Natural Stacks NeuroFuel | Better Focus and Memory, For Real?

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Looking for a nootropic that will help you that will give you an edge when tackling mentally-draining problems?

NeuroFuel by Natural Stacks is claimed to contain natural ingredients that improve brain performance, like enhancing your focus and memory retention.

But can this formula deliver on these claims, or is it just a marketing ploy from the Natural Stacks brand? What is the evidence behind its ingredients and what is the feedback from those who have tried it?

In this article, I’ll be answering those questions and giving you my own take on the situation to help you figure out whether NeuroFuel is actually effective.

Main Takeaways

• Although NeuroFuel contains a variety of ingredients that play a role in neurology, there isn’t sufficient evidence to prove their effects on young, healthy people.

• With this being said, I was surprised by the number of positive reviews on third-party websites suggesting how effective NeuroFuel is from cognitive standpoint.

• NeuroFuel is quite pricey at $2 per serving, and one bottle (assuming you’re taking it every single day) will only last you two weeks.

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Ingredient Analysis

NeuroFuel is a nootropic supplement with a handful of ingredients, which makes its formulation simple when compared to most nootropics.

The ingredients in NeuroFuel are:

• Vitamin B6
• Artichoke Leaf Extract
• Acetyl L-Carnitine
• L-Phenylalanine
• Coleus Forskohlii

Some of the ingredients in this formulation are probably familiar to those that are into nootropics, but I’ll go over each one nonetheless.

The goal here is to understand how effective each ingredient is— by analyzing whether there’s enough scientific evidence to back it up, and determine, as per the evidence, if it’s dosed appropriately.

Vitamin B6

This is a crucial vitamin for brain health because it contributes to the production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and norepinephrine, which regulate mood and stress responses.

Additionally, B6 aids in the formation of myelin, a protein layer that protects nerve cells.

However, most of the studies pointing to B6’s cognitive benefits involve subjects who have a deficiency.

While a deficiency can impair cognitive function, there’s not much evidence to suggest that supplementation beyond the recommended daily intake provides additional benefits in terms of cognition enhancement for those who are not deficient.

For instance, this review looks at two studies that tested whether vitamin B6 supplements could improve mood or thinking skills in healthy older people.

In one study, 12 women aged 65 to 92 took 75 mg of vitamin B6 each day for five weeks, but it didn’t make any difference to their mood or thinking skills compared to 21 women who didn’t take the supplement.

In the other study, 76 men aged 70 to 79 were split into two groups. One group took 20 mg of vitamin B6 each day for 12 weeks and the other group didn’t take the supplement.

And well, the review found no evidence that vitamin B6 supplements can improve mood or thinking skills in healthy older people. However, they did increase levels of vitamin B6 in the blood.

Artichoke Leaf Extract

The primary compound of interest in artichoke extract is luteolin, a flavonoid with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.

The inhibition of PDE4 and consequent increase in cAMP can theoretically enhance neuronal signaling, promote neuroprotection, and improve long-term potentiation (LTP) which is crucial for memory formation.

While these mechanisms are promising, the majority of research on artichoke extract and cognition has been done on animals or in vitro.

For example, one study found that AFB1, a harmful substance, can cause damage to the brain and disrupt its normal functioning.

The researchers saw signs of this damage when looking at things like sugar and fat levels, inflammation, and the activity of various brain-related enzymes.

Artichoke leaf extract seemed to protect the brain from some of this damage by reducing the production of harmful molecules called free radicals and boosting the activity of protective antioxidant enzymes.

It seems to do this thanks to its phenolic compounds, which are natural chemicals found in certain plants that often have beneficial health effects.

But as I said, its efficacy as a neuroprotector in humans is not well established.

Acetyl L-Carnitine

ALCAR can cross the blood-brain barrier, where it acts as a powerful antioxidant and helps energy production in neurons by transporting fatty acids into the mitochondria.

It has shown some effectiveness in treating some neurological conditions and age-related cognitive decline.

In terms of cognitive enhancement in healthy individuals, the research is not as robust.

In fact, I found this review that analyzed two studies.

One study gave L-carnitine or a fake pill (a placebo) to about 200 people for three days. The other study only included 18 people and gave them just one dose of L-carnitine. Both of these studies involved young, healthy people around 21 years old and tried to measure different types of thinking skills using various tests.

The smaller study didn’t provide any useful data, but the authors mentioned they didn’t see any improvements in thinking skills from taking L-carnitine.

The larger study was missing some important information, but the researchers didn’t find any evidence that L-carnitine improved any type of thinking skills. The larger study did note that there were some minor side effects, but these were the same for the people taking L-carnitine and the people taking the placebo.

In other words, it’s quite likely that ALCAR doesn’t produce the cognitive-enhancing effects that are often claimed.

L-Phenylalanine

This amino acid is the precursor to tyrosine, which in turn is converted into the neurotransmitters dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine.

These neurotransmitters are vital for alertness, focus, mood regulation, and reward processing. Yet, it’s important to note that simply increasing the availability of a precursor doesn’t always result in increased neurotransmitter production because the body tightly regulates these processes.

And in the case of L-phenylalanine, there’s not enough research to prove it actually increases dopamine production (the “motivation hormone), which is what Natural Stacks seems to claim.

Coleus Forskohlii

Coleus Forskohlii is a plant that has been used in ancient Indian medicine, and it has a special ingredient called forskolin.

Some