pls.

[Ross Davidson]

Nay, biology is. But a strong base of chemical knowledge is required.

[DENNY PROKOPOS]

It works for me, I feel more focused. My dreams become more vivid as well.

[Andrew Alexander]

It works for me, I feel more focused. My dreams become more vivid as well.

This ^

[Isaac Atley]

It works for me, I feel more focused. My dreams become more vivid as well.

I think if my dreams become any more vivid, they will come to life.

Does anyone use it mainly for the lucid dreaming?

[TThompson]

Inositol has been shown to lower testosterone levels in multiple studies. I bought it once for anxiety, found out about it, and promptly threw it out. There are a lot of great nootropics out there. Piracetam has been clinically proven and relied on for decades. I personally have noopept which is fantastic for a pre training brain stack with choline. Like it makes a huge difference. Only problem is that it enhances emotions a lot, so if you're negatively stressed it can make you mad, so I just stick to pre workouts. But it enhances responsiveness. There's plenty more nootropics out there though.

And if you're reading this and thinking I'm crazy, alpha brain itself is a nootropic stack. To be classified as a nootropic, a chemical has to have high permeability through the blood-brain barrier, and it also has to be almost completely non toxic.

Ross, I love the knowledge you are giving everyone on this topic because it has been something I have wondered about and tried to study on for awhile. You are saying you take straight choline just as the other guy asked about the different types of choline, I saw one with "bitartrate". Is there any difference with that or should I just stick to only choline? What type do you prefer that seems more organic/natural without extra ingredients?

As for Alpha Brain, I took it but it took awhile for it to actually work like about three weeks or so. After taking it for the only thing I noticed was my dreams were vivid. With all the other reviews it appears to depend on the individual as to how it will effect you.

[Marc Montano]

I have tried 2 50 pill bottles consistently and although they gave me more vivid dreams, I did not feel any difference in mental clarity or increased cognitive function. But I feel that my mind was already running at high gears since I have lots of reading and lots of math for school.

[Sean Marshall]

Alpha GPC (form of Choline) definetily works if I use. Was mixing it with Huperzine A. I think it was. I think one or both of those might be in Alpha Brain. Cant remember exactly. Definetily made me sharper. Tried the stack of Forksalin/artichoke Extract/Alpha GPC/Huperzine. Was trying different stimulants at the time that were not caffeine, cuz the caffeine was taking more water out of my muscles than I could drink back in or digest properly or something. The Forksalin started messing with my muscle and nerve tissues and cause weird fatigue problems after continued use. A bit too rough on the nervous system.and body like a serious narcotic. The Alpha GPC with the Huperzine A is not too bad for what seemed like better memory recall,clarity, and sharpness.

I probably shouldve done as much research as Ross but I was in a hurry to ween myself off caffiene with something different. I get a little too carried away when I drink coffee and drink way too much.

IT was a little weird stopping the Alpha GPC(choline). Felt stupider but it wasnt lasting. The brain is pretty funny thing where you could feel smarter one day and stupider the next, then eventually smarter again and in different ways.

[Ross Davidson]

First, let me start off by amending a previous statement.

I said that Alpha Brain has CDP choline, when in fact it has alpha gpc choline (hence Alpha Brain, I suppose). Both of these forms are supposed to have higher bio-availability than choline bitartrate. But they're much more expensive, for what's in my opinion, something that is a small hindrance for such a higher price.

Ross, I love the knowledge you are giving everyone on this topic because it has been something I have wondered about and tried to study on for awhile. You are saying you take straight choline just as the other guy asked about the different types of choline, I saw one with "bitartrate". Is there any difference with that or should I just stick to only choline? What type do you prefer that seems more organic/natural without extra ingredients?

As for Alpha Brain, I took it but it took awhile for it to actually work like about three weeks or so. After taking it for the only thing I noticed was my dreams were vivid. With all the other reviews it appears to depend on the individual as to how it will effect you.

Ok, so every form of choline is composed of two separate entities, either bonded together or as an ionic salt; it is composed of the positively charged choline molecular ion, and a negatively charged molecular ion of a differing variety. This is how they make it into a dry, manipulative powder/crystalline form to put into capsules.

There are three main supplemental types: alpha GPC, CDP, and choline bitartrate. Most studies that I've seen have tested either CDP or alpha GPC; I personally haven't read any using choline bitartrate. Both GPC and CDP seem to have high bio-availability, and supposedly are better than choline bitartrate. HOWEVER, choline is ESSENTIAL for many functions within the human body, so when you eat it, your body is going to want to NOT let any slip through the cracks. So any bio-availability issues, in my opinion, are insignificant, especially when considering that buying bulk powder allows you to super saturate your body with the stuff. As for what is most "natural", I'd personally say they all are, but I'm coming from the standpoint of the essential aspect of choline. It's naturally found in eggs and meats, but if you're looking for a higher order nootropic effect, your diet is going to be pretty heavy on raw eggs. So I'd say that choline, period, is good for you.

