If you’re one of our long time readers, you may remember an article we put together about a year ago called Nootropics – The Facts About “Smart Drugs”. Though we didn’t cover the CILTeP stack at the time, we covered many other nootropics and smart drugs.
If you haven’t read the article (or have no idea what smart drugs are,) then I highly recommend giving it a read; it’s a pretty good introduction to the wonderful world of intelligence and memory boosting drugs and supplements.
After you’re done, come back and let’s have a chat about a new supplement called CILTEP that I’ve been experimenting with for the past few days year.
Edit: Updates and additions at the end. 9/25/2015
What the heck is a CILTEP stack?
CILTEP stands for Chemically Induced Long Term Potentiation, and in a nutshell, it basically means taking a substance that will help your brain store more in long term memory. I first learned about CILTEP on Reddit and decided to do a deep dive.
At this point, any further explanation delves deep into the realm of hard science, and for that I defer to Abelard Lindsay, the creator of the CILTEP stack. If you listen to this interview he did with SmartDrugSmarts, you’ll learn all about the potent PDE4 inhibiting effects of Artichoke extract, and the cAMP increasing qualities of Forskolin – the two main components of the CILTEP stack. He’ll explain why they work so well together, and what inspired him to combine them. It’s interesting stuff, I promise!
But enough of that. I’m guessing what you really want to hear is: does CILTEP work? Does it dramatically increase memory, recall, and motivation?
3 Days of CILTEP
Before I outline my experiences, I want to point out a few things up front. They may not make sense immediately, but you’ll understand by the time you finish reading this article.
- I haven’t had a cup of coffee in over a decade, and avoid caffeinated drinks.
- I’ve tried just about every nootropic substance under the sun, including all the popular racetams such as Piracetam, Aniracetam, and Pramiracetam. However, I stopped taking them over a month ago to give myself a clean slate after discovering CILTeP on Reddit.
- This CILTEP and “Smart Caffeine” was provided, free of charge, by Natural Stacks for me to experiment with. I asked them for it, not the other way around.
Now, with that out of the way, here is what happened the first day I took CILTEP without caffeine. You may notice I’ve mentioned caffeine a few times, and the reason for that is about to become clear.
Day #1
To start things off, I took 3 x CILTEP capsules, and 0 x Smart Caffeine
Lack of brain chatter. The constant flow of voices in my head were quieted.
I felt like I was living in a memory.
Intense calm and focus.
My face felt slightly warm, and I felt slightly off.
I definitely felt something that day, but I also felt a little strange… almost spaced out. Enough to deter me from trying it again, though? Not a chance.
Day #2
I took 2 x CILTEP capsules, and 1 x Smart Caffeine. Also worth mentioning is that Smart Caffeine is Caffeine + L-Theanine, the substance found in Green Tea.
Deep desire to learn. I actually spent hours practicing French, a language that I loathe, and usually devote only 20 minutes a day to studying, tops.
My mind felt like a sponge. I was easily able to remember new vocabulary from French, as well as a wide range of terms and scientific concepts from the various Futurology articles I spend part of my day poring over.
I felt balanced, and happier than usual, without feeling manic.
Doing tasks, even ones I had been avoiding, felt effortless. I had none of the annoying “start up cost” I usually feel.
As you can see, day two went a lot better. I suspect there are a few reasons for this. For one thing, I seem to be especially susceptible to smart drugs. As an example, even half the usual dose of Noopept would be completely overwhelming for me. When I lowered my dosage of CILTEP, my experience was markedly improved.
Lastly, on my second day I took Smart Caffeine, and here is where I explain why I’m making such a big deal out of caffeine. As you may know, caffeine increases levels of dopamine in the brain. If you listened to Abelard’s interview, you’ll know that Dopamine increase is an important factor in the CILTEP stack. Given that I’ve had so little exposure to caffeine over the years, well… I have a feeling that I feel the effects a lot more than someone who drinks 4 cups of coffee a day.
So the question is, is it simply the caffeine making me feel this way, or does the CILTEP stack just work better with the Caffeine + L-Theanine combo? I’m betting it’s the latter.
Day #3… Kind of.
I’m going to cheat a little here. You see, I’ve actually been using the CILTEP stack for more than 3 days, experimenting with different dosages, and going with and without the Smart Caffeine. Instead of boring you with my daily accounts, I’ll tell you my overall findings in one sentence: CILTEP consistently works better for me when taken in conjunction with Smart Caffeine, ie: Caffeine + L-Theanine. In fact, it works so well, that I’m comfortable giving CILTEP + Smart Caffeine a big thumbs up.
So… Does CILTEP Work?
Despite my off day while I figured out my ideal dosage, CILTEP has been by far the most impressive nootropic I’ve ever tried, period. If you’ve never tried nootropics before, or have, and noticed meager results, then CILTEP might be worth a try. Unlike most racetams, the effects are rapid and extremely noticeable.
