Your Best Nootropics for Brain Fog in 2024

Brain fog decreases mental processing speed, shortens attention span, affects memory, and ultimately reduces productivity. Although nootropics can eliminate brain fog, enhance cognitive function, and improve performance, not all of them are safe and effective.

This guide contains a list of the top 5 nootropics for brain-boosting and detailed information on where to buy them at the best possible price.

What Are Nootropics?

Nootropics is a blanket term for herbs, drugs, dietary supplements, and other substances that provide cognitive enhancing benefits such as:

• increased alertness;
• increased focus;
• faster mental processing speed;
• improved mood;
• increased creativity and motivation;
• improved memory.

Nootropics do not cure diseases such as dementia. However, they may help reduce some symptoms such as excessive daytime sleepiness, drowsiness, etc., and ultimately allow the user to perform better.

These brain boosters, “smart drugs,” or cognitive enhancers, as people call them, have grown so much in popularity that top-level executives of large cooperations, engineers, programmers, celebrities, college students, and people from all walks of life use them to gain a competitive edge.

Some nootropics really work, but identifying and getting them from the right source is usually the challenging part. You will find out all about that in a jiffy.

What Is Brain Fog?

Ever been in a situation where you suddenly can’t seem to think clearly, remember things you should remember, struggle to come up with words to complete your sentences, and just can’t focus no matter how hard you try? That is brain fog.

The good news is that it is usually temporal and can be eliminated by making some simple lifestyle changes or taking certain nootropics. If you know exactly the cause of your brain fog, you can treat it. The primary causes typically result from:

• staring at a phone or computer screen for too long;
• lack of quality sleep;
• not taking breaks from work or brain-tasking activities;
• stress.

Doing the exact opposite of the points listed above is a surefire way to escape brain fog. If you don’t already get 7 to 9 hours of sleep every night and go to bed at the same time every night, doing so will take you a long way [1][2].

However, many people take nootropics for faster relief, so they can get back to work asap. But how do they really help in eliminating brain fog? Find out in the following section.

How Can Smart Pills Help with Brain Fog?

Earlier we mentioned that lack of quality sleep is of the major causes of brain fog. Smart pills’ ability to help with brain fog stems from their mechanism of action. Let’s take a look at stress.

L-theanine is a well-known nootropic substance that happens to be a main or secondary ingredient in some nootropic products. Its mechanism of action involves increasing the levels of neurotransmitters (serotonin and gamma-aminobutyric acid) in the brain. Higher levels of these chemicals aid in relaxation, which, in turn, improves sleep quality and ultimately eliminates brain fog.

Although nootropics can help to eliminate the short-term effects of poor sleep that causes brain fog, they can’t replace proper sleep [3]. You should strive to sleep properly every day.

Best Nootropics to Clear Brain Fog

After sieving through countless nootropics and doing serious comparisons, we have come up with the best nootropics for brain fog. They are:

Qualia Mind

This is a popular dietary supplement specifically designed to reduce reaction time and improve memory. It consists of a unique blend of two main ingredients, citicoline and Bacopa monnieri, and several other inactive ingredients including minerals, vitamins, herbs, and amino acids that all come together to improve mental health [4].

Compared to several other supplements, Qualia Mind has a relatively faster onset of effects and longer duration of action. Most users report noticing its effects within 20 to 30 minutes after taking it and enjoying its effects for about 8 hours. This supplement appears to be effective for most users, is well-tolerated, and is likely to help achieve enhanced cognition if used correctly.

Alpha Brain

Alpha Brain is a popular supplement designed to improve motivation and boost short-term memory. Its major ingredients are L-theanine, alpha-GPC, and Bacopa monnieri, among other nootropics that are known to boost brain health over a period of time.

Alpha Brain is manufactured by Onnit, a well-established brand that is popular among sportspeople, athletes, and gym fanatics. The company promises that its product is safe and will effectively increase alertness, improve memory, and boost mental processing speed. This appears to be true for a good number of people, as user reviews show. This is not to mention that well over 1 million bottles have been sold, and people continue to buy it.