One of the issues though, I guess (hasn't happened to me), is that bitartrate (the chemical itself) can potentially cause gastrointestinal issues at first, using high dosages. Like I said, this hasn't happened with me, although I did slowly build up to the large amounts I currently take. I am unsure of the other forms and their potential for issues as such.

This leads me to the next point, which is that every form you take only has so much choline per serving. Choline bitartrate, for example, is 40% choline and 60% bitartrate, so when I say I take 1000-3000 mg of choline each day, I'm talking about strictly the choline. The actual value of the total mass of the powder I take is much larger (~7500 mg).

As for your second paragraph, I'd say that it doesn't stop after three weeks, your brain and body just become normalized to the state that hyper-saturation gives you. If you're in it to get high or something, this isn't for you. If you're in it to enhance learning ability, concentration, nervous system response, and cell membrane quality, etc, then this IS for you.

Alpha GPC (form of Choline) definetily works if I use. Was mixing it with Huperzine A. I think it was. I think one or both of those might be in Alpha Brain. Cant remember exactly. Definetily made me sharper. Tried the stack of Forksalin/artichoke Extract/Alpha GPC/Huperzine. Was trying different stimulants at the time that were not caffeine, cuz the caffeine was taking more water out of my muscles than I could drink back in or digest properly or something. The Forksalin started messing with my muscle and nerve tissues and cause weird fatigue problems after continued use. A bit too rough on the nervous system.and body like a serious narcotic. The Alpha GPC with the Huperzine A is not too bad for what seemed like better memory recall,clarity, and sharpness.

I probably shouldve done as much research as Ross but I was in a hurry to ween myself off caffiene with something different. I get a little too carried away when I drink coffee and drink way too much.

IT was a little weird stopping the Alpha GPC(choline). Felt stupider but it wasnt lasting. The brain is pretty funny thing where you could feel smarter one day and stupider the next, then eventually smarter again and in different ways.

Yes, they are both in Alpha Brain,which is good as you can use less with a greater effect, but if you're using it to help with things like athleticism, it's not good.

Acetylcholine (the metabolite of choline which acts as the neurotransmitter) is depleted by up to 50% in plasma upon the completion of intense exercise—this is one of the reasons that you get fatigued after an intense workout. The reason for this is that your body pumps choline through the CNS to differing muscles in the body, which is then used to force muscle contractions; so the harder you work, the more acetylcholine is used. This means that more choline = more ability to exert yourself. But like I said before, the body then needs to break this acetyl choline down after its use, which is where cholinesterase comes in. This breakdown ALLOWS the muscles to stop contracting. Therefore, you can think of it as burning fuel for a combustion engine (although ATP synthase is a different animal) to send signals.

But yes, you are totally right about the effects after stopping. Your brain gets really foggy. For me this is just you realizing that this is how you always were before excess choline supplementation lol. Might be wrong about that, but that's just my guess/opinion. However, the effects you receive while on choline supplementation are indeed permanent, or at least NOT short-term. I've seen a study which has shown that increased choline supplementation earlier in life can result in a much lower chance of Alzheimer's.

Another study I've read has shown that 1g of choline in a fasted state, or a state without insulin spikes from sugars/proteins (insulin and GH are antagonistic), results in a 19x spike in hGH production in humans. The effect is short term, lasting only two hours, but it's the same time-frame as if you were to inject yourself with synthetic hGH. The reason why this is intriguing isn't really about the GH itself, but all of the growth factors that it stimulates into production during that window of time, IGF-1 in particular.

Wow. Sorry for the essay. I've just done waaaaaaaay too much reading on the subject. I also jump at every chance I get to talk about the benefits of choline supplementation. lol.

So in short, Alpha Brain is good, because it has choline and results in higher levels of choline (Huperzine A). But any extra choline source is good for you, in my opinion. Alpha Brain also has Tyrosine, which is also used as a neurotransmitter, but I haven't done much reading on that at all.

[Sean Marshall]

Yeah Ross, on the permanent effects or not short term effects of choline, I could see that being easily possible with the findings on neurogenesis.

[Ross Davidson]

Yeah Ross, on the permanent effects or not short term effects of choline, I could see that being easily possible with the findings on neurogenesis.

Yes!