You can order the CILTEP + Smart Caffeine combo for $53.90 USD.
If you have any questions about my experience, or the stack in general, I’ll do my best to answer them. Just leave me a comment!
Updates – February 2014
I’ve had quite a few people asking me to do a little update now that I’ve been on CILTeP for a few months. Since I’m about to add something new to the mix (resistant starches), I figured that now would be the time. Here goes…
The question I’m hearing the most is, does the Reddit CILTeP stack still work? I can answer that one quite easily: yes it does!
After discovering CILTeP on Reddit, I’ve used it consistently.
I’m no longer feel the intense focus I had when I started, and I’m fine with that. Instead what I’m left with is excellent, effortless memory. I can still remember the name and address of a new bar I tried out weeks ago. Website urls and article details? Not a problem. As someone that previously had terrible memory, this has been pretty damn great.
Yes, overall I’m still pretty damn happy with CILTeP, and I’m looking forward to seeing what Abelard Lindsay comes up with next.
Hi! I had been searching on this smart pill formula for a bit, glad I found what I needed, thanks for the detailed info, can’t wait to launch my business and focus with this product!
– maria
Really smart dudes note the CILTEP `ingredients’ and then head over to http://www.iherb.com and purchase them separately, thereby saving big bucks and feeling smart about it.
It’s true, this is a less expensive way to do it. In fact, I mention that in the article as well. However, it’s also more annoying to portion out each serving that way. Buying pre-bought pills is a heck of a lot more convenient.
Did you try just the Smart Caffeine? It would be good to understand what was having the most effect for you.
I did recently, actually. I found increased energy, but that’s about it really. I’m not the type of person that needs a cup of coffee to wake up in the morning, so I don’t find Smart Caffeine on it’s own particularly useful.
Just wondering if you’re still taking the combo & if so what your longer term results are. I’ve seen hundreds of 3 day reviews of many products by excited newbie users on Amazon etc. with very few follow ups
I’m currently out and waiting for a re-stock (I was out of town for the holidays), however, I took CILTEP for many weeks and the effects did not diminish.
Would you like me to put together a follow up piece or update? I’ll gladly do so. 🙂
I dunno…..I just finished the 2 bottles I ordered together. I thought they would be a great help, getting back to school. I decided to sign up for Real Estate Sales licensing, and as I haven’t been in a school/study environment for a while, I also purchased the stacks on the same day. I started taking the pills and going to classes. Both the experiment, the bottle quantity and the amount of time to take the courses comfortably were a month’s time, so i thought it would be great to monitor, gauge and note the helpful boost….but frankly, I think I got duds. They didn’t do a thing for me. I easily felt bored in class, mind wandering, nodding off occasionally and just no difference in general. From feeling unmotivated, to lethargic, nothing changed. In the end, I passed the exams but I learned not to buy brain supplements from online sources. Too bad
Thanks for sharing your experience. Have you used any other nootropics before?
If the content and delivery of it is dry to begin with – no nootropic will magically make you take interest. First time trying CILTEP and Smart Caffeine stack today, found a good level of calm and collected caffeine boost.
Great, thanks for sharing. I’ll be interested to hear your experiences after trying it for a few weeks.
Good article, but that affiliate link destroyed the credibility.
I understand, and all I can say is that I’ve slammed as many products as I’ve praised. I like CILTEP a lot, but given that I do this for a living, sometimes the odd affiliate link is a necessity. The rent wont pay itself I’m afraid.
Hey Chad,
Can I ask what’s your weekly routine/dosage of Ciltep and the stack as a whole? Do you take Magtech or a magnesium supplement? I tried Ciltep for the first time last week, felt a bit spaced for first few days and haven’t taken since, not sure if this was just because it was the beginning, I do want to try again though.
I currently take Ciltep on an as needed basis, generally during the week, and with weekends off. I don’t take the caffeine component anymore, as I found I didn’t really need it after all. I do take magnesium, but not MagTech. Having said that, I’ll definitely be trying MagTech in future.
Hey Chad, many thanks for the response. Gonna start it again this time with the Magtech, will update on how it goes for thread. Have you (or has anyone) consumed any alcohol whilst taking Ciltep? Any side effects or known dangers?
Good review, but how do you know it wasn’t just the Smart Caffeine that was working?
I have tested them separately, and I still saw results from just CILTEP alone.
Hey Chad,
Thanks for the perspective. Can you compare CLITeP with modafinil?
-Jack
I can’t at the moment, but that’s something I’m planning to investigate once I return from vacation. 🙂
I purchased artichoke extract and forskolin separately and did like the combination. A relaxed focus is how I would describe it. Similar to how I feel after meditating but a much longer effect.