Although Alpha Brain is safe when used correctly, it may cause side effects such as headaches, skin rash, and dizziness in some people.

Modafinil

Unlike Alpha Brain and Qualia Mind, which are dietary supplements, modafinil is a drug. It is an actual medication originally developed and approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat excessive daytime sleepiness caused by narcolepsy, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and shift work sleep disorder (SWSD).

Several years after its initial FDA approval in 1998, it proved safe and effective for most sleep disorder patients. However, people soon realized that they also felt more alert and productive after taking it. This was the beginning of its off-label use as a cognitive enhancer.

Although the FDA is not in support of the off-label use of modafinil, millions of people around the world continue to use it anyway, stating that it makes them feel alive and more productive than any other drug or supplement has made them feel.

Modafinil is safe. In fact, Oxford and Harvard’s researchers have deemed it the “world’s first safe ‘smart drug’.” This is because of its incredibly low potential for addiction. Modafinil has side effects like every other drug or supplement, but they seem to affect a relatively smaller percentage of people.

Mind Lab Pro

Mind Lab Pro is designed to increase focus and alertness and improve overall brain health. Compared to many other nootropic dietary supplements, this product is well-tolerated and poses fewer risks of side effects. This is because its ingredient lists mostly feature natural nootropic ingredients such as maritime pine bark extract, Bacopa monnieri, vitamin B6, and L-theanine, among others, that hardly cause adverse effects [5].

Mind Lab Pro is safe and effective, and considering the fact that it poses minimal risk of side effects, it may be ideal for long-term use.

Adrafinil

Just as modafinil, adrafinil is a prescription drug commonly sold under the brand name Olmifon. It belongs to a class of medications called wakefulness-promoting agents and can actually help remove the symptoms of certain sleep disorders. It was initially approved and used in France to promote wakefulness, increase alertness, boost mood, and improve attention in seniors. Today, some healthy individuals use it off-label to enhance cognitive function.

Adrafinil produces similar effects as modafinil; however, it is slightly less potent, and its effects take longer to kick in. Most “smart drug” enthusiasts prefer modafinil for that reason, as well as the fact that it tends to have fewer side effects and a lower potential for addiction. In fact, most medical practitioners discontinued its use because it required a slightly higher dose to yield the same effects as modafinil.

Note that the higher the dosage required for a drug to take effect, the higher its risk of side effects will be [6][7].

Whether you’re looking to treat a sleep disorder or boost your brain and ultimately gain a competitive edge at work or school, modafinil may be the best nootropic for you. This is because of its amazing safety profile, rarely occurring side effects, and the fact that it has been used by millions of people around the world and has proven to be well-tolerated.

If you do decide to go ahead with this “smart drug,” remember that it is a prescription medication and should therefore be used with utmost care. Also, remember to source it from a trustworthy and reliable vendor to avoid getting counterfeit pills. Be sure to consult your doctor before starting treatment with it.

Where to Buy Nootropics Online?

There are countless online stores that sell or claim to sell nootropics. However, not all of them can be trusted to sell high-quality products. For guaranteed premium-quality nootropics, here are 4 top online pharmacies you can trust.

ModafinilXL.com

This is one of the most trusted online pharmacies in the “smart drug” space. It has been in business for a relatively long period of time, within which it has served several hundred thousand buyers and gathered a ton of verified positive reviews.

The pharmacy ships its products to most parts of the world, except to those with stringent customs laws. It makes use of Express Mail Service (EMS) and Registered Airmail to fulfill orders. Its EMS deliveries typically have a waiting period of 7–12 business days, while Airmail can take between 10 and 18 business days. However, deliveries may take a shorter or longer time to deliver based on the country one is ordering from.

ModafinilXL offers lots of amazing discounts via coupon codes and vouchers to attract and retain its buyers. The notable ones include a special 20% discount for customers who make payments with Bitcoin, a $10 sitewide discount for all fresh purchases, and 20 free tablets with every order.

