Nutraceutical Brain Boosting (& Free Schwag)

Let’s start by petting (or shooting) the elephant in the room. All the snarksters will assume that I’m interviewing Dr. Richard Clark Kaufman on nutraceuticals because his NEURVANA company is an h+ advertiser. Not true. My corruption is entirely based on the free schwag!

See, a couple of years ago I was at a Humanity Plus conference down in San Jose and not getting enough sleep when a fellow h+er handed me a bottle of an experimental nutraceutical labeled “Euphoria.” I immediately popped two of them and had an alert and informative day. Sleeping conditions remained the same that night, but Dr. Kaufman’s formulation saw me through the following day without a hitch. Another h+er had some and reported borderline psychedelic effects, but I’m pretty sure she has an extra supply of endogenous DMT in her brain.

Anyway, although I used the “Euphoria” sparingly, I eventually ran out. I missed it.

I was dimly (truly) aware that the h+ advertiser NEURVANA was the same fellow who had made the Euphoria, but I resisted the temptation to ask for free stuff. Then another h+er suggested that I should interview Dr. Kaufman because “he knows more about smart nutrients than anybody.” Ahh, a perfect excuse to feed my head.

For those cynics who are sure that drugs work, but beta-phenethalymine (e.g.) must be total hype because it can be marketed as a refined nutrient — I invite you to present your “logic.”

And even more to the point, Dr. Kaufman asked me to run this announcement… free schwag for h+ readers! “NEURVANA Edge is offering free sample packs of NEURVANA Edge formulations for you to experience cognitive and performance enhancements first-hand. All you do is pay the cost of shipping and handling. As a special offer for H+ Magazine readers, NEURVANA Edge is providing ‘Free Shipping’ on any size product order. Enter the Coupon Code "hplus" during checkout to receive this special offer. Visit the NEURVANA Edge website at www.neurvanaedge.com to take advantage of this offer.”

h+: How do you arrive at the combinations that you put in your nutrient pills?

Richard KaufmanDR. RICHARD CLARK KAUFMAN: For me, formulating nutraceutical products is an ever-evolving creative process that goes beyond scientific empiricism and reductionism. I began formulating nutraceuticals with the publication of my book The Age Reduction System, which is a complete system to slow down, halt and reverse biological age. At this time, I was co-director of the Center for Biogerontology, a life-extension medical clinic in Los Angeles.

I realized the clinic’s patients required a series of nutraceutical products to add to their aging-intervention and life-prolongation plans. So I formulated them and formed Age Reduction Corporation to market Anti-Aging Health Systems. It was the launch of a career in formulating nutraceuticals. In our clinic, we monitored our patient’s progress, measured their before-and-after biological ages with regression equations. That enabled us to see the causative and effective results.

Since that time, I have formulated hundreds of nutraceutical products for some of the largest and most successful supplement manufacturers and distributors in America. In fact, I was the first person to use melatonin in consumer dietary supplement products. I was also the first person to recommend 5-HTP to users of MDMA (Ecstasy) for restoring depleted serotonin levels. My guiding principle remains: create innovative nutraceutical formulations that really work and help people conquer their personal health challenges. Unfortunately, there are a lot of snake oil supplements being sold as miracle cures and too many copycat health products in the marketplace.

Formulating a great nutraceutical product requires vision and creativity extending beyond scientific empiricism and deductive reasoning. Often I have a vision of something that doesn’t exist but is needed for a specific health condition or enhancement. The rest is a systematic, scientific process of engineering my vision into the right combination of nutraceutical agents that produce the desired biological actions on human metabolism. A great nutraceutical formulation — like a great food dish — has a certain touch, taste and feel beyond the label claims. A consistently challenging issue is verification, and proving clinical efficacy for skeptical health professionals. Unlike the pharmaceutical industry, the nutraceutical/supplement industry doesn’t have billions of dollars to spend on conducting double-blind clinical trials on individual formulations for supporting their marketing claims.

Several years ago, I felt compelled to tackle the supplement industry’s widespread problem of poor delivery. When a nutraceutical is given orally, its bioavailability — and ultimately, its efficacy — depend on the solubility and absorption in the gastrointestinal tract. Many dietary supplements have a very low bioavailability and efficacy when taken orally due to several interacting reasons. Plus the composition, shape, size and morphology of many dietary supplements inhibit their transport entry into target cells and structures. My solution was to formulate them into a nanosized delivery system that mimics plasma lipoproteins. I filed a patent for a lipoprotein-like nanoparticle delivery system that can improve the delivery of nutraceuticals across biological membranes into the systemic circulation, shield the molecules from extensive pre-systemic metabolism, avoid uptake by the reticuloendothelial system, and increase their transport into the cells of desired targets.

So as a result, I’ve introduced NEURVANA Edge. They are a family of what I call “super nutraceuticals.” They’re formulated to greatly increase mental and physical performance as well as slow down the aging process.

h+: What sort of enhancements do you expect people to achieve by using them?

RK: Since my days of co-directing a life-extension clinic, I have continued my research in developing formulations for slowing down the process of aging, helping extend healthy lifespan and combating age-related disorders with nutraceuticals in place of drugs. I’m driven to develop biological agents in targeted formulations and delivery systems capable of improving human mental and physical performance up-to-and-beyond the limits of human genetic coding. R.U., I want to take a pill that prevents growing old, restores or maintains youth and develops “super human powers.” The things many h+ readers want for themselves.

This requires identifying and corrected underlying metabolic defects, as well improving individual pathways of human functions for higher performance with targeted interventions of biological agents. It’s not so simple as taking a bunch of antioxidants and praying they work. It necessitates reprogramming our neural networks, cellular functions and the neurorendocrine/hypothalamic brain axis control of homeostasis. This is my driving force behind in developing the NEURVANA Edge family. They’re a significant advancement in developing peak mental and physical-performance and whole-body wellness. They’re important for helping to extend healthy lifespan and preventing many post-maturational diseases. They incorporate my patent-pending “NanoSphere Delivery System” of natural phospholipids for greater bioactivity. And they do so without producing the side effects of pharmaceuticals.

Brain neurotransmittersThe NEURVANA Edge family of nutraceutical products features the neurotransmitter/neuromodulator beta-phenylethylamine or PEA. Taken orally, PEA easily crosses the blood-brain barrier. It therefore becomes rapidly available to increase the activity of the major neurotransmitters. PEA increases the effects of dopamine for well-being and feeling pleasure. It increases the effects of norepinephrine — the brain’s stimulant for wakefulness and higher performance; and acetylcholine for improving memory and mental activity. And it stimulates serotonin for better mood, emotion and impulse control.

PEA has been referred to as an “endogenous amphetamine” by different researchers. It has an amphetamine-like structure and actions on the central nervous system that boost cognition, alertness, wakefulness, attention, energy and endurance. Unlike the drug stimulants that are addictive and harmful, PEA is natural, free of harmful side effects and non-addictive. It’s a highly concentrated neurotransmitter in the limbic system, the brain’s emotional center that plays a major role in our motivation, physical drive, feelings and social activity.

Think of PEA as a chip upgrade and amplifier for your brain’s neural processor hardware. It increases the signal strength of billions of brain neurons to release more neurotransmitters to improve human biological functions. Like a fast-processing high-memory CPU, PEA amplifies, modulates and improves brain functions and performance in nanoseconds.

If I may indulge in a product recommendation, the two formulations that I think every transhumanist, life-extensionist and h+ reader should consider using are NEURVANA Pro and NEURVANA Tranquil.

NEURVANA Pro is the embodiment of the core NEURVANA concept. It amplifies the neurotransmitters in your brain for longevity, increased mental activity, slower aging, peak body-and-mind performance and youthful functioning. Its cumulative activity as a “catecholamine activity enhancer” improves the activity of dopamine/noradrenalin neurons, which have a pivotal role in regulating aging. The efficiency of your catecholamine brain machinery plays a major role in determining the quality and duration of your life. Higher performing, longer-living individuals have a more active, more slowly deteriorating catecholamine system than their lower-performing, shorter-living peers.

I particularly formulated NEURVANA Pro as a safe, natural alternative to Ritalin and Adderall for improving attention and bad behavior. It’s a safe, natural alternative or complement to the widely-used drug stimulants Adderall and Modafinil for increasing learning, memory, cognition and athletic performance at school, home, work and play. Current research supports my belief that PEA triggers neurotransmitters for neurogenesis and brain plasticity to form new brain cells, information-processing connections and functions that increase cognition, learning, memory, skills, smartness and performance.