Concerning Ciltep, I received a bottle as a quarterly.co item in Tim Ferriss’s latest box. I took one pill and had a headache for most of the day. I am not pointing directly to the pill but is this a “side effect” potentially?
I’ve personally never had any headaches with CILTEP, however… I used to get headaches with the *racetam type of nootropics when I wasn’t supplementing with enough choline.
This headache also could have been unrelated? I would try for a few days and see how you feel, i.e, bigger sample size.
Chris,
I take two on waking on an empty stomach, bulletproof coffee 30 mins afterwards with my vits. The first week I exoirienced headaches on a couple of occasions however these stopped. I put it down to it just being new to my system as no probs at all now. I have also added a choline supp with my vits as I read somewhere else also that Ciltep may deplete choline levels.
I have started taking Ciltep and have been satisfied with the results after the first three days. Kindof like my first try of Bulletproof coffee. I found myself cleaning and organizing my office for the first time in months! I seem to have a funny reaction to Ciltep and wondering if anyone else has noticed any eye issues? Blurred vision/light sensitivity maybe? Happens first thing once it kicks in and then more later on in the day. I do take my Ciltep on an empty stomach but follow with Bulletproof coffee about 30 minutes later.
Thank you for your review, and also for the 2014 update.
After months of personal use and discussions with other nootropics users, I’ve reached the conclusion that CILTEP alone has little to no nootropic effect. The “feeling” that one gets from the Natural Stacks CILTEP stack is likely the dopamine boost from ALCAR. In my experience, weeks of daily CILTEP stack use leads to some form of serotonin depletion / severely depressed mood.
This was reported in the original Longecity thread (here: https://www.longecity.org/forum/topic/51732-chemically-induced-ltp/page-70) and also by a handful of my readers.
Imo, more reporting and testing needs to be done with CILTEP and the CILTEP stack before declaring it a “nootropic that works”.
Cheers,
Danny @ Corpina.org
Hey Chad, I took 3 pills first day and 3 the second. I felt a bit of extra energy first day but I also got headaches and small amount of pain behind the eye. Have you or anyone else heard of these or a list of side effects? ( I have read some comments that this is true ) I was hit be for 6, so really unsure compared to the results you and others have been getting. Does one’s diet need to be a certain way or and a comment mentioned about choline levels. Any suggestions?
I’ve never had headache issues with CiLPTE, but certainly did with Piracetam, which was caused by choline depletion. You could try supplementing with choline perhaps?
I have been taking CILTEP ever since it came out. Honestly, I think that if it doesn’t work for you, if it causes headaches or other problems, it is because there is something off about your health. It is possible that people that don’t feel the effect or get sick need to start working on their health and figure out an underlying issue that may be interfering with getting benefits from it. Also, I have a feeling that there may be possibly a genetics part to it, maybe some people are not genetically able to get the benefits other get.
I started taking CILTEP literally right when it came out. I honestly LOVE it. At the beginning, I was taking 3 capsules a day and I felt amazing but after a while, I began to feel like it was too much and began to get a little depressed. What I figured out is that I was taking TOO much for my body and I was depleting my acetylcholine, so i began take it during the week only and always take it with a choline supplement.
After some months of experimenting, I found my sweet spot, which is two on an empty stomach with my breakfast, and other supplements. I stopped supplementing with choline after a month of use and never experienced the sad feelings that I once felt. I started to realize it was probably because I had been taking TOO MUCH CILTEP and depleted my brain chemicals, which caused me to be a little bit sad and stressed than usual (for like 2 days)…
Now, I honestly think CILTEP is one of the ones I always have and take. I don’t take it on days that I’m not working. But being a business owner, I work everyday pretty much, so the last 2 months I have been taking it monday through sunday. I take two a day, in the morning, and i do take it with smart caffeine. I have been taking it with smart caffeine for like 2 months now. However, when I began taking CILTEP I NEVER took it with smart caffeine. And I still felt the good effects.
How I know it works for me? Well this is not a magic pill that is going to get all your work done for you. It is a pill that looks after your brain’s health, and enables you to make stronger brain pathways, which enhances your memory and ability to process information. I TOTALLY notice a huge improvement in my memory, I can recall things that I would not be able to, and I am able to enjoy and be very productive at my work, which requires A LOT mental energy, from 7 to 7 daily and sometimes weekend…
Plus, if you research the ingredients, you can see that all of them have A LOT of good health benefits and are things that your body would benefit from even if they did not provide nootropic effects. Natural stacks has never paid me anything, Im just a regular paying customer, but I dig what they stand for and how their supplements are amazingly clean. I for one am happy that they made CILTEP because I LOVE it. They are doing it right as far as I’m concerned…
And this is coming from a guy who has all the nootropics (piracetam, etc) but continues to store them because he feels that he has no use for them because his current stack (CILTEP, smart caffeine, and ridiculously clean eating) works peeerrfffect for him 😉
Hi…re last entry…that’s a great informative post. Can I ask, do u do Bulletproof coffee & Intermittent fasting, if so how do you do it with Ciltep? What other daily supplements do you take with Ciltep? Do you take anything in the afternoon?
