Noocube Review: An over-priced, under-powered nootropic

What Is Noocube?

Noocube is one of the most popular nootropics in the world. Although it has been on the market for some time, it has remained popular, despite a lot of negative Noocube reviews and less than flattering chatter on nootropic forums. How has this nootropic remained so popular in the face of so many negative reviews?

According to the Noocube website, this nootropic can:

1. Heighten concentration
2. Increase focus
3. Improve memory
4. Promote learning
5. Reduce stress and anxiety

That is a very ambitious product. With the exception of supporting brain health and promoting neuroplasticity, this is pretty much everything you can expect from a good nootropic.

But does Noocube really work? Is it safe? Will it cause side effects? What is in Noocube? Are there better nootropics on offer right now? Read the detailed Noocube review below and find out! Alternatively, read our Mind Lab Pro review to compare to our current top rated nootropic.

Noocube ingredients

Here is the Noocube ingredients list:

We’ll now go through each Noocube ingredient one-by-one, explaining what the substance does, what the clinical data says, and what we make of the dose. Then we’ll give you our verdict on the Noocube formula as a whole.

Bacopa monnieri -250g

Bacopa monnieri is an incredible cognitive enhancer. Several clinical trials have shown that Bacopa monnieri supplementation drastically improves scores on memory tests in just 6-12 weeks. Older people and people with mild cognitive impairment seem to respond best to Bacopa monnieri, although otherwise healthy people show marked improvements in memory retention and recall after 12 weeks of consistent Bacopa use.

Noocube provides 250mg of Bacopa monnieri per serving. This is a solid dose, although the extract quality is substandard. We’d prefer less Bacopa but a more Bacoside-rich extract.

Cat’s claw extract – 175mg

Cat’s claw is used in some traditional medicines as a general curative. Lots of people claim that supplementing with Cat’s Claw helps with a wide range of ailments, including viruses, ulcers, and other infections. We have seen no evidence to support these claims. We have certainly never seen evidence which supports the idea that Cat’s Claw enhances cognition in any way.

Cat’s claw is not a common ingredient in nootropic stacks today. The only other popular brain supplement which uses this stuff is Alpha Brain; this is a recurring theme with Noocube, which we’ll discuss later!

L-Theanine – 100mg

Theanine is an amino acid found in large quantities in black tea. Theanine has several interesting effects on the body. It has been included in Noocube is no doubt because of its synergistic relationship with caffeine. Thenaine amplifies the beneficial effects of caffeine while simultaneously dampening its negative effects. Theanine thus allows you to enjoy the heightened focus and increased energy of caffeine with less of the jitters and anxiety that come with it. It also promotes restful sleep and has mild cognitive-enhancing effects of its own, although these are mild.

Noocube provides 100mg of Theanine, which is enough to take the edge off your morning coffee and give you a sustained, lasting buzz free of jitters.

Huperzia serrata (0.5% Huperzine A) – 20mg

Huperzia serrata is the only natural source of a nootropic compound called Huperzine A. Huperzine A inhibits the action of an enzyme called acetylcholinesterase. This enzyme gets rid of acetylcholine – the brain’s executive neurotransmitter – once it has been used to send a signal between neurons. By inhibing the enzyme, Huperzine A supplementation causes a steady build-up of acetylcholine in the brain, which means greater executive cognitive capacity (i.e. more focus, faster decision-making, and better working memory).

However, we don’t like seeing Huperzine A in a daily nootropic stack like Noocube. Huperzine A must be cycled; if you don’t take regular breaks, your acetylcholine levels will get out of control and you will experience side effects. This is poor formula creation on Noocube’s part!

Resveratrol 99% – 14.3mg + Pterostilbene – 140mcg

Resveratrol is an antioxidant. It is found in relatively large quantities in grapes, blueberries, raspberries and mulberries (specifically in the skin of these fruits). Pterostilbene is demethylated derivative of resveratrol that is considered more potent. We prefer manufacturers to use pterostilbene rather than resveratrol. Using both seems cheap and pointless.