Within twenty minutes of taking two tablets of NEURVANA Pro, people normally feel an immediate shot of pleasure, bliss and emotional well-being. Users constantly report that it up-lifts their mood, mental activity, motivation, attention, alertness, energy, libido, and sensory awareness.

Neurvana Tranquil. Photo: neurvanaedge.com/Another multifunctional formulation is NEURVANA Tranquil. I formulated it as a natural alternative to Xanax or Prozac, a safe chill pill for anxiousness, depressive moods and calm. It’s also a safe and natural alternative to sleep meds such as Ambien or Lunesta for a deep, restful nourishing sleep.

Most people experience occasional bouts of anxiety and tension. NEURVANA Tranquil restores calm through a combination of neural inhibitors, the GABA receptor activator Phenibut and theanine with the indoleamine transmitter activator 5-HTP. This helps you to quickly relax and places your mind in a serene, harmonious and peaceful zen-like state. Another tangible benefit is better impulse control.

NEURVANA Pro (or our formulation MoodBrightner) and NEURVANA Tranquil as a team are “chronobiotics” for keeping your biological rhythms in sync. They optimize the balance between your “Daytime Energy Cycle” and “Nighttime Sleep and Repair Cycle” by raising the levels of stimulatory neurotransmitters during the day and inhibitory neurotransmitters at night. Working as a team, they resynchronize biological oscillators with each other and the environment. This helps to inhibit the age-related decline of the neuroendocrine system, which is regulated by circadian clocks, from causing a cascading decline in our health and well-being.

Chronic phase shifts and deteriorations in the circadian system contribute to premature aging, significant declines in mental and physical performance, and many health conditions. It’s a problem that most of us face due to our modern working schedules, fast-paced culture and shifting lifestyles.

Healthy, stable, longer-lived people have consistent time characteristics between their daytime energy cycle and nighttime sleep and repair cycle of circadian-regulated biological functions. The cellular processes of life are regulated along a 24-hour cycle by a circadian timing system composed of molecular clocks within each cell. Each cell contains a central coordination system of interconnected molecular loops involving at least 12 circadian genes. These cellular clocks are coordinated and regulated by circadian pacemakers in the hypothalamus and other areas in the brain. They provide an adaptive advantage for our survival and prevent cellular damage.I will claim that NEURVANA’s chronobiotic maintenance of circadian synchronicity helps prevent accelerated aging, degenerative disorders, and neurological decline. Heart disease, dementia, cancer, hypertension, strokes, immune disorders, sexual dysfunctions, sleep abnormalities, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety and post-traumatic stress are all tied to circadian desynchronization of biological functions.

Evidence shows that restoring the integrity of biological rhythms that are desynchronized and preventing temporal disorganization from damaging physiology can inhibit degenerative disorders and may extend the healthy human lifespan. Synchronicity is a natural approach for cognitive enhancement and high-performance wellness. It’s nature’s cure for depressive mind states, chronic fatigue, attention problems, learning disturbances and low immunity.

The NEURVANA Edge website has extensive information about each NEURVANA nutraceutical formulation. There you can find my technical papers about synchronicity and other contemporary topics for health-and-performance enhancement and judge them for yourself.

h+: OK, so what about scientific proofs? Have you performed double-blind experiments, or can you point to experiments that show results from specific nutrients in your mixes?

RK: Like 99% of all nutraceutical/supplement companies, we have not conducted double-blind clinical studies on our formulations. NEURVANA Edge reports on and posts online links to the peer-reviewed research studies documenting the actions and biological effects for the nutraceuticals in our formulations. Significant clinical trials and experimental research for individual nutraceuticals in our formulations are discussed in a series of technical papers that I wrote, as I mentioned earlier. The more technical reader can follow the references from those to Medline, Embase and other scientific databases for more details. If any reader wants to contribute to conducting clinical trials on NEURVANA formulations, they should contact me.

Most of the nutraceutical ingredients in NEURVANA’s formulations have extensive research monographs that are posted online. These tech papers have detailed scientific citations and references. These monographs are easy to locate through a Google search. My upcoming new blog on the NEURVANA Edge website will post the most recently published scientific studies of efficacy.

An increasing number of health practitioners are using NEURVANA Edge Formulations in complementary and alternative therapy for their patients, so we do get to monitor their clinical progress and patient outcomes. I would argue with skeptics that if the NEURVANA formulations didn’t work on their patients, the physicians would stop ordering.

Of course, buyer beware. Too many supplement companies hire gifted technical copywriters that spin their horrific product formulations as miracle cures. It’s easy to cite in vitro experimental research, in vivo studies and anecdotal evidence in a marketing masterpiece of scientific fiction for product support. There are no regulatory agencies to prevent this prevalent practice. In the final analyses, all I can say about my formulations is… try them.

h+: I’m particularly interested in the area of cognitive enhancement, whether through nutrients or drugs. I have no doubt, for example, that a nutrient like beta-phenylethalamine or a drug like vasopressin will give me stimulant effects. But I wonder about any cumulative intelligence increase from regular usage. Do you think there are actual cumulative intelligence increase nutrients and/or drugs and what would you point to as evidence?

Richard KaufmanRK: There is scientific support that beta-phenylethalamine (PEA) and other nutraceuticals can increase your cumulative intelligence through different neural pathways and mechanisms. According to the pioneering research of Dr. Joseph Knoll, a respected neurochemist, pharmacologist and emeritus professor, PEA is a “catecholamine activity enhancer.” According to Knoll’s researchers, PEA improves the activity of dopamine/noradrenalin neurons, which have a pivotal role in regulating aging, learning, cognition and other neural functions.

Dr. Knoll points out that by rehabilitating our brains’ catecholamine system with enhancer substances (including PEA and its derivatives), it’s possible to transform a lower-performing, shorter-living individual into a better-performing, longer-living one with more youthful mental and physical functions.

Furthermore, PEA is the parent compound of l-deprenyl, a catecholamine-enhancing, dopamine-increasing, neuroprotective compound with proven life-extension and cognitive-enhancing actions in animal research. It’s interesting that l-deprenyl produces a huge spike in brain PEA.

When taken orally, PEA easily crosses the blood-brain barrier and is rapidly available in the brain as an excitatory neurotransmitter, a signal amplifier of neurotransmitter activity and a neurotransmitter transport regulator for homeostasis. This can result in accumulating cognitive improvements.

PEA is a natural excitatory neurotransmitter with its own receptor, and it has a chemical structure similar to amphetamines.PEA is highly concentrated in the limbic system of the brain, the center for human emotions. As I said, it produces mental and physical stimulation, but without the harmful side effects of drug stimulants. PEA increases norepinephrine catecholamine activity for energy production, focus and wakeful cognition while inhibiting reuptake for longer more pronounced levels of activity. In other words PEA is “endogenous brain speed.”

PEA also increases the action of acetylcholine for cognitive functions by stimulating the AMPA glutamatergic receptors, and improves mental alertness and mood by suppressing the inhibitory effects of GABA-B receptors. In addition, it stimulates dopamine nerve terminals and activity for greater feelings of pleasure and well-being. Lastly, PEA enhances serotonin release for an uplifting effect on mood, emotions and control. The interaction of PEA with its chemical receptors sends signals to the brain that can improve emotional behavior, motivational drive, impulse control, social behavior, sexuality, creativity, and sensory perceptions for an overall higher level of performance in life pursuits.

PEA is an endogenous mesencephalic enhancer and signal amplifier, meaning it causes a greater release of cognitive-and-performance enhancing neurotransmitters in response to a given nerve signal. It’s like “cranking up the volume” of nerve-cell activity, or adding octane booster to your gasoline. In a split second, PEA induces higher concentrations, a continuous strong release, and to a lesser degree, induces greater activity of dopamine, norepinephrine, acetylcholine and serotonin.

PEA is also a neurotransmitter regulator of homeostasis for maintaining your metabolic equilibrium. Recent research has focused on how the binding of PEA with trace amine-associated receptor 1 (TAAR1) in the brain controls the binding of neurotransmitters with nerve receptors and regulates the nervous system to offset disrupting changes. PEA seems to limit overstimulation of nerve cells by excessive neurotransmitter signaling, thus preventing nerve cell damage and abnormal functioning.

The research strongly suggests that PEA is an important homeostatic protector of your neural activity and circuitry. In practical terms, PEA has the potential to prevent you from overamping and frying neural circuits from the abuse of the stimulants amphetamines and cocaine. On a side note, there’s a whole vein of research on using PEA to control substance addictions.

