How dare I? Everyone wants to look great naked. Yet here I am, my nakedness not being the most important to me.

Sure it has its perks, but not for vanity reasons. 

When you eat nutritiously and exercise, it creates a ripple effect throughout your life. 

It's just some physical goal you've set for yourself — to lose weight, look great naked, feel good, and have more energy.

Instead, I fuel my body for another reason. To give my mind the exercise, nutrients, and recovery, it needs to live an optimized life. 

When I take care of my brain…

• I can control my emotions, 

• I make MUCH better decisions, 

• I'm able to avoid temptation (like endless snacking), 

• I have the energy to lead a corporation and play with my children (from the time they wake up to the time they go to bed),

• I'm motivated and optimistic,

• I'm more articulate and clear, 

• I'm able to get incredible sleep, which allows me to recover every system in my body,

• And the list goes on. 

Despite taking the basic wellness steps, I like to give my brain an edge — a chemical boost to optimize its performance. 

Here are three of the best brain supplements, and a bonus fourth, but beware it has consequences. 

The Mental Stack

The best brain supplement you can take is one that helps support your mental performance and brain health.

People LOVE racetams to give them a mental edge, but I don't find them helpful for a few reasons, but primarily, it doesn't help better my brain health. 

Health is a critical factor in all of my wellness decisions. 

If the decisions I make don't give me a performance boost while helping maintain or increase my health, I'll avoid it. 

I'm not a super athlete or a genius chess player, so I want both performance and health in my brain supplement stack. 

Qualia Mind Nootropic checks those boxes for me. 

It's what Ben Greenfield calls his "God Pill," which has a list of ingredients that fall into these categories: 

• 6 Nootropic compounds

• 7 Neuro-vitamins

• 2 Antioxidants

• 6 Adaptogen Extracts

• 5 Amino Acids

• 2 Choline Donors

The product is superior to anything I've tried, and I've tried a lot. They perform rigorous testing while choosing only the highest quality ingredients. 

Not many supplements can make those claims. There are no regulations on supplements, so companies can source any ingredients they want. 

It's a good idea to buy from companies who prove they source only the best ingredients. 

That's why if you want better all-around mental performance Qualia Mind is an incredible option. 

Before breakfast, I take five to seven capsules, which set my brain on a path of clarity and focus. 

I've noticed better articulation of my thoughts and an increase in my verbal fluidity. 

I never experience a crash, which is a big selling point with stuff. The one caveat, don't drink ten-cups of coffee with this stuff. 

You'll likely experience adrenal fatigue, and overstimulation, which will mitigate any brain performance you're seeking. 

Don't ask me how I know this, let's just say, it's from personal experiences. 

Lions Mane, Cordyceps and Reishi Stack

These three mushrooms, taken together, are beneficial for your brain performance. 

Mushrooms are rich in B vitamins, such as:

• riboflavin, or B-2

• folate, or B-9

• thiamine, or B-1

• pantothenic acid, or B-5

• niacin, or B-3

B vitamins help your body get energy from food and form red blood cells, and are essential for a healthy brain.

To add to the natural one, two punch of mushrooms, choline in mushrooms help with muscle movement, learning, and memory. Choline helps maintain the structure of cellular membranes and plays a role in the transmission of nerve impulses.

If you don't care about the nerdy mumbo jumbo, just know mushrooms have a wealth of benefits, which is why I decided to take Genius Mushrooms as soon as I wake up. 

It combines three popular mushrooms: 

1. Lions Mane which has been shown to help improve memory, focus and overall cognitive performance. 

2. Reishi which has been shown to improve mood and immune system. It may help detoxify the liver as well. 

3. Cordyceps increase oxygen utilization, aerobic capacity, and athletic endurance. 

It's a mushroom stack you need in your brain supplement arsenal. 

Nicotinamide Riboside (NR)

Longevity is a hot topic. Everyone wants to live longer and better.

I'm one of them, so I've decided to install an IV drip of this stuff in my bathroom (joking!).

Nicotinamide riboside is a newly discovered form of vitamin B3 — which is the uninteresting part. 

The important part is our bodies convert NR into nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+). Say that ten times fast.

According to MindBodyGreen, 

" NAD+ is a coenzyme found in all living cells, and it plays a vital role in energy metabolism and maintaining proper cell functioning. Levels of NAD+ also happen to decline significantly as we get older, and these declining levels apparently drive the aging process."

NAD+ is a big deal. 

Although there have been some clinical trials, most of the studies are performed on animals, so we'll have to wait for some significant validity. 

So far, it's clear it helps promote cellular repair in some form, which is a significant benefit. 

It may support mitochondrial function, which is the power cells of our body. They turn food and oxygen into energy. 

NAD+ is shown to enhance memory and combat cognitive decline. In a 2018 study, researchers added an NR supplement to mice drinking water for three months. These mice were "developed" to mimic cognitive decline. 

The mice who took the NR supplement "had less DNA damage, higher neuroplasticity, increased production of new neurons, and lower neuron damage."

Dr. David Sinclair believes Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) is a more absorbable form and prefers it over Nicotinamide Riboside (NR). 

There are not many studies on NMN, so we'll need to stand by and see the efficacy of this supplement, but now, take full advantage of NR as a brain-boosting supplement. 

Nicotine And Caffeine Stack

This is by far the best brain-boosting stack I've taken. I'd drink a cup of coffee while chewing a piece of Lucy nicotine gum.

The nicotine/caffeine combination gave me a sensation of my brain opening and expending. 

Brain-on-fire!

It was amazing, but that's where it fell apart for me.

Some say nicotine gum isn't addictive, but for me, it is. I always want another piece to keep the mental high. 

Soon enough, I'm chewing the gum all day long.

When I can't control my urge for a stimulant, whether it be nicotine, alcohol, or anything else, I have to decide for the benefit of my overall wellness, to remove it from my supplement stack. 

The addiction isn't worth the mental clarity. I experience the law of diminishing returns on nicotine, and my poor self-control has me overstimulated, and unfocused.

A good brain supplement helps you increase your mental performance while giving you superior brain health. 

Look for a brain supplement that helps you in both these areas. The ones I gave above are some of your best options. 

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