The treatment effect of nicotinic acid and xanthinol nicotinate on human memory was compared with placebo in 96 healthy subjects. Forty-three subjects were young (35-45 years), 30 subjects middle aged (55-65 years) and 23 subjects were old aged (75-85 years). Pre- and post-treatment scores were measured on a battery of memory tasks, covering sensory register, short-term memory and long-term memory. The treatment regime was 1 dragee t.i.d. for 8 weeks. The administration of xanthinol nicotinate (500 mg, containing 141.7 mg nicotinic acid), nicotinic acid (141.7 mg) and placebo (lactose) was double-blind. Pre- and post-treatment scores were analysed by means of a multivariate covariance technique, the pre-treatment score serving as covariate. Nicotinic acid treatment resulted in improvement of sensory register and short-term memory, while xanthinol nicotinate improved sensory register, short-term memory and long-term memory. In comparison with placebo, both active compounds yielded improvements of 10-40%, depending on type of task. Treatment effects of nicotinic acid were predominantly found in the young and middle-aged, whereas treatment effects of xanthinol nicotinate were predominantly found in the old. These results are interpreted by the supposed activity of nicotinic acid at the cell membrane, improving neuronal transmission, and of xanthinol nicotinate inside the cell, enhancing cell metabolism and oxygen supply in the brain.
I'm certainly not endorsing this or any supplement, necessarily, though I found it rather interesting, and thought others interested in tDCS may as well. In the past, I've ordered and used a number of supplements that supposedly help with cognition, though didn't follow through with use for long enough to render any benefits. That said, I think it's always worth spending the time to read about the chemicals that you're putting into your body, as opposed to going off advertising. It seems like raspberry ketone is all the rage right now, despite there being no evidence for it assisting in weightloss in humans.
Anyway, I'll try to get some more substantive tDCS stuff up before too long - I have some time off soon and may spend some time with tDCS sessions.
