Quality

Social anxiety is something that affects millions of people around the world. You’ll know you have social anxiety when you find it difficult and scary to leave your home, or engage in social activities. The disorder affects far more people than you may have imagined, and it ranges in severity from very mild to extreme.[1]

In this article, we take a look at social anxiety: its symptoms, causes, and common treatments. We examine the use of phenibut for social anxiety. Phenibut is a Nootropic substance developed to aid in maintaining a healthy mental state. Some people with social anxiety have also used Phenibut as a dietary supplement, you can read their experiences with it here. Continue reading →

What are Nootropics? We call compounds that are capable of improving mental capacities and memory 'Nootropics'. Nootropics are substances that have the potential to improve cognitive performance. The benchmark test of a Nootropic substance is how it performs in tests on brain function. Nootropics are great for boosting memory and brain power.[1] They're receiving a lot of media attention online.

As a result, Nootropics use is definitely growing among university students (much to the dismay of many of the university staff) and Silicon Valley techies.[2] Whether this causes an ethical debate or not is up to you to decide.

Extract standardization is the process supplements companies use to make sure that all their products are of the same quality and purity. A standardized extract has one or more chemical compounds in a guaranteed amount and the amount is usually written as a percentage.

There are two main methods of standardization, and which one is used depends on whether the active compound is known or not. Standardization to a marker compound is used when a herb or plant is known to have beneficial effects, but the compound or compounds that create the effects have not yet been found out. When the active compounds are not known companies must choose a marker compound, an easily identifiable compound that occurs only the herb or plant of choice, in sufficient quantities, and standardize their extracts using the marker compound as their ‘target’.

The reasons for extraction

As we discussed in our previous blog post on X: Y extracts and percentage purity, there are three main reasons for using extractions from natural sources in health supplements.

The original plant materials may contain a lot of other chemical compounds (known as phytochemicals) which may be toxic or unhealthy. An example is the experimental anti-cancer drug G202, shown to kill up to 50% of prostate cancer cells in mice over a 30 day period. G202 is extracted from Thapsia garganica, a Mediterranean weed which is also known as the “death carrot” .

Extraction and purity

Learning about supplements can be confusing. The supplement market is one of the most competitive there is, and companies employ a range of advertising techniques that will have us believe that their brand is the most potent or pure. You may even be convinced that dietary supplements are a necessity for good health, which can be frightening. The decision-making process can be a difficult one. We’re here to help! Continue reading →

What we’re all about

This blog aims to share helpful information relating to body and mind dietary supplements, healthy lifestyles and the connection between the two. It delves a little into the new world of Nootropics, the science of supplements and physical health.