BuyModafinilOnline.com

This is yet another reputable online pharmacy with a proven track record of rendering exceptional customer service, selling high-quality meds, providing fast shipping, and generally satisfying customers.

It is a sister store to ModafinilXL; thus, it offers very similar services. It also ships worldwide except to countries with stringent customs laws, and for it, it uses EMS and Airmail. It offers similar discounts too, except for a slightly higher discount (23%) for Bitcoin purchases.

BuyModafiniOnline.com accepts multiple payment options to make transactions a breeze for its customers. They include Master and Visa Card, PayPal, and American Express (AmEx), among others.

BuyModa.org and HighStreetPharma.com are the other 2 online pharmacies you can bank on. All 4 pharmacies have a couple of things that make them stand out, in common. They include the fact that they source their products directly from renowned manufacturers (guaranteed high-quality pills), sell at an affordable price, provide excellent customer service, and offer a 100% money-back guarantee. This simply means that they are bound by their policy to either provide a refund or reship parcels for free if they go missing, get damned, or are delayed at the borders for too long.

The only problem, however, is that all 4 pharmacies only sell brand-name modafinil, armodafinil, and their generic versions. You will not find Alpha Brain, Adrafinil, or the other nootropics we listed on them. It appears that they decided to focus only on nootropics that “smart drug” enthusiasts buy the most.

If you really want to buy Qualia Mind, Alpha Brain, or Mind Lab Pro, you may find them on Amazon or their official brand website. You may find Adrafinil in random online pharmacies, but it may be best to buy it from your local pharmacy so that you don’t get sold counterfeit pills. Only a handful of trusted online pharmacies still sell it, and they are incredibly hard to find.

So, Do Nootropics Help to Cure Brain Fog?

Yes, nootropics help to cure brain fog, but they do not and cannot serve as a replacement for a proper lifestyle. For example, while they are capable of reversing some of the resultant effects of sleep deprivation, they cannot be used in that way continuously, otherwise, they become ineffective.

What’s more, it is important to understand that drugs and supplements don’t work exactly the same way for different individuals. This is to say that although we have listed the best nootropics (in terms of wide usage, safety, and efficacy), it is not 100% guaranteed that Alpha Brain or Qualia Mind, for example, will provide you with the best results. It is based on this fact that most people like to go for modafinil — it has a much higher success rate compared to the supplements and a lower tendency to cause side effects when compared with adrafinil and benzodiazepines such as Xanax.

Many people around the world use modafinil to clear brain fog, promote wakefulness, increase alertness, and ultimately become more productive. If you do decide to try it out, be sure to buy it from a trusted pharmacy such as ModafinilXL or any other one you know – this is how to avoid counterfeit pills.

Also, remember to consult your doctor before taking any nootropics. Doing so will put you out of harm’s way and help you get the best results.

References

1. 8 Ways To Eliminate Your Brain Fog Once And For All. By Loretta T Friedman, RN,MS,DC,CCN,CNS,DACBN,DCBCN. Retrieved: June 11, 2022. Synergyhealthassociates.com.
2. How to Beat Brain Fog. By David B Duncan, M.D. June 11, 2022. Retrieved: June 11, 2022. Hackensackmeridianhealth.org.
3. How To Fix Brain Fog: Root causes, Lifestyle, and Nootropics. Medically Reviewed by Board Certified Dr. Neil Paulvin. Retrieved: June 11, 2022. Doctorpaulvin.com.
4. Safety and Efficacy Study of Qualia Mind on Cognition in a Healthy Population. Retrieved: June 11, 2022. Clinicaltrials.gov.
5. Ingredients | Mind Lab Pro. Retrieved: June 11, 2022. Global.mindlabpro.com.
6. Adrafinil. Retrieved: June 11, 2022. Wikipedia.org.
7. What Do We Know About Adrafinil? Potential Uses and Side-Effects. Written by Matt Lehrer, Ph.D. Medically reviewed by Jonathan Ritter, PharmD, Ph.D. (Pharmacology). Retrieved: June 11, 2022. Selfhacked.com.