This research supports scientifically what you said about cognitive enhancers in your article in Whole Earth Review way back in the mid-1980s:

“INTELLIGENCE INCREASING DRUGS might be labeled "Cognitive Enhancers”.… What many of these drugs and nutrients have in common is that they produce effects similar to effects people are seeking from popular stimulants such as caffeine, amphetamines and cocaine. These popular drugs temporarily enhance cognition and memory, and amp up the user’s energy levels only to leave the user depleted. Cocaine and amphetamines might properly be labeled as short-term intelligence-increase drugs and long-term intelligence-decrease drugs.”

Brain of ManThese research findings are part of the practical methods I pioneered to permanently improve cognition, sensory perceptions, creativity and other traits by inducing neural “up regulation.” This plan also prevents dumbing down from “down regulation,” transmitter depletion and nerve damage due to acute or chronic neurotoxicity from overloading your body with certain stimulants and drugs. Let me summarize how it’s done. Very specific combinations of agonist nutraceuticals, smart nutrients and drugs are taken in precisely-controlled daily “low dosages” to create new neural circuits and brain activity by activating targeted neural pathways projecting into function-specific brain regions and forming new connections. This results in the creation of new synaptic connections, more effective signal pathways, and increased efficiency of neural transmission. The outcome is higher levels of cognition and other neural functions that you want to accentuate, based on what you’re taking in your mix. This represents a practical application of “brain plasticity”: the ability to form new connections throughout life, selectively change neurons, reorganize neural networks, and create new or improved neural functioning.

Regarding evidence for actual cumulative intelligence increase from the regular use of nutrients and/or drugs, let me say this. I have a library of published research about different nootropics (i.e. smart pills) as evidence and have personally observed and measured cognitive improvements in patients taking nootropics. I’m sure you have read many of these articles and even written about them.

In fact, a paper just came out on March 7, 2010, reporting that, for the first time, scientists showed that Ritalin boosts cognitive abilities in animal research by increasing the activity of the neurotransmitter dopamine. Ritalin produces these effects by enhancing brain plasticity — strengthening communication between neurons where they meet at the synapse.

PEA triggers neurotransmitters for neurogenesis and brain plasticity to form new brain cells, information-processing connections and functions that increase cognition, learning, memory, skills, and performance.

Modafinil is a wake-promoting drug used for treating sleep disorders that many people also use to enhance cognition. Researchers found that Modafinil acutely elevates extracellular dopamine located outside of cells in the brain by blocking the dopamine transporter. Both Modafinil and Ritalin’s actions occur in the amygdala, a brain region known to be critical for learning and emotional memory. Unfortunately Ritalin, Modafinil and Adderall (a legalized amphetamine compound that‘s essentially speed), boost cognition by altering brain neurotransmitters in way that scientists say increase their potential for abuse and dependence. I’ll make the claim that NEURVANA can substitute for Ritalin or Adderall, but people will have to make up their own minds.

The reason is that PEA works by activating and increasing the neurotransmission of dopamine, other catecholamines, and acetylcholine in the brain, and can be safely taken over an indefinite period of time. PEA doesn’t continue to over-activate neurons in the brain to the point of damage like the above-mentioned prescription stimulants. I plan to write this up on my blog.

h+: Words are one thing. The only way to confirm it is by testing it on yourself. For example, you could take an I.Q. test that measures different abilities. Begin a regimen of smart pills combined with mind-training exercises. After four months retest and look for score improvements.

RK: To help everybody improve themselves, NEURVANA Edge is offering free sample packs of NEURVANA Edge formulations for you to experience cognitive and performance enhancements first-hand. All you do is pay the cost of shipping and handling.

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52 Responses

  1. Totally outstanding artical I have an Essay due tomorrow on Brain trama from illigal drugs.
    Thanks alot
    Val Littlewolf

  2. Anonymous says:

    The plural of anecdotes is not data.

  3. Jason K says:

    I am an h+ reader who ordered the Pro product after reading this article. I submitted my order on Friday, April 16th and was able to enter the ‘hplus’ coupon code for a US $15 discount. The Pro product was listed at just under US $30 and shipping was about US $6, making my total something over US $21. The checkout was simple and provided me with confirmation code and order number with a promise of USPS tracking to come upon shipment. On Saturday, April 17 I received an email with a tracking link indicating that my order had shipped from California.

    Monday afternoon my order arrived in the mail in a USPS package about the size of a hardcover book. There were no other packing materials or documents, the package contained only a bottle of the product. The bottle claims 120 pills, a screw cap, protective seal, and cotton ball. Directed use indicated one should take a pill before breakfast on an empty stomach, and one more 3-4 hours later on an empty stomach. This is to continue for 1-2 weeks as one increases the dose to 1-2 pills before breakfast and 1-2 pills 3-4 hours later. Taking any dose in the evening is advised against due to the stimulant nature to avoid sleeplessness.

    Having read all of this, I took one pill at about 6:30 PM and went for a walk. I have used several psychoactives and a few pharmaceutical stimulants; I take a vitamin supplement for what it is worth and Omega-3 fish oil daily. I do not take any prescription medication and intended to take Neurvana Pro as a recreational drug or life enhancer as advertised.

    My experience taking this drug was pleasant, and though I had done little research about PEA before dosing, I had read all of the claims on the Neurvana Edge website. Needless to say I had very few expectations for any noticeable results. Within a minute of swallowing the pill (on an empty stomach) I noticed that I was noticing more things, for lack a better term. My attentional faculties were demonstrably higher. I felt I could see everything I was focusing on and multiple things in my periphery at the same time. I have very poor vision due to extreme nearsightedness, and while I would not quite say my vision was sharper or clearer, I would definitely say it was better due do my enhanced multifocus. After a few minutes of walking I noticed that my auditory and olfactory senses were similarly affected. A mild euphoria came, which I attributed to my excitement at having any positive results.

    My walk lasted about two hours as did the immediately noticeable effects, though I never felt a coming down or wearing off. I did stay up until about 1 AM that night but that is a normal occurrence for me and I did not feel that I could not sleep at any time. This morning I started taking the pills as directed at about 9 AM. I felt wakened and ready for my workday but did not experience the same degree of ‘multifocus’ that I described earlier. I was, however, very focused on my work without the blah feeling I normally feel any time I wake up before noon. I took the second pill about 1 PM with similar effects as in the morning, with a more noticeable onset in the first minute akin to my first dose the evening before.

    Hope that helps any of you with questions or concerns in any capacity. Let’s share some pertinent information.

    • oscar says:

      thanks for the comment jason k. Did it increase your efficiency at work? Have you already taken moafinil and could you compare it to modafinil? It would be interesting to know the effect in the long run also. I would like to try myself but i am not a us-resident and shipping costs for abroad are very expensive.

    • Richard Clark Kaufman, PhD says:

      Thank you Jason for your honest appraisal of something so close to my heart.

      Richard Kaufman

      PS. PEA can amplify the neurotransmitter signal effects of other stimulants and psychoactive compounds.

    • William says:

      I have been taking Neurvana Pro. Jason’s description is spot on. I’ll save the reiteration.

      If not for the dissenters, Dr. Kaufman would not have followed up with such an informative volley of counterpoints. I tip my hat to the doctor’s composure and to taking the extra time to clarify those issues.

      People love to hate on the internet. Soak it in.

      . WDP .
      . architect .

  4. Anonymous says:

    The problem here isn’t really whether the drug does what it is purported to do. The problem is that the article lacks enough independent research and judgment to make useful in evaluating the interviewee’s comments. And yes, we can argue post facto about those comments, but the article itself remains unhelpful. Although probably wholly unintentional, this article is just an ad for the manufacturer. Since I cannot trust the credibility of writers who don’t do any independent research, I won’t be reading H+ again.

    • Richard Clark Kaufman, PhD says:

      First of all, NEURVANA is a dietary supplement and not a drug. And secondly, not discussing independent research doesn’t mean we don’t conduct research on our formulated products. Bear in mind, NEURVANA Edge is not a pharmaceutical company with the benefits from patent protection afforded to their drugs. Nor do we have the million dollar budgets for conducting large research projects. Without patent protection, we are forced to keep a lot of our research and information as proprietary information to prevent competitors from stealing our intellectual property.

      Because we are selling dietary supplements, the FDA and FTC have monographs that control what we can legally say. There is a network of health practitioners using NEURVANA Edge products in clinical settings with their patients under our protocols. But we cannot report patient’s clinical outcomes and observations of health practitioners using NEURVANA Edge products. I hope this information is useful.

