From: gts (gts_2000@yahoo.com)
Date: Fri Jan 24 2003 - 17:56:03 MST
Hal Finney wrote:
> The study, reported in the journal Neurology, involved giving a group
> of pilots some training/testing in a flight simulator. They were then
> given either a placebo or the Alzheimers drug donepezil, which
> enhances acetylcholine, for 30 days.
There is nothing new about the subject of "smart-drugs," and in fact I
happen to consider myself to be something of an amateur expert in the
subject (is there such a thing as an amateur expert? :-) In any case
anti-Alzheimer's drugs have long been a subject of interest to healthy
people interested in chemical enhancement of mental ability.
Huperzine-A is a natural, non-prescription compound that acts as an
inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase, the enzyme that breaks down
acetylcholine. It works similarly to the drug donepezil that you
describe above. Huperzine-A has been shown to increase memory and mental
acuity in healthy people not suffering from Alzheimer's. I also
recommend vinpocetine, (which increases glucose utilization in the
brain), and of course ginkgo biloba.
Another compound of interest is deprenyl, aka selegiline hydrochloride.
This is a prescription drug used in the treatment of Parkinson's
disease. I personally take 5 mg of deprenyl daily, though I do not
suffer from Parkinson's. Deprenyl protects the dopamine producing cells
of the substantia nigra, and seems to enhance mental acuity as well.
Deprenyl also enhances production of the natural anti-oxidants SOD and
Catalase, both of which are associated with increased longevity in
animal studies.
-gts
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