Twenty-first century factors influencing cognitive health range from environmental contaminants like toxic metals and microplastics to high-stress society, ultra-processed foods and brain rot—the Oxford World of the Year 2024 that links the deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state to overconsumption of trivial online content.
Under these conditions, the cognitive health supplement market has flourished, with millions of consumers seeking ways to sharpen their focus, boost memory and ward off age-related decline. The result: a burgeoning sector encapsulating a wide selection of products promising improved cognitive performance, from nootropics (aka “smart drugs”) and memory enhancers to neuroprotective formulas.
This special edition explores the latest trends in the cognitive health supplement industry, the ingredients that are leading the charge, what cognitive claims companies are allowed to make and a selection of the more recent, still-emerging science examining potential effects across the brain’s lifespan.
The rise of brain rot and evolution of cognitive health supplements: A market overview: Cognitive health is top of mind in a hustle culture determined to find ways to augment its focus, memory and overall mental acuity despite the increasing encroachment of brain rot.
Cognitive and memory warning letters and litigation trends: Best practices for reducing risk: In this article, Asa Waldstein, principal at Supplement Advisory Group, reviews enforcement trends and best practices in the cognitive supplement space.
Toxic metals, mental dysfunction and the detox product market: As concerns over heavy metals in our water, soil, air, food and household items continue to grow, so do the connections with chronic health conditions like diminished mental function, driving the demand for detox solutions.
Prevagen ordered to remove all memory-improvement claims: A New York court issued an order in December prohibiting Quincy Bioscience from advertising that its Prevagen supplement improves memory.
At the intersection of genetics, caffeine and cognition: Variations in people’s genetic makeup could explain the variations in their cognitive response to habitual caffeine consumption.
Single A-GPC dose provides cognitive boost in healthy men: Study: A recent study offers new insights into the effects of Alpha-Glycerylphosphorylcholine (A-GPC) supplementation on multiple domains of cognitive function in a group of young, healthy males shortly after ingestion.
Green tea may protect the aging brain: Japanese researchers linked higher green tea consumption to fewer cerebral white matter lesions, suggesting that it could contribute to preventing cognitive decline in some populations.
Targeting neuroinflammation with nutraceuticals: An overview: Nutrient and non-nutrient bioactive compounds may be able to blunt the inflammation in the brain believed to play a significant role in cognitive decline.
Could dietary protein improve cognitive performance: In the search for preventative strategies to improve brain function, dietary protein has emerged as a potential protective factor given its role in muscle and organ building, tissue and cell repair and the production of neurotransmitters that influence cognitive processes from memory to mood.
Prenatal B12 deficiency may negatively impact child speech and IQ: Findings from a longitudinal study in over 5,000 mother-child pairs adds to the growing evidence supporting the importance of maternal prenatal vitamin B12 intake for an offspring’s cognitive future.