      Dr. Richard Clark Kaufman

      • Anonymous says:

        This article was quite informative but i think that the Nutraceuticals must be given prior attention because still the consumers are unaware of the dietary supplements and prefer allopathic treatments and also they donot require doctors prescription so consumers take them without concerning about the dosage. So sir,what measures must be taken for that.

    • Editor says:

      This is the first criticism that I can take partly seriously.   Of course, it’s an interview not an article, and in general an interviewer has a lot more leeway to hand the hard work over to the interviewee than someone writing an article.  But it’s true, I was a lazy interviewer in this case and as a result this comes off reading somewhat like an advertorial.  I have physiological reasons for why I had a lazy brain during the period when I did this piece, but I wouldn’t accept that as an excuse from one of my writers, so it’s no excuse for me either.

      I’ve done a lot of interviews, and generally, depending on one’s knowledge of the topic and how one is feeling on a particular day or week, one can be a strong player in a conversation or hand the baton over to the subject, and one can get away with it and still have good content.  But given that this was already an interview with an advertiser, I should have seen the implications of not being a tougher and more thorough interrogator.   And I compounded my error as Editor. When it came time to run the piece, I briefly thought that I need to hold this back and ask some more detailed and thorough questions… but I looked at the pile in my "in box" and decided to keep plowing forward with new priorities and let this one loose as is.   So, OK, a less than perfect performance by the interviewer by far.  I’ll grant it. By the way, I think Richard did fine.  He did his part, answering the questions honestly in his own way according to what he believes.

      On the other hand…

      1:  That this was an interview with an advertiser was right up front.  You could decide for yourself whether or not to take the rest of it with a grain of salt, or a lot of skepticism, or to calmly read the claims and research further.  When I suggested to Richard that some would greet this with a lot of skepticism, he decided to offer free stuff to the readers.  So here’s a conundrum.  I turn down free stuff (cost of shippping aside) for my readers to make it look like less of an advertorial? Or I accept it?  In a rational world, "This guy may be making crazy claims but you can try it yourself" seemed like the best decision.  In a world full of people who love to take umbrage and get their knickers in a twist, maybe not so good.   Anyway, I think you’re big boys and girls and you emerged unharmed from reading or not reading the interview.

      2: What I said in the introduction was true.  I tried Richard’s stuff.  It was good shit, man! (At least, in terms of immediate effects.) I liked it.  That’s the main reason I did the interview.  

      3: A few people whining that they come here for "scientific reports."  Oh please. Yes, there are scientific and technological reports.  There are also interviews and speculative articles.  An interview with Ray Kurzweil or Aubrey de Grey isn’t speculative?  There are also opinion pieces, culture reviews, and the occasional cultural deconstruction and/or humor columns that also twist a few knickers among those who love to take umbrage.

      4:  People think that the nutraceutical people are all hucksters and snake oil salesmen.  I’ve known a few going back to Durk Pearson and Sandy Shaw and I’ve found the ones that I’ve known invariably to be enthusiasts and experimentalists who take their own stuff (and more of it than any sane person should imho.)  I’ve also found that they all read more medical and scientific papers on topics related to what they’re trying to do than their seem to be enough hours to the day… but then again they’re all on nutrient speed.  (When I visited them in Huntington Beach California, Pearson and Shaw had an extra house next door set aside for storing scientific papers and literature.) They may tend to charge a bit more for product than I would like, but small businesses have high overhead.  Maybe they overstate what they have to offer (although sometimes they claim that regulations cause them to understate), but if I’ve ever asked any of them for advice regarding someone with a serious problem, I’ve always gotten "Well, you could try thus and such but…"  and not, "I have the cure." 

      So yes, I could have done a better interview and I’ll be more careful if and when a similar situation arises. And on the other hand, freakin’ relax!

      R.U. Sirius

       

       

       

  5. Explorer says:

    NEURVANA TRIP REPORT

    Just started taking samples of Neurvana ordered after reading RU Sirius interview. Here’s what I think.

    Neurvana Pro: Woke up my brain and gave me a pleasurable euphoric rush of mental clarity. Kind of like Modafinil.

    Neurvana Tranquil: Super chill-out pill! Starting to use it in place of Ambien.

  6. Anonymous says:

    I think I would have to agree with Perry on all points!

    Anyway, I am glad to see that H+ wrote up this article, I first purchased the Neurvana Pro product over a year ago from an ad that was in the magazine. I did this because I have ADHD and have tried several other products as I do not like to take prescription drugs. Well I have been a loyal customer ever since and can tell you it works and it is the only thing I take to help me with my focus…

  7. MrThumbtack says:

    I am profoundly disappointed in H+ magazine. I’m interested in science reporting, as in actual… good… science. The shameless promotion of a useless dietary supplement on this site undermines the magazine’s credibility.
    As a direct result this magazine has lost my trust and I doubt I will be coming back.

  8. Perry says:

    Wow, I just read this article and all the comments. What has happened to the Magazine? I think the correct question is what happened to the readership? MY GOD!

    Chance I think your a little ridiculas on your comments about Dr. Kaufman, Mr. Branson and Mr. Weatherby.

    I have looked at these individuals and they all seem on the up and up. Dr. Kaufman is legitimate in his research, if you would take the time to read his papers and read other research that was done you will see this. Mr. Branson is a legitimate business man and so is the company he owns. Neurvana Edge, Inc. is a real company and to be quite honest I have heard of their CEO before, he had a very interesting Email Software Company out of DC or MD. I am sure if you keyword their names you will see they are real businessman. But in all honesty who really cares. I know from being in the Internet Business not just anyone can get a real merchant account and process credit cards. I am not talking about PayPal either. That right there tells me this is a legitimate company.

    I mean what would make people think your research is any better then some one who knows how to use Google? You almost seem like you are just posting hate messages and cluttering this article with a bunch of bogus posts. Grow up and talk about the article, not about your Sherlock Holmes work.

    Want my full name so you can keyword me also and dig up dirt on me? Pffft, you don’t even post your name. Amazing…

    H+ why do you allow comments like this to clutter up this, well what used to be, great site? This wack job Chance should be banned…

    R.U. you wrote a good article, I do agree that is is kinda advertisy, but hey if you tried their products and they made you excited enough to go off of your normal way of writing, then hey they must be good! After all it is your article, write it however you see fit.

  9. Marcus says:

    To the staff of H+,

    Please do better than this. I’m sure I’m not the only reader who comes to this website for news, not advertorials.

  10. Richard Clark Kaufman, PhD says:

    PEA and Phenethylamines Pass the Blood-Brain Barrier… from the mind of Richard Clark Kaufman PhD

    The biogenic amines are an important class of transmitters synthesized from precursor amino acids. Well known are the major amines serotonin, dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine, which fulfill important roles as neuromodulators. These neurotransmitters have been well studied and both their neurochemistry and their involvement in brain pathologies are relatively well understood. There is another group of amines synthesized in the body especially the brain. They are known as the “trace amines” This group includes tyramine, octopamine, tryptamine, and my current favorite PEA (beta-phenylethylamine).

    PEA is lipid soluble and unlike the major amine transmitters, readily crosses the blood-brain-barrier. As such a greater percentage of the neurotransmitter is able to diffuse out of the brain and significant levels of this “trace” neurotransmitter appear in the urine.

    Amphetamines which readily cross the blood barrier from oral administration are a synthetic analog of beta-phenethylamine The only difference between an amphetamine like Aderall and beta-phenylethylamine is a methyl group (CH3) attached on the second ethyl carbon. I have not seen any research discussing how a methyl group substitution alters the passage beta-phenethylamine and phenethylamine derivatives past the blood barrier into the brain.

    Note: The group of phenethylamine derivatives is referred to as the “phenethylamines”. The substituted phenethylamines and substituted amphetamines class of compounds derived from phenethylamine include: stimulants, psychedelics, and antidepressants. For example, MDMA (Ecstasy) is a phenethylamine derivative like amphetamines (Speed) that people commonly know reach the brain after their oral or intranasal administration.

    For more information please review:

    Oldendorf WH. Brain uptake of radiolabeled amino acids, amines, and hexoses after arterial injection. Am J Physiol. 1971 Dec;221(6):1629-39.
    Shulgin, A. Phenethylamines I Have Known And Loved: A Chemical Love Story By Alexander and Ann Shulgin, 1991, http://www.erowid.org/library/books_online/pihkal/pihkal.shtml

    Lastly. I never wrote a diet book. I wrote the “Age Reduction System: A Complete Program to Slow to Help Slow, Halt or Retard Aging”. The Age Reduction System was published by Rawson Associates, a division of Macmillan Publishing.

