Defined as “the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging”, brain rot was recently crowned the Oxford Word of the Year 2024, having logged a 230% increase in usage frequency from a year prior.
A constellation of terms like brain fog, working memory and processing speed have also risen to prominence, fueled not only by a global pandemic and its long-haul symptoms but also continued lack of sleep, stress, information overload and too much computer time in a fast-paced world requiring quick thinking and decision-making.
The expanding aging population intent on staying sharp is another major contributor to the burgeoning brain health market, but this does not mean that consumers are sticking to traditional go-tos like gingko biloba and ginseng.
“The cognitive health supplement industry is undergoing significant evolution, marked by shifting consumer priorities and ingredient preferences,” said Afif Ghannoum, founder of AI-powered market intelligence firm CPG Radar. “The data suggests a continued shift towards evidence-backed, multi-functional ingredients and claims aligned with modern cognitive demands.”
What the data says
According to market research firm SPINS, supplement sales in the cognitive health category in the United States dipped slightly from approximately $359.2 million in 2023 to $356.7 million for the 52 weeks leading up to Dec. 1, 2024. The category tracks for supplements targeting memory, focus and cognitive function but does not include mood support and stress relief products.
Of this total, some $217 million is registered as “Misc. Supplements-Other Functional Ingredients”, which SPINS explained captures a variety of emerging ingredients.
“A prominent example of this would be a brand using an ingredient like jellyfish protein—a functional ingredient we do not have listed as its own value in the data set,” a spokesperson from the firm’s product intelligence team explained.
Jellyfish protein is the main ingredient in cognitive supplement blockbuster Prevagen, which launched in 2007 and just last month was ordered by a New York court to wipe all memory-improvement claims. Based on the court documents, Prevagen sales in the United States surpassed $165 million between 2007 and mid-2015.
Ingredients in cognitive formulas registering the greatest gains year-on-year through Dec. 1, 2024 were matcha (up 32,915% to $977,178), vitamin B12 (up 720% to $1.27 million), vitamin B3 (up 609% to $423,343) and GABA (up 561% to $311,419). Magnesium, mushrooms and caffeine also experienced significant growth. Looking ahead, SPINS noted that creatine may be one to watch in this space as consumers start to become aware of its potential brain benefits.
Meanwhile, ingredients reported to have lost market share within the category included folic acid (down 90.5% to $25,980), oat straw (down 24.7% to $9.1 million), phosphatidyl serine (down 23.5% to $60.2 million) and gingko biloba (down 12.1 % to $4.8 million).
Commenting on the data, Evonne Chan, data analyst at SPINS, said that ingredients like magnesium and mushrooms continue to be popular with consumers as they look for supplements to help them stay focused.
“Social media has played a strong role in elevating these ingredients to prominence as science influencers and consumers alike tout the benefits of these supplements online,” she added.
Cognitive health on social media
Social media and the internet may contribute to downgrading cognitive health but also play a prime role in returning supplement solutions.
According to Spate, which tracks consumer trends across Google and Tik Tok, Prevagen was easily the most searched memory and focus supplement brand online from December 2023 to November 2024 with 272.9K average monthly searches, followed by Focus Factor (39.2K), Olly (20.4K), Onnit (15.9K) and Neuriva (9.9K).
Data also revealed that only Kourtney Kardashian Barker’s Lemme Focus Gummies experienced significant growth, with a 961.2% year-on-year increase in search volume, representing 1.1K average monthly searches primarily driven by online reviews.
Spate noted that search behavior varies across platforms in this category, with consumers typically googling specific brands, product information, recommendations or supplements trends, whereas TikTok activity is more influenced by TikTok Shop videos promoting products to users, driving impulse purchases rather than intentional searches.
“Overall, people are using Google Search to actively look for solutions and doing research, which we identify as purchase intent, while TikTok serves more as a platform for awareness, promotion and community discussion,” said Addison Cain, insights and marketing lead at Spate.
Among the concern hashtags appearing alongside memory and focus supplements on TikTok (used to raise awareness about a specific issue), the top viewed include #brainfog with 7.5K average weekly views and #ADHD with 1.7K average weekly views.
“Content under #brainfog is largely driven by TikTok Shop videos featuring product recommendations, such as this video,” Cain said. “Meanwhile, #ADHD showcases a mix of educational content and personal tips, with users sharing strategies and products that have worked for them, including this.”
Data also indicated growing search interest in memory and focus products for children, registering 3.4K average monthly searches tied to specific products like Focus Factor Kids as well as general queries like “focus supplements for kids”.
The shifting cognitive claims
Regarding claims evolving to align with modern cognitive demands, CPG Radar’s Ghannoum said popular claims like “mental clarity” and “focus support” highlight a shift towards optimizing cognitive capabilities.
“New product launches boasting a ‘mental clarity’ claim have surged from 66 in 2019 to 258 in 2024, representing one of the fastest-growing claims,” he said. “The pursuit of mental clarity reflects a societal desire to combat modern digital distractions, showing a prioritization of mental acuity and clear thinking.”
Other claims in the spotlight: “memory enhancement” (from 62 launches in 2019 to 184 in 2024), “focus support” (from 48 launches in 2019 to 203 in 2024), “brain health” (78 launches in 2019 to 190 in 2024) and “cognitive sharpness” (56 launches in 2019 to 177 in 2024).
Ghannoum added that categories focused on “stress reduction” and “emotional wellness” have seen relatively slower but nonetheless steady growth as consumers increasingly connect mental health with mental performance.
The concept of pervasive brain rot, however, is nothing new—with the first recorded use found in 1854 in Henry David Thoreau’s book Walden, which reports his experiences of living a simple lifestyle in the natural world.
“As part of his conclusions, Thoreau criticizes society’s tendency to devalue complex ideas, or those that can be interpreted in multiple ways, in favour of simple ones, and sees this as indicative of a general decline in mental and intellectual effort: ‘While England endeavours to cure the potato rot, will not any endeavour to cure the brain-rot—which prevails so much more widely and fatally?’,” the Oxford University Press language experts noted.