Having a healthy antioxidant profile at all times is a good way to ensure overall good health, and an excellent way to support cognitive function as you get older. Oxidative damage slowly degrades brain cells over time, inhibiting their function. Since so few of us consume fresh fruits, vegetables, and green tea every day, supplementing with extra antioxidants is a good idea for optimal brain health.

Our verdict: Does Noocube really work?

Does Noocube really work? Is it really one of the best nootropics on the market?

The answer is no, we don’t think much of Noocube at all.

We think it’s pretty clear that Noocube is a kind of diluted version of Alpha Brain, admittedly with a more transparent formula.

It uses some of the same ingredients as Alpha Brain. But curiously, it copies some of the completely useless ingredients you find in Alpha Brain. We don’t see why you would include those ingredients – which have no nootropic properties – if you weren’t copying off an already popular nootropic supplement!

Aside from that, there are serious problems with the Noocube formula.

Noocube contains Huperzine A, which needs to be regularly cycled. Taking constant breaks from your daily nootropic stack is not ideal; it means you’ll never fully benefit from things like Alpha-GPC or Bacopa monnieri.

Noocube also provides a pretty pathetic dose of Alpha-GPC. Every good brain supplement today provides a large dose of a potent cholinergic. The best nootropics today typically contain 300mg of Alpha-GPC, or 200mg of Citicoline. The 50mg of Alpha-GPC we get from this stack is nowhere near enough for you to see benefits.

Then there’s all the useless garbage in the Noocube formula. Lutemax is a vision enhancer. Oat straw doesn’t do anything for cognitive function, and cat’s claw has never been proven to do anything at all!

Noocube side effects: Is it safe?

Is Noocube safe? Will it cause side effects?

Unfortunately the answer is yes, we think Noocube is highly likely to cause side effects if it is used on a daily basis for a prolonged period of time. This is due to the presence of Huperzine A in the Noocube formula.

As explained in the ingredients section, Huperzine A inhibits the enzyme acetylcholinesterase. This causes a steady build-up of acetylcholine in the brain. While this is good in the short-term, if acetylcholine levels get too high, you will start to experience a range of serious side effects.

These side effects include:

1. Headaches
2. Confusion
3. Loss of focus
4. Lack of motivation
5. Lethargy
6. Muscle cramps
7. Muscle spasms

If it vital that you give yourself a cooldown period where your acetylcholine levels fall back down to within normal limits. This typically means using Huperzine A for no longer than 2-3 weeks at a time, before taking a similar amount of time off.

Noocube doesn’t recommend this regimen. In fact, Noocube is advertised as a complete, daily nootropic. This is irresponsible in our opinion. Using Noocube daily will cause side effects!

Noocube review conclusion: Is it a good nootropic?

If you’ve read the full Noocube review above, you’ll know that we are not big fans of this brain supplement. Given the popularity of Noocube, we really were expecting a lot more.

This nootropic is a major disappointment.

Viewed objectively, Noocube looks like a cheap rip-off of Alpha Brain rather than a solid nootropic supplement in its own right.

There are lots of problems with Noocube. The most serious is probably the use of unproven and ineffective ingredients. Each serving of Noocube contains several hundred milligrams of completely useless ingredients, such as Oat Straw and Cat’s Claw. Neither of these substances offer any notable benefits at all, let alone significant enhancements in cognitive function!

The use of two antioxidants that are practically identical – with one being slightly more powerful than the other – is also lazy, wasteful, and cheap.

Then there’s the tiny dose of Alpha-GPC. At 50mg per serving, the makers of Noocube may as well have just left that cholinergic out. Every good nootropic on sale today offers a healthy dose of a potent cholinergic, whereas Noocube does not.

The fact that you need to be constantly taking breaks from Noocube because of the Huperzine A just caps this all off for us; this is not a good nootropic at all.

If you’re looking for a complete, daily nootropic stack for total brain optimization, Noocube is not it!

P. Tardner

Paul Tardner is the Head Writer at IJEST.org. Paul is a former academic and research scientist. He now dedicates his time to his own research into nootropics, with a particular focus on cognitive enhancement in old age. You can learn more about Paul from his profile page.