  11. To hPlus readers and staff, I am the President and CEO of Neurvana Edge, Inc., I wanted to try to clarify a few things about our products and comment on a few of the posts about this outstanding article that RU put together with Dr. Kaufman.

    Firstly I did not join Neurvana Edge nor accept the offer that Dr. Kaufman presented to me to run the company because I saw dollar signs. I accepted his offer because I believed in the products that he has formulated. I believed in the products because I have personally been using them for almost 2 years and they DO meet the descriptions that that are stated on our website, well for me personally they do.

    Brief history, I was an amateur body builder in my younger years, sponsored by Twin Labs, they fed my almost $1,000.00 per month in vitamins, protein shakes, thermogenic energy blends and the like. None of these supplements that I was fed gave me the response that Dr. Kaufmans’ formulations have.

    Moving on to some of the posts that I have briefly read. It seems as if there is a few people that do not understand how our shipping matrix is designed. It is very simple how this works and we will updated our site to explain this a little better as we are at fault for not being concise about this.

    All Bottle Orders:
    Currently we offer shipping rates at a flat cost of $6.95 per ORDER, via USPS, we offer 2 day air via UPS for a flat rate of $13.45 per order. If your cart has over $150.00 in product the within it shipping is free via USPS. This only applies to orders within the Continental United States. If you are an international customer the system rate shops, currently, only USPS air. We understand that these rates are a bit high and are working on rate shopping with all of the carriers for International related orders.

    All Sample Packs:
    All of our sample packs are FREE from us, but we have to charge what our fulfillment center charges us to pack, ship, track, handle returns etc… The cost to us is $5.00 per item. So what exactly does this mean? If you have 2 samples packs the sample is FREE, but the cost for order fulfillment is $10.00. We apologize for this, but if we were packing these items in the basement of our homes then we would not have to pay anyone, but this is not the case, we are a real business, with real costs, so we give you the sample for free and pass through our actually fulfillment house costs, simple.

    Now if you have 1 sample and 1 bottle in the cart the cost of shipping is $5.00 for the sample pack and the current discount code takes the $6.95 off of the cost of the shipping for the bottle. I understand that this may be confusing to some, so what I am going to do is change the hplus code to give a discount of $11.95 on the order as a whole, so now you will be able to add 1 sample pack and 1 bottle to your order. If you just get 1 bottle you will receive the $11.95 discount regardless of having a sample pack in the cart or not. If you have just the samples packs, unfortunately this will not work and you will be charged the pass through cost of $5.00 from our fulfillment house.

    Moving on to claims in general. I personally feel that everything, regardless of what it is, chocolate, food, drugs, supplements, etc., all have a different effect on you then the next guy, why? Because your body processes things differently then the next guy, so whats the problem here? I personally do not see one, what I see is the opinions based on either individual results of a product or personal opinions based on the research performed by same. I mean in all honestly the internet is a wealth of information at your finger tips, so use it and determine your own outcome of the health industry, medical industry, advertising industry and the like.

    Here are a few Google search terms to help you decide if what Dr. Kaufman has stated in this article is fact or fiction:

    http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&q=beta+phenylethylamine%2Badhd&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

    http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&q=beta+phenylethylamine%2Bfocus&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

    http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&q=beta+phenylethylamine%2Bintelligence&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

    http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&q=beta+phenylethylamine%2Bscience&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=

    We do have a very nice literature section of our site if you would like to read a little more on the science behind our products:
    http://www.neurvanaedge.com/literature

    As I stated earlier our products work for me and this is the only, and I mean only reason why I believe in what we formulate and sell. As Dr. Kaufman stated, Try it, if you don’t like it send it back, does not get any easier then that.

    Again, I would like to thank everyone for their input on this article regardless of some of the negative statements made.

  12. Chance says:

    Alright, the investigation continues and this company is becoming more and more suspicious. Please look at my most recent evidence. Neurvanaedge.com when looked up through a whois search results in it being hosted and registered to Stan Weatherby III. I did some poking around to find out who this was and determined that he was a internet entrepreneur and had a hosting service. So I dismissed this as likely being irrelevent and was simply the host that Neurvana used for whatever reason. Then digging deeper I discovered this history capture of a Neurvana auto-mailer for subscribers of a neurvana news letter. It was from when Neurvana was officially becoming Neurvana Edge. http://us1.campaign-archive.com/?u=99d7fe4b3aeedb99b37de30c4&id=3f3ce23bfd Now take a close look at the signer of the letter. Stan Weatherby III, CEO and Founder of Neurvana. Now wait, doesn’t their website list Dr. Kaufman as the founder… Alright, for more evidence that Stan Weatherby is the owner, check out this exchange between him and one of his techies: http://support.trackthepack.com/discussions/problems/1-i-dont-get-it Ok, now over to linkedin. Stan Weatherby III is there. He does not list Neurvana in his list of business experiences, we can conclude that it must then be part of his "Weatherby Technology Group". Weatherby technology group is behind a large number of startup web businesses including: – pregametalk.com – mailcircuit.net – istreamlive.tv – datingnumber.com There are 35 domains in total associated with Stan Weatherby III. Now back to Neurvana.com. It claims that their address is "2554 Lincoln Blvd #250 Marina Del Rey, CA 90291" that address does not physically exist, it is a box at a postal center. Their billing address is PRIVATE ADDRESS REMOVED BY H+. which is a private residence. PRIVATE INFORMATION REMOVED BY H+. I don’t see why this would be, if this was a respectable nutritional supplement company. Furthermore, Nuervana does not appear in the California registry of businesses on this site: http://kepler.sos.ca.gov/ I find this all very curious… All this in itself is not a bad thing, and I don’t mean any harm to Mr. Weatherby or his business if he is not doing anything wrong. But all of these pieces of evidence add up to one very suspicious, disreputable seeming operation. Because I cannot possibly perform a full investigation on this matter, but the more I dig, the more concerning this becomes I have reported NeurvanaEdge to the FTC for further investigation.

    • Chance, or whatever your real name is:

      No, I am not the founder of Neurvana Edge, Inc. I run the day to day operations, as a President/CEO does. Dr. Kaufman is the founder.

      Yes, I am 1 of several owners of Neurvana Edge, Inc.

      No, I do not own 35 domains, but I am noted on Several Thousand.

      Whois output: http://www.moniker.com/whois/whois.jsp?domain=NEURVANAEDGE.COM

      Yes, I have been involved in many start up businesses, but I am much more then just an Internet Entrepreneur.

      Yes, we are not a registered corporation with California, simply because we are a Delaware Corporation: https://delecorp.delaware.gov/tin/GINameSearch.jsp File number: 4795980

      I am not 100% sure what your intent here is, or why you feel it necessary to slander a legitimate business with legitimate owners in a public forum with inaccurate information. I have seen competitors do this before, but you, as with anyone else, can call us between the hours of 8am – 5pm, pst Mon – Fri.

      Concerns can also be submitted through our online contact form:
      http://www.neurvanaedge.com/contacts/. All information submitted on the contact form is over an encrypted TLS SMTP server. And the privacy of your submission is adhered to per our online Privacy Policy:
      http://www.neurvanaedge.com/track#answer2

      It does seem as if you have serious concerns, so please be sure to list all of the concerns that you may have in detail.

      Depending on the exact concerns you have, I will either get in touch with you personally, at my earliest convenience, or have the appropriate department/firm get in touch with you.

      Please do not bother posting your response, if any, here as they will go unanswered by me.

      I felt an answer to your concerns was in order so I replied, after all, the information you have provided to this public forum has been false since your first post.

    • IMMUNEHUMAN says:

      I would like to congratulate Chance for taking the initiative and researching more about the suspicious claims made by Neurvana.

      Shame on H+ for the advertorial slump and to Dr. Kaufman for his shady approach to establishing his credentials.

      A surprising lack of peer reviewed articles and lack of double blind tested products make Neurvana seem like a product for chumps.

      Charlatans love to hide in the shadows!

