Genevieve Poblano/Digital Trend Charts
As a writer who follows the tech scene, I always hear about people in Silicon Valley doing crazy, crazy things to improve their performance at work, things like microdosing mushrooms or taking drugs like the narcolepsy drug Modafinil. These supposedly clever brain-boosting drugs, often called “nootropics,” have gained popularity over the years and now appear in a wide variety of different products, but it’s unclear how effective they actually are.
Wild claims have been made over the years about the effects of nootropics, but the science surrounding their effects is hazy at best. Most nootropics have not been studied in any clinical trials, so it is hard to know if they work or not.
One nootropic I’ve heard mentioned a lot recently is called Neuro Gum and it contains caffeine, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, and an amino acid called L-theanine. Caffeine and vitamins should give you energy and improve your concentration, while L-theanine, known for its calming effects, is meant to maintain balance.
However, like most other nootropics, Neuro Gum has never undergone clinical trials. So instead of spending half a year reviewing the scientific literature on each of its chemical constituents to determine their legitimacy as brain enhancers, I decided I’d better try it myself and see if it really worked. Who needs objective observation when you have subjective experience?
An experiment, an experiment
To get started, I jumped on Amazon, bought a 20 pack of Neuro mint flavored gummies and waited impatiently for it to arrive. When that happened, I chewed it every day for a week.
For the first few days, I only chewed one piece of gum in the morning after a meal. I also didn’t drink coffee or use any other stimulant that could mess up the experiment, so I just flew on pure, unadulterated neurogum.
The experience was surreal. I remember walking up to the blackboard the first day and there was an equation scribbled on it that clearly no one had been able to solve. I was able to solve it right away. I could also see in four dimensions and suddenly became fluent in Japanese.
I’m kidding. this is how it was actually:
first chew
The first day I felt the action of the gum almost immediately. Maybe it was psychosomatic, or maybe I haven’t had coffee lately, so I noticed the effects of caffeine more than others. Each piece of gum contains 40mg of caffeine, plus B vitamins, which means it’s not far off the 64mg of caffeine you’d get in an average shot of espresso.
The gum tasted pleasantly minty, if a little strong, and the physical effects were surprisingly familiar. It was like taking cocaine, but without the uncomfortable jaw clenching that often accompanies it. I felt energized and focused, and these feelings lasted for at least a few hours before fading away.
Fortunately, I didn’t fall noticeably after the effects wore off. I wouldn’t call this gum a hangover cure, but it definitely helped alleviate the hangover I was having at the time.
days 2-4
On the second day, the effects were similar, but perhaps a little less pronounced. He was focused while writing and I was able to do a little more than usual. On the third day, it was again a little less effective. Maybe he was developing a tolerance for it? Whatever the reason, on the fourth day I decided to chew two gummies in the morning, as it says on the bottle, take one or two at a time.
digital trends
The first day with two pieces was outstanding. I would say my IQ jumped at least 20 points. I used to shoot lasers out of my eyes too.
Not precisely. Two pieces increased the effects noticeably, but I didn’t feel cracked either. It felt like he had used cocaine again. I had a productive day and all was well.
days 5-7
The fifth and sixth days were not significantly different from the fourth day. So on the seventh day I decided to step things up a bit and have three pieces in the morning.
Suddenly I was walking through concrete walls and… never mind. By now you have figured it out. Three pieces gave me a lot of energy and I wrote well, but I also got tired a few hours after chewing the piece. I’m not sure if I experienced a general caffeine crash, if the L-theanine was relaxing me too much, or if it was something else entirely. So I did the only logical thing in a situation like this: I took a nap. Fortunately, I felt fine after that.
Mantle
Overall my experience with Neuro Gum was good. In fact, I’ve been drinking it for eight days, because I had two pieces this morning just for a little extra energy. I’m on it right now!
digital trends
It’s certainly not a miracle cure for Unlimited or whatever, but it’s a very handy stimulant, and I’d say it’s worth a try if you’re looking for something to give you a little more willpower. If you decide to give it a try, I would start with one piece and then move on to two if that doesn’t work for you and see what you like. If I end up testing four pieces at once soon and I’m suddenly able to start nuclear fusion, I’ll let you know.
All of this experience has made me even more curious about nootropics and I may try others in the future. This gum helped me focus, although the effects of it may not have been that different from taking a regular caffeine pill, but who knows if another nootropic could do even more for me. Maybe soon I will go further and write about those experiences. All for science, I always say.
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Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn