DMAE

        It's been a rather rainy and slow start to the work week so I thought I would attempt to pep up with day with another smart drug DMAE.  DMAE, or Dimethylethanolamine, DMAE is a chemical analog to choline which is a precursor to acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter.  It is a compound naturally found in oily fish such as salmon and sardines, and has been show to have many benefits both inside the body and out.
        Clinical studies have shown it to increase vigilance and alertness, elevate mood, boost cognitive functions such as memory and concentration, and has shown positive results in patients with ADHD and Alzheimer's.  There have also been studies on DMAE's use for increasing skin health and enhancing the skins appearance by blocking arachadonic acid, known to cause wrinkles, from being formed in the body.  This has lead some companies to bottle this product as a cognitive enhancer, while others have touted it as a skin beautification aid.

        One of the interesting things about this compound is that its effectiveness seems to increase the longer a period of time it is taken, as its levels build up in the body.  This could make it a useful supplement during the school year, especially once finals start rolling around.  From the results of these studies, adding this supplement to your diet could find you with a mentally sharper and more beautiful you.

Nutrition or "Superfoods"

        Our diets these days can always use a bit of improvement.  Keeping up with a frenetic lifestyle of work/school and play can often leave our meal planning on the back-burner and our resulting meals grabbed on the go with a bit to be desired nutritionally.  In these posts I will be featuring a number of "superfoods" that have been deemed so by the scientific and nutritional community.
        Some of you may be asking why you should bother trying to eat foods that contain certain vitamins and nutrients when you could just pop a pill with the aforementioned goodies instead.  The answer to this is that supplements can be good, but they are just that, a "supplement" to a healthy diet. Our bodies absorb these compounds best from whole food sources where they are often found in conjunction with other complementary ones.  This synergistic effect is what makes these foods so healthful, and by just taking vitamins you are missing out on many of the great benefits these whole foods provide.  As a rule of thumb, supplementation is good, but straight from the source is better.
        Some of the convoluted diets we see today can be confusing and overly complex, but hopefully the foods spotlighted in upcoming posts will pop out in your mind when shopping or at a restaurant as a healthy choice to be added to your diet.

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Omega-3

 

        Something everyone has heard of and many people have taken are Omega-3 supplements.  I like this supplement for many reasons, for one it has been shown to have a litany of health benefits such as cancer prevention, cardiovascular disease prevention, increased immune function and increased brain health.  One of the M.O.'s of these benefits is omega-3's anti-inflammatory properties.  Inflammation occurs in the body when systems or specific tissues are under stress.  This stress can come in the form of not getting enough sleep, poor diet, alcohol intake and even anaerobic/aerobic stress from working out or playing a sport (many of these the average student or young professional encounters on a day to day basis).  This anti-inflammatory property makes it a great supplement to take daily.  I would also recommend use as a post workout recovery aid, especially after lifting weights.  For our weekend warriors taking a double dose before going out and next morning can help reduce some of the damage incurred leaving you in better shape to tackle those Monday classes or the start of the work week.

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Silymarin Milk Thistle

        Well it's Friday, so I thought I would add another hangover helper to the quiver.  I'm sure many of you have heard of milk thistle used as a liver supplement to treat liver disease and help protect the liver against toxins.  This has been shown in several studies to be affective over the long term, but I have found that acute doses of milk thistle, before, after, and/or during alcohol intake have an excellent affect of lessening resulting next day hangover.  One of the reasons you get a hangover is due to dehydration (alcohol is a diuretic) and toxin buildup (introduced in the alcohol itself and created as a byproduct of metabolizing it).  This works because the active ingredient, silymarin, has strong protective effect on the liver from the bombardment of toxins it faces in your standard night of partying.  It also helps the liver process the toxins it does have to process (levels which vary as you go from Belvedere to Barton's), the end result is more efficient detoxification during the night and more effective detoxification overall.  This leaves less of those pesky toxins to rattle around your brain and body when you are trying to take advantage of a prime Saturday or Sunday morning.
        My advise, take double whatever the bottle recommends the throughout day before and maybe even a few during the night, as well as with brunch the next day(any type of pills on an empty stomach the morning after may produce unpleasant results).  Here's to happy and perhaps slightly healthier raging.

Hangover Helpers

Another facet of this blog will be "hangover helpers".  This will be posts on various things you can do or supplements to take to minimize damage, prevent blackouts, and/or lessen your hangover.  Many of us are students and professionals and who still like to go out and have a good time.  Life is nothing without balance, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who shares the sentiment "work hard, play hard."  Hopefully this information will help you to do just that while minimizing the post-game repercussions.

Piracetam

        The first nootropic or smart drug I want to highlight is piracetam.  Many clinical trials have been done on this substance and it has been found to enhance cognition and memory, slow brain aging, increase blood flow and oxygen to the brain.  The result is often increased mental energy, enhanced communication between the left and right lobes of the brain, as well an an increase in overall neuronal firing.  It if often prescribed by doctors in other countries for diseases from Alzheimer's to ADD.
What is even more interesting than these immediate effects are the studies done on the chronic use of piracetam which have shown to reverse the negative effects of aging and alcohol use on the brain.  The way piracetam does this was by reducing levels of lipofuscin in the brain, a fatty substance that is an indication of damage associated with aging or oxidative damage(e.g. drinking, smoking, environmental toxins and/or poor diet).
        The good news in all of this is that piracetam is very cheap and easily bought at your supplement supplier or online merchant.  I have read some interesting articles that have postulated that piracetam's relative obscurity is from a lack of marketing due to the fact that it is so cheap to produce.  It looks like the hefty profits pharmaceutical companies look for in their products are not feasible for such a low cost substance.
        Bottom line for those looking for a low cost and effective way to  increase the productivity of their studies, increase their mental energy, protect their brain, and improve their mood all with little to no side effects of other stimulants should look into piracetam.

Greens Powder

        The first supplement I would like to talk about is alkalizing greens powder.  This is a simple and effective way of maximizing your green plant intake and helping your body to maintain its optimal pH while also providing your body with vitamins, probiotics and fiber.  You might be wondering why you should have to worry about your body's acid levels.  Ask yourself, "Do you regularly drink coffee, soda, energy drinks or alcohol?, "Are you under stress or often feel tired at school or work?", "Do you ever find yourself eating processed, junk or fast food?.  If you answered yes to any of these questions, your body may be struggling to deal with excess acids as a byproduct of these activities and the hectic world we find ourselves in today.
        Instead of boring you with more text about how this supplement works, I have attached a video of a product that I have used and like.  Some of you might be asking "How does this stuff taste?" to which I would say, "Pretty neutral, but not bad" and others might say, "Does the guy in the video really need a blowout?" to that I would say "Definitely not" but what matters here is that this is a good supplement to have in your regimen regardless of which company you buy from. Greens Powder Explanation
        Also attached is a link to an explanation of acid build-up in the body and some of the effects of neutralizing it.pH body effect

Supplements

Another area that will be explored are nutritional supplements, whether they be for working out, combating high stress levels, or just maintaining good mental and physical health.  There is no shortage of products out there and I will help you try to cut through the clutter and find what is right for you.

Nootropics or "Smart Drugs"

        One of the terms you will run across in this blog is nootropics which is derived from the Greek words νους nous, or "mind," and τρέπειν trepein meaning "to bend/turn".  These are substances that are purported to improve mental functions such as memory, attention, and cognition.  I will be over-viewing some of the more popular ones and explaining their effects.  They can be quite useful, from enhancing your retention of information to use as a healthier alternative to caffeine products.  I will be sharing my findings with you, as they say, "Better Living Through Chemistry".

WELCOME!

Welcome to the Modern Doctor blog!  In these pages I will share my extensive research with you on tips, tricks, and supplements to make you get stronger, study better, and play harder.  In this Modern World who doesn't need an edge to deal with the hectic pace of today all while squeezing the most out of our lives?