  13. Isadore Fulcrum says:

    I’ve been experiencing Neurvana for 18 months. I’ve also been a fan of HPlus since its inception. I’ve tried the entire family of Neurvana Products. Firstly, for athletes, the combination of MoodBrightener & BodySlim is outstanding for the energy it provides and the lasting mood shift while your into training. I’m also a big fan of Tranquil, not all the time, but when I really need a good nights sleep it works, plain and simple, I get 7 uninterrupted hours of sleep and awaken completely refreshed. I enjoy these products a lot and will continue to in the months and years to come. Thank you Dr. Kaufman.

  14. Matt Brown says:

    If the best H+ can come up with is a free advertisement for a supplement company that doesn’t have to prove a single thing it claims, which is par for the course with supplement companies, run by a man who’s sole claim to fame as far as I’ve been able to find is authoring one diet of the week book and who’s main evidence for the efficacy of his claims is that people are still buying his products than I really have to wonder whether or not it’s worth coming to this site anymore.

    Hope you enjoy your schwag Sirius.

  15. Virge says:

    “An increasing number of health practitioners are using NEURVANA Edge Formulations in complementary and alternative therapy for their patients, so we do get to monitor their clinical progress and patient outcomes. I would argue with skeptics that if the NEURVANA formulations didn’t work on their patients, the physicians would stop ordering.”

    I see what you did there.
    Sentence 1 refers to “health practitioners”
    Sentence 2 promotes them to “physicians”

    Let’s try some simple substitutions and see if the logic still works:
    “I would argue with skeptics that if the _homeopathy_ formulations didn’t work on their patients, the _health practitioners_ would stop ordering.”
    Does it still sound reasonable? Of course not. Distributors will keep ordering products that they can make money on, and people will happily buy placebos. Double blind tests are important. Don’t hand-wave them away with bundles of references to possibly related studies.

    A hint to R.U. Sirius: When you hear someone use a line like “if the xxxxxx formulations didn’t work on their patients, the physicians would stop ordering,” you should immediately be on your guard. This is a textbook example of how to market snake oil. It should make you far more suspicious about other sciency-sounding claims.

    I’m not claiming that these products don’t work. It’s just that I’ve seen too many very similar claims made about products that have been shown not to work.

    It quacks like a quack.

  16. Richard Clark Kaufman, PhD says:

    To H+ Magazine Readers…

    My intent of the interview was to inform the readership of H+ Magazine about the practical benefits of beta-phenylethylamine (PEA) based on published scientific research. It was not presented as a scientific treatise.

    If you are interested in better understanding a portion of PEA’s clinical potential from a scientific perspective, please read the article that follows. Go on on Medline or Embase to order the the journal articles cited in the references and study the literature. If you really want to separate fact from fiction, order a bottle of NEURVANA. (There is a 100% money back guarantee)

    Richard Clark Kaufman, PhD

    ————————————————————-
    The Role and Use of PEA in Depression & Neurobehavioral Disorders

    The Phenyethylamine Hypothesis of Depression
    According to the “Phenylethylamine Hypothesis of Depression” proposed in 1974, the endogenous trace amine beta-phenylethylamine (PEA) sustains psychological energy just as thyroid hormone sustains physical energy And a deficit of PEA produces depressions. The Phenylethylamine hypothesis goes on to state that PEA is a neuromodulator of mood, attention, pleasure-seeking behavior, and libido.

    The phenylethylamine hypothesis led to simple safe and effective way of treating depression and other affective disorders by based on years of research conducted by Dr. Hector Sabelli and colleagues. Take an oral replacement of PEA as replacement to correct an underlying deficiency or defect in neural transmitter functioning. The majorities of depressed individuals show a significant reduction in their symptoms or have complete recovery without any adverse reactions. Plus, there’re is significant increases in cognitive performance functions, attention, awareness, and feelings of pleasure, libido, normal social behavior and sense of wellbeing.

    PEA… More than Endogenous Amphetamine in our Brain
    The Phenylethylamine Hypothesis of Depression stems from the observation that amphetamines increased energy and relieved depressive symptoms of depressive patients. Amphetamine is essentially phenylethylamine with an added methyl group. Studies show that PEA induces behavioral and electrophysiological effects similar to those of amphetamine. Unlike amphetamine, PEA is endogenous to the brain and does not develop tolerance or dependency, or produce any side effects.

    The stimulant effects of amphetamines and PEA are attributed to the release of catecholamines (noradrenalin, dopamine). This is the basis for the catecholamine hypothesis of depression. However current research shows that PEA is significantly more effective than amphetamine in relieving depression and has therapeutic value in a wide range of neurological and behavioral disorders,

    Endogenous Mesencephalic Enhancer and Transmitter Signal Amplifier
    Starting around 1995, Dr Joesph Knoll and his colleagues began presenting their evidence of PEA as an endogenous “mesencephalic enhancer”. There are enhancer-sensitive neurons in the brain work in a split-second on a high activity level due to endogenous enhancer substances. The mesencephalic enhancer PEA enhancers of the impulse propagation mediated release of catecholamines (dopamine, epinephrine) and serotonin in the brain.
    PEA is a “Neuroamplier” of transmitter signals. PEA enhances the electronic coupling in the synaptic gap junction of linked regions of cells for greater signal strenght in the pulses of neurotranmsitter release. PEA increases sing the signal-to-noise ratio for stronger signal firing. This means that PEA more efficiently couples the release of neurotransmitters to the electrical impulse that triggers their release. This turns up the volume level of catecholamime nerve activity for enhancing their overall effects causing a larger release of neurotransmitters in response to a given nerve signal. It’s like amplifying the volume level of of neurotransmitter activity.

    PEA induces higher concentration, continuous strong release, and greater activity of dopamine (for motivational drive, feelings of pleasure and sense of wellbeing), norepinephrine (the brain’s stimulant for wakefulness, alertness, energy and attention) acetylcholine (for memory, learning, smartness and cognitive functions), and serotonin (for good moods and feelings, and impulse control).

    It’s well known that catecholamines and serotonin in the brain play a crucial role in the control of mood. Major depression is associated with a deficiency in the activity of these systems, providing the rational for antidepressant effect of enhancer substances like PEA

    Neuromodulator that alters Transporter Functions by binding TAAR1
    Studies conducted in the last five years, have focused on how PEA and other trace amines function as a neuromodulator and alter monoamine transporter function by binding with paired Trace Amine-Associated Receptors (TAAR). TAAR1 is a G protein coupled receptor that’s activated by PEA and certain monoamines and amphetamine-related psychostimulants.

    The activation of TAAR1 by PEA significantly inhibits the uptake and induces efflux of its partner neurotransmitters- dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. These actions by PEA increase the extracellular levels of these neurotransmitters by inhibiting their reuptake into the presynaptic cell. And this increases their available level to bind to the postsynaptic receptor.

    Furthermore, PEA self-regulates transmitter activity to prevent over-excitation of under-stimulation transmitter signal strength and activity. Thus PEA acts as an homeostatic controller to maintain the neuronal activity of monoamine neurotransmitters within defined physiological limits. This makes PEA and other trace amines perfect candidates for the development of novel therapeutics for a wide range of human disorders. Their therapeutic potential is supported by numerous pharmaceutical companies conducting active trace amine research projects.

    The Therapeutic Use of PEA in Neurobehavioral Disorders
    According to this model, PEA may be therapeutically useful in any disorder associated with an alteration in the functioning of its partner neurotransmitters. In the case of PEA, it’s primarily the transmitter’s dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin and acetylcholine. This gives PEA the ability to alleviate the symptoms of vast number neurological dysfunctions and behavioral disorders without addressing the underlying pathology of the disease.

    Convincing evidence has been presented for using PEA in the treatment for a wide range of neurological dysfunctions and behavioral disorders. A current list with extensive references (under PEA Therapeutics in the Reference Section) includes:

    • AFFECTIVE DISORDERS ( depression, bipolar disorder)
    • ATTENTION DEFICIT / HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER (very short attention span, impulsiveness, hyperactivity, distractibility)
    • COGNTIVE DYSFUNCTON ( brain fog, confusion forgetfulness, poor concentration, sluggish cognitive tempo slowed reaction times, diminished awareness)
    • DRUG ABUSE & SUBSTANCE DEPENDENCE (alcoholism, nicotine dependence, addictions to methamphetamines, cocaine opiods & pyschostimulants)
    • ADDICTED BEHAVIOR (gambling, sexual addiction)
    • EATING DISORDERS (obesity. anorexia)
    PEA’s Antidepressant, Anti-Anxiety & Attention-Focusing Potential
    There is clear, distinct difference in PEA’s effectiveness on catecholminergic and serotonergic neurons. PEA is more potent in enhancing the stimulation-evoked release and reuptake of catecholamines especially dopamine when compared with serotonin. This indicates that PEAs neurmodulation in catecholaminergic and serotonergic neurons is not identical on the molecular level.