Appreciate any answers…many thanks
No problem, I’m glad I was informative 🙂
Personally, I don’t drink bulletproof coffee everyday. I have used it in the past (about the time when Dave Asprey was on Joe Rogan), but I am more of a tea drinker (i put butter and mct oil on mine), if i’m honest. I love coffee, and if i do drink any, it is bulletproof coffee, but i drink it every time someone else makes it for me, which is probably once every two weeks.
I have taken bulletproof coffee with CILTEP, albeit a long time ago, but it definitely enhances the effects of it. I would say it is a good combination. With regards to intermittent fasting, I did it a while back with bulletproof coffee and it works for sure, but it has been a long time since I’ve done it so i can’t really give too much advice on that.. Personally, I’ve been taking mine with smart caffeine lately (past two months) and it definitely works, I am able to remain energized and focused at work. From what I remember it is similar to smart caffeine, but i think a cup of bulletproof coffee is stronger than a capsule of smart caffeine, if i remember correctly.
When i started taking CILTEP i pretty much eating it on an empty stomach with a multivitamin, some adaptogenic herbs, a veggie/fruit juice followed by my go to breakfast with eggs, bacon and tea with butter and oil. In the afternoons I would have the second round of multi’s, some digestive enzymes for lunch, maybe some probiotics here and there and I would make sure to eat really well. I also exercise so i took good whey protein, collagen, creatine monohydrate and collostrum.
Over time I have dropped the multivitamin and basically now I just take CILTEP, smart caffeine, vitamin D and my bacon, eggs and tea breakfast. For lunch, i pretty much just have some digestive enzymes with lunch, vitamin d and smart caffeine (not every day). I still take my workout supplements but have added adaptogenic herbs such as maca root to my shake. But my priority now is to get my nutritional needs mostly for food, and supplement what I know I could be lacking.
I think CILTEP is amazing and can really enhance cognitive performance, but you really have to see how it works for you, since everyone is different. I would experiment, but I’d recommend taking it slow, because too much CILTEP can be pretty overwhelming hahaha!
No problem, I’m glad I was informative 🙂
Personally, I don’t drink bulletproof coffee everyday. I have used it in the past (about the time when Dave Asprey was on Joe Rogan), but I am more of a tea drinker (i put butter and mct oil on mine), if i’m honest. I love coffee, and if i do drink any, it is bulletproof coffee, but i drink it every time someone else makes it for me, which is probably once every two weeks.
I have taken bulletproof coffee with CILTEP, albeit a long time ago, but it definitely enhances the effects of it. I would say it is a good combination. With regards to intermittent fasting, I did it a while back with bulletproof coffee and it works for sure, but it has been a long time since I’ve done it so i can’t really give too much advice on that.. Personally, I’ve been taking mine with smart caffeine lately (past two months) and it definitely works, I am able to remain energized and focused at work. From what I remember it is similar to smart caffeine, but i think a cup of bulletproof coffee is stronger than a capsule of smart caffeine, if i remember correctly.
When i started taking CILTEP i pretty much eating it on an empty stomach with a multivitamin, some adaptogenic herbs, a veggie/fruit juice followed by my go to breakfast with eggs, bacon and tea with butter and oil. In the afternoons I would have the second round of multi’s, some digestive enzymes for lunch, maybe some probiotics here and there and I would make sure to eat really well. I also exercise so i took good whey protein, collagen, creatine monohydrate and collostrum.
Over time I have dropped the multivitamin and basically now I just take CILTEP, smart caffeine, vitamin D and my bacon, eggs and tea breakfast. For lunch, i pretty much just have some digestive enzymes with lunch, vitamin d and smart caffeine (not every day). I still take my workout supplements but have added adaptogenic herbs such as maca root to my shake. But my priority now is to get my nutritional needs mostly for food, and supplement what I know I could be lacking.
I think CILTEP is amazing and can really enhance cognitive performance, but you really have to see how it works for you, since everyone is different. I would experiment, but I’d recommend taking it slow, because too much CILTEP can be pretty overwhelming hahaha!
Thanks so much for your reply. That’s fantastic!
can I ask what other supplements you take on a daily basis? Many thanks
Sure, I take Magnesium Glycinate, Selank, MK-677, Prescript-Assist, Creatine, Fish Oil, and EpiCor.
Hey there I’m wanting to get these
And I’m wondering if these are helping you with your memory? Like memorizing stuff? Information?
Is it good for exam times? Mainly memorizing?
I’ve found CILTeP pretty damn great for improving memory, but of course, your mileage may vary.