Sixty healthy older adults took 300 mg or 600 mg a day of a standardized Bacopa monnieri extract, or a placebo, for 12 weeks. Those on Bacopa scored better on attention and working memory tests and showed faster brain response timings on EEG. Their blood acetylcholinesterase activity fell, no dose response was found between 300 mg and 600 mg, and no serious side effects were reported.
Bacopa monnieri, known as Brahmi, is a plant used in Ayurvedic medicine and studied as a memory aid. Small trials at 300 to 450 mg per day had reported better recall. Evidence on how it affects brain electrical activity and neurotransmitter enzymes was thin, and no trial had tested whether a higher dose does more.
Sixty healthy elderly volunteers took part, mean age 62.62 years, comprising 23 men and 37 women. They were split into three groups of 20: placebo, 300 mg, or 600 mg per day of a standardized extract, taken as one tablet daily for 12 weeks. The design was randomized, double blind and placebo controlled. Assessments ran at baseline, every four weeks, and four weeks after treatment stopped.
Working memory was measured by a computerized battery. Attention was measured with event related potentials, small electrical brain responses to a sound, recorded as N100 and P300 waves. Blood was taken to measure acetylcholinesterase, the enzyme that breaks down acetylcholine, and monoamine oxidase.
The 300 mg group improved on continuity of attention and quality of memory from week 4 onwards (p less than 0.001 against placebo), and the improvement held at week 12 and four weeks after stopping. On quality of working memory, scored out of 400, the 300 mg group went from 155.27 at baseline to 185.81 at 12 weeks, while placebo moved from 159.03 to 161.40.
By weeks 8 and 12 both doses showed gains in speed of memory and power of attention against placebo.
On brain activity, the 300 mg group showed shorter P300 latency at week 8 (p less than 0.05) and week 12 (p less than 0.01). At week 12 both doses showed shorter N100 latency (p less than 0.001 and p less than 0.05). Four weeks after stopping, no significant changes in either wave remained.
Acetylcholinesterase activity fell in the 300 mg group from week 4 (p less than 0.01) and at weeks 8 and 12 (p less than 0.001), and in the 600 mg group at week 12. Monoamine oxidase did not change. No serious adverse effects were reported.
Twenty people per group is a small sample, and the authors themselves call this a pilot study. The results are not dose dependent: the lower 300 mg dose often outperformed the 600 mg dose, and the authors state plainly that they failed to show a dose relationship.
Participants averaged just over five years of formal education, which limits how far these test scores transfer to other populations. The proposed mechanism, that suppressing acetylcholinesterase raises available acetylcholine in the brain, is an inference: the enzyme was measured in blood plasma, not in the brain.
Funding came from the National Research Council of Thailand and from research groups within Khon Kaen University. The paper carries no competing interests declaration and reports no supplement company involvement.
This was done in healthy elderly volunteers with a mean age of 62.62 years. Results in an elderly group do not automatically extend to younger or middle aged people, and nobody outside that population was studied. It also does not apply to people with dementia or mild cognitive impairment.
The study reports improvements on computerized attention and working memory tasks over 12 weeks, alongside changes in brain wave timing and a blood enzyme. It does not show improvement in everyday memory, daily functioning or any real world outcome, because none of that was measured. It does not establish that more is better, since the higher dose generally did less.
That depends on the specific medication and formula. A few, like blood thinners with CurQLife or blood pressure medication with MaxiNOs, are worth a direct conversation with your doctor first. Check each formula's own FAQ section for specifics, or ask your health coach.
No, and we'd rather be upfront about it. Bacopa, the plant in BacoZest, has published human studies, though they used other bacopa extracts. OptiNOs and MaxiNOs each have human studies sponsored by their maker, Laila Nutraceuticals, which haven't been published in a journal. CurQLife's research is still early, from lab and animal studies, and we label it that way.
It depends on what you're building your routine around. BacoZest is built around bacopa, which is studied for memory.* OptiNOs supports strength and muscular endurance alongside resistance training.* MaxiNOs was studied for healthy blood vessel function.* CurQLife's research is still at the lab stage. Your health coach can help you pick a starting point.
All four are built around plant extracts. OptiNOs was reported as well tolerated in its human study, and published bacopa studies reported no serious side effects. CurQLife's safety data so far comes from lab and animal testing. Check with your doctor first if you're pregnant, nursing, on medication, or managing a health condition.
Because the patented ingredients behind our four formulas went through dedicated research, and research costs real money. A generic curcumin or bacopa supplement hasn't been tested in the form you get from us. You're paying for an ingredient with research behind it, not just a label.
Generic ingredients often haven't been studied in the specific form you're buying. Our four core formulas use patented ingredients, and we show you the research behind each one, including where it's still early.
It depends on the formula. In its study, MaxiNOs blood vessel response was higher than placebo 2 to 3 hours after the first dose.* OptiNOs and bacopa were studied over 6 and 12 weeks of daily use, so give them time. CurQLife is meant to be taken daily.
Yes. BacoZest, OptiNOs, MaxiNOs, and CurQLife are built for different goals, and none of them contain stimulants. They haven't been studied together, so ask your health coach how to fit them into your routine.