    There is substantial evidence that PEA produces stronger actions as a NDRI (Norepinephrine-Dopamine Reuptake Inhibitor) than as an SSRI (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) Their combined actions indicate how PEA works as an antidepressant, anti-anxiety, anti-addiction and attention-focusing complement or alternative to standard treatments.
    • PEA has actions of an NDRI such as Ritalin Wellbutrin, Zyban, etc.
    •PEA has actions of an SSRI like Celexa, Orizac and Paxil, etc.

    In terms of safety, PEA does produce the adverse reactions and side effects of the popular pharmaceutical NDRIs and SSRIs. It’s due to PEA’s self-regulating mechanisms of synaptic transport and receptor functioning, homeostatic control of neurotransmissions and intrinsic neuroprotective properties.

    Treating Depression with PEA…An Early Case Study
    It was discovered that the amount of PEA in the brains of depressed patients was less than that of normal individuals, and giving PEA orally to individuals suffering from depression reversed the depressive condition. In fact, most antidepressant drug treatments act by increasing the level of PEA in the brain.
    In one study, PEA was shown to decrease the symptoms of depression in 60% the patients tested, the same outcome expected from taking an SSRI. The patients did not develop tolerance, and PEA remained effective over time. None of the side effects associated with conventional antidepressant drugs was experienced. About 60% showed immediate recovery in as little as a half an hour. Most patients did not gain weight. In fact many actually lost the weight they had gained on the conventional antidepressant therapy.

    General References
    • Sabelli, H. (2002). Phenylethylamine deficit and replacement in depressive Illness. In D. Mishooulon and J.F. Rosenbaum. (Eds.), Natural medications for psychiatric disorders. (pp 83-110), Baltimore: Lippencott Williams and Wilkins.
    • Sabelli, H. (2000). Aminoacid precusors for depression. Psychiatric Times, 17. 42-49
    PEA control of depression in 60% of depressed patients; the same percentage as major antidepressants like Prozac–but without adverse effects. .
    • Sabelli, H. (1998). Phenylethylamine replacement as a rapid and physiological treatment for depression. Psycheline, 2,(3), 32-39.
    • Sabelli, H., Fink, P., Fawcett, J. and Tom, C. (1996). Sustained antidepressant effect of PEA replacement. Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 8, 168-171.
    • Sabelli, H.C and Javaid J.I. (1995). Phenylethylamine modulation of affect: Therapeutic and diagnostic implications. Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 7, 6-14.
    • Sabelli, H.C., Fahrer, R, Doria Medina R, and Ortiz Frágola E. (1994). Phenylethylamine replacement rapidly relieves depression. Journal of Neuropsychiatry, 6, 203.
    Reduction in PEA metabolism with depression in psychiatric patients
    • Gonzalez-Sastre in Spain, 1988, Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 78,208-210.
    • Sabelli, H., Carlson-Sabelli, L., Levy, A. and Patel, M. (1995). Anger, fear, depression and crime: Physiological and psychological studies using the process method. In Robertson and Combs (Eds.), Chaos Theory in the Life Sciences. (pp 65-88), Mahwah, New Jersey: Erlbaum. Sandler, et al, in the UK, 1979, (Clin Chim Acta, 93,169-171.
    • Sabelli, H., Javaid, J., Fawcett, J. and Kravitz, H. (1990). Urinary phenylacetic acid in panic disorder with and without depression, Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 82, 14-16.
    • Sabelli, H.C, Fawcett, J, Gusovsky, F, et al. (1983). Urinary phenylacetate: a diagnostic test for depression? Science, 220, 1187-1188.
    • Sabelli, H.C., Fawcett, J, Gusovsky, F. et al (1986). Clinical studies on the phenylethylamine hypothesis of affective disorder, Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 47, 66-70.
    • Tsugi, et al, in Japan, 1986, Anal Biochem, 153,116-120.
    PEA as a Mesencephalic Enhancer and Neurotransmitter Signal Amplifier
    • Knoll, J. The Brain and Its Self: A Neurochemical Concept of Innate and Acquired Drives. (2005) Springer Verlag
    • Knoll, J. Enhancer regulation/Endogenous and Synthetic Enhancer Compounds: A Neurochemical Concept of the Innate and Acquired Drives. Neurochem Res (2003) 28:1187-1209.
    • Knoll, J., 1994. Memories of my 45 years in research. Pharmacol. Toxicol. 75, 65– 72.
    • Knoll, J., 1998. (_)Deprenyl (selegiline), a catecholaminergic activity enhancer (CAE) substance acting in the brain. Pharmacol. Toxicol.82, 57– 66.
    • Knoll, J., Knoll, B., Miklya, I., 1996b. High performing rats are more sensitive toward catecholaminergic activity enhancer (CAE) compounds than their low performing peers. Life Sci. 58, 945–952.
    • Knoll, J., Miklya, I., Knoll, B., Marko´ , R., Ra´cz, D., 1996c. Phenylethylamine and tyramine are mixed-acting sympathomimetic amines in the brain. Life Sci. 58, 2101– 2114
    • Knoll J. Antiaging compounds: (-)deprenyl (selegeline) and (-)1-(benzofuran-2- yl)-2-propylaminopentane, [(-)BPAP], a selectivehighly potent enhancer of the impulse propagation mediated release of catecholamine and serotonin in the brain. CNS Drug Rev 2001; 7: 317-45.
    • Knoll J, Yoneda F, Knoll B, Ohde H, Miklya I. (-)1-(Benzofuran-2- yl)-2-propylaminopentane, [(-)BPAP], a selective enhancer of the impulse propagation mediated release of catecholamines and serotonin in the brain. Br J Pharmacol 1999; 128: 1723-32 Paterson IA, Juorio AV, Boulton AA. 2-Phenylethylamine: a modulator of catecholamine transmission in the mammalian central nervous system? J Neurochem 1990; 55: 1827-37
    PEA and Catecholamines
    • Borison RL, Mosnaim AD, Sabelli HC. Brain 2-phenylethylamine as a major mediator for the central actions of amphetamine and methylphenidate. Life Sci 1975; 17: 1331-4
    • Fuxe K, Grobecker H, Jonsson J. The effect of β-phenylethylamine on central and peripheral monoamine-containing neurons. Eur J Pharmacol 1967; 2: 202-7.
    • Janssen PA, Leysen JE, Megens AA, Awouters FH. Does phenylethylamine act as an endogenous amphetamine in some patients? Int J Neuropsychopharmcol 1999; 2: 229-240.
    noradrenaline, dopamine and 5-hydroxytryptamine. Eur J Pharmacol 1977; 41: 133-43.
    • Parker EM, Cubeddu LX. Comparative effects of amphetamine, phenylethylamine and related drugs on dopamine efflux, dopamine uptake and mazindol binding. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 1988; 245: 199-210.
    PEA, Trace Amines and TARR1
    • Berry, M.D., The Potential of Trace Amines and Their Receptors for Treating Neurological and Psychiatric Diseases. Reviews on Recent Clinical Trials, 2007, 2, 3-19 3
    • Branchek TA, Blackburn TP. Trace amine receptors as targets for novel therapeutics: legend, myth and fact. Curr Opin Pharmacol 2003; 3: 90-97.
    • Kim K-A, von Zastrow M. Old drugs learn new tricks: insights from mammalian trace amine receptors. Mol Pharmacol 2001; 60: 1165-7.
    • Xie Z, Miller GM. Beta-phenylethylamine alters monoamine transporter function via trace amine-associated receptor 1: implication for modulatory roles of trace amines in brain. Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics 2008 May: 325(2):617-28.
    • Xie, Z., Miller, G.M., Trace Amine-Associated Receptor 1 Is a Modulator of the Dopamine Transporter. April 2007 vol. 321 no. 1 128-136 Reynolds GP. Phenylethylamine – a role in mental illness. Trends Neurosci 1979; 2: 265.
    • Borison RL, Mosnaim AD, Sabelli HC. Brain 2-phenylethylamine as a major mediator for the central actions of amphetamine and methylphenidate. Life Sci 1975; 17: 1331-43
    • Premont RT, Gainetdinov RR, Caron MG. Following the trace of elusive amines. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2001; 98: 9474-5.

