TY - JOUR
T1 - Focus on Cognitive Enhancement: A Narrative Overview of Nootropics and ‘Smart Drug’ Use and Misuse
AU - Schifano, Fabrizio
AU - Bonaccorso, Stefania
AU - Arillotta, Davide
AU - Corkery, John Martin
AU - Floresta, Giuseppe
AU - Papanti, Gabriele Duccio
AU - Guirguis, Amira
N1 - © 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
PY - 2025/9/11
Y1 - 2025/9/11
N2 - Whilst ‘nootropics’ are meant to treat a range of medical disorder-related cognitive impairments, the typically healthy ‘smart drugs’ user ingests a range of drugs/molecules to achieve improved mental performance. Given the increasing levels of related concerns, this study aimed to provide an overview of the clinical pharmaco-logical issues relating to both the most popular nootropics and the vast range of drugs which are being used as putative cognitive enhancers/smart drugs. In terms of the cognitive decline associated with neurological degenerative disorders, a significant variation in research methodology was observed. Therefore, the overall usefulness of these pharmaceuticals in various central nervous system disorders as supple-ments/adjuvant therapy needs to be better established before their widespread use can be recommended. The most popular smart drugs, self-administered to cope with high-perceived stress and academic/work-related pressure, were methylphenidate, modafinil, amphetamine-based compounds, and psychedelics. At present, however, there are relevant levels of uncertainty in terms of smart drugs’ effectiveness in im-proving executive functions. Addressing the health harms associated with cognitive enhancers’ intake remains challenging due to the lack of updated and contextualized epidemiological data. In particular, there appears to be a range of clinical concerns re-lating to the non-prescribed intake of stimulant smart drugs by otherwise healthy in-dividuals. Enhanced training for prescribers, pharmacists and healthcare professionals can strengthen monitoring and early intervention efforts.
AB - Whilst ‘nootropics’ are meant to treat a range of medical disorder-related cognitive impairments, the typically healthy ‘smart drugs’ user ingests a range of drugs/molecules to achieve improved mental performance. Given the increasing levels of related concerns, this study aimed to provide an overview of the clinical pharmaco-logical issues relating to both the most popular nootropics and the vast range of drugs which are being used as putative cognitive enhancers/smart drugs. In terms of the cognitive decline associated with neurological degenerative disorders, a significant variation in research methodology was observed. Therefore, the overall usefulness of these pharmaceuticals in various central nervous system disorders as supple-ments/adjuvant therapy needs to be better established before their widespread use can be recommended. The most popular smart drugs, self-administered to cope with high-perceived stress and academic/work-related pressure, were methylphenidate, modafinil, amphetamine-based compounds, and psychedelics. At present, however, there are relevant levels of uncertainty in terms of smart drugs’ effectiveness in im-proving executive functions. Addressing the health harms associated with cognitive enhancers’ intake remains challenging due to the lack of updated and contextualized epidemiological data. In particular, there appears to be a range of clinical concerns re-lating to the non-prescribed intake of stimulant smart drugs by otherwise healthy in-dividuals. Enhanced training for prescribers, pharmacists and healthcare professionals can strengthen monitoring and early intervention efforts.
KW - cognitive enhancers
KW - smart drugs
KW - drug misuse
KW - psychopharmacology
KW - cognition
KW - nootropics
KW - cognitive dysfunction
U2 - 10.3390/biology14091244
DO - 10.3390/biology14091244
M3 - Review article
SN - 2079-7737
VL - 14
JO - Biology
JF - Biology
IS - 9
M1 - 1244
ER -