    PEA Therapeutics
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    Wistar rats. Brain Res Bull 1985; 15: 183-9.
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    • Putting down every reference with the words “phenylethylamine” in them does not make the case for Neurvana products any stronger.

      As I said in a previous note in this thread, orally administered phenylethylamine never makes it to the brain, Knoll’s experiments were done in vitro or in rats and didn’t focus on PEA, and you seem to have zero peer-reviewed work to support any of your claims.

      Conflating the effects of endogenous PEA synthesized in situ with products containing it is a logical error at best, an attempt to mislead at worst.

      • Richard Clark Kaufman, PhD says:

        Athena Andreadis… Have an open mind!

        Athena,
        Misuse of your knowledge that I respect has lead to false conclusions concerning my work. Your statement “every statement in this interview is a combination of the following: straight nonsense, word salad and/or intrinsically impossible.” leaves no room for discussion as the deity of absolute truth.

        Let me respond to your “A few specifics, staying just on the very top layer” relative to NEURVANA. I look forward to your response. If you’re interested Athena, I will send you some NEURVANA product samples for you to evaluate. If you like them, I would appreciate your testimonial.

        Richard Clark Kaufman

        — Phenibut has severe withdrawal effects,

        The reports of Phenibut withdrawal are dose dependent. Among our large population of long time users our TRANQUIL formulation in which Phenibut is only one of several active ingredients, we have no reported complaints of severe withdrawal effects. We keep daily dosages of Phenibut below 500 mg to decrease the likelihood of withdrawal effects and desensitization. This is far cry from users ingesting 500 to 2000 mg/day that have reported withdrawal effects.

        Other nutraceuticals in our formulation effect neural inhibitory pathways, neuroendocrine homeostatic regulation and circadian control systems that have demonstrated in research an ability to prevent occurrences of anxiety and sleep pattern disturbances; and stabilize/entrain circadian rhythm synchronicity.

        I believe this is a viable natural safe alternative to prescription SSRI’s and Benzodiazepines that produce a laundry list of severe adverse reactions.
        http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC181155/
        http://www.benzo.org.uk/adv.htm

        — Orally administered PEA doesn’t get anywhere close to the brain — it gets metabolized by monoamine oxidase way before that; brain PEA is synthesized in situ,

        No true. The research of Dr Edmund Fischer, Hector Sabelli and others research refutes your contention that: “orally administered PEA doesn’t get anywhere close to the brain”.

        We circumvent the problem of monoamine oxidase degradation in NEURVANA formulations by 1) providing sufficiently high dosages of PEA, 2) inclusions of natural MAO inhibitors and 3) using protective nanosphere delivery systems for helping transport PEA into the brain.

        May I suggest reading the article by Hector Sabelli “Phenethylamine deficit and Replacement in Depressive Illnesses”. Natural Medications for Psychiatric Disorders by David Mischoulon and Jerrold Rsoenbaum published in 2002 by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

        — The vaunted liposome delivery system has been used by biologists in academia, biotech and medicine for the last 25 years,

        I don’t use liposomes and I don’t like liposome carriers. I tried formulating nutraceuticals into pegylated-liposomes that unfortunately didn’t work. My nanosized delivery system of choice for encapsulating nutraceuticals is solid lipid particles and nano-emulsions. In fact, I filed a patent for encapsulating nutraceuticals into lipid nano-sized particle carries.

        My “Nanospheres –SL” are lipoprotein-like solid lipid nanospheres synthesized from natural lipids that have a solid form and a diameter less than 60nm. They are dynamic structures synthesized from natural lipid surfactants and contain an encapsulated lipid inner core phase surrounded by a phospholipid layer. They provide controlled release, efficient targeting, and stability to its cargo or payload. The lipophilic interior of the outer membrane and inner core of the solid lipid nanosphere particles makes it possible to incorporate high levels (up to 90%) of the nutraceutical substance

        These nanospheres have a solid form that is distinguishable by a single lamella and very small size. . Nano-sized small unilamellar vesicles (SUV) are surrounded by one membrane and have diameters that range from 25nm to 50nm. When combined biological agents, they’re a highly effective, unique carrier particle for systemic distribution including extravascular transit, targeted cell uptake, and avoiding undesirable uptake by the Reticuloendothelial System.

        I also employ “Self-emulsifying Lipid Nanopsheres” which are isotropic mixtures of oils, surfactants, solvents and co-solvents/surfactants which emulsify spontaneously to produce fine oil-in-water emulsions when introduced into aqueous phase under gentle agitation. They are used for the design of formulations in order to improve the oral absorption of highly lipophilic nutrients. The oral delivery of hydrophobic agents presents a major challenge because of their low aqueous solubility.

        Here is a good overview of this technology:
        Radtke, M. Nanostructured Lipid Carriers: A Novel Generation of Solid Lipid Drug Carriers PHARMACEUTICAL TECHNOLOGY EUROPE, 17(4) 45–50 (2005) http://www.ptemagazine.com

        — I have access to MedLine, PubMed etc; all of Knoll’s work was done either in cell culture or in rodents

        Not all of Knoll’s work was done in cell culture or rodents. He and his colleagues discovered Deprenyl (selegeline) around 1964-1965. It was originally developed as a psychic energizer, designed to integrate some amphetamine-like brain effects with antidepressant effects. Deprenyl is a PEA is a derivative of PEA and has become a standard treatment for Parkinson’s disease.

        Successful clinical studies with deprenyl were executed in depression and in the two age-related neuro-degenerative diseases: Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. The first clinical study performed in depressed patients by Dr. Varga with deprenyl was published in 1965. The clinical use of deprenyl in Parkinson’s disease started in 1977. The first two papers demonstrating the effectiveness of deprenyl in Alzheimer’s disease appeared in 1987. Deprenyl was originally developed with the intention to be used as a new spectrum antidepressant. Its effectiveness was first demonstrated with the racemic form of the compound by Dr. Varga and his coworkers in 1965 and 1967 and with the enantiomer in 1971. The first study that corroborated the antidepressant effect of deprenyl was published by Dr. Mann and Dr. Gershon in 1980.

        — there are zero peer-reviewed papers by Clark Kaufman in these databases.

        The simple truth. For years I have conducted research, created nutraceutical formulations/products and authored scientific papers for numerous manufacturing laboratories and companies under restrictive secrecy agreements. Many of these companies are leaders in manufacturing products for practitioners the field of Complementary & Alternative Medicine and Integrative Medicine. In many cases, well known respected Physicians market my formulations and present my research under their branded names.

    • Chance says:

      I am curious Dr if you have any evidence that PEA crosses the blood brain barrier before it degrades?

      I have no doubt that PEA effects the brain in many ways, considering that it is a natural chemical found in the brain. None of your references show that these pills will cause PEA to get into your brain, however.

      I also don’t mean to disparage you if you are legitimate, but I would really like to see evidence to the fact that you hold a Doctorate, and what field it is in. Please tell me what university you attended. If it really was one of the schools that are part of the University of Brussels, which one was it? I find it very odd that any person who has a doctorate degree would have so little information about them on the internet.

      I would also like to point out that several of your sources are malformed or appear to have no relevance to the topic, such as:

      • Greenshaw AJ, Juorio AV, Boulton AA. Behavioral and neurochemical effects of deprenyl and β-phenylethylamine in (Incomplete)
      • Greenshaw AJ, Sanger DJ, Blackman DE. Effects of damphetamineand of β-phenylethylamine on fixed interval (Incomplete)
      • Lawford BR, Young RM, Noble EP, et al. The D(2) dopamine receptor A(1) allele and opioid dependence: association with heroin use and response to methadone treatment. Am J Med Genet 2000; 96: 592-8.(Completely unrelated, I read the article here: http://www.foodaddictionsummit.org/docs/7Noble.pdf, it is if anything only peripherally related to one of your arguments)
      • Neuropsychiatr Genet 2003; 116: 103-25 (This is actually the rest of the citation from the previous line…)

      So seriously, do you expect me to just see words and shrink away from my investigation. I want proof, not techno-babble.

      Also, even if your arguments for PEA are valid, why should we buy your product which only has 185 mg per tablet when we could buy 750mg per tablet pure PEA from other sites, like “Cognitive Nutrition” for significantly cheaper…

  17. Brian says:

    This article was nothing more than a very long ad and I’m extremely disappointed in h+. Some of the content in the article is straight off the sales pitch on the Neurvana site. The quality of the product I cannot comment on but if you want to write about it then write about it, don’t just regurgitate a sales pitch to us and call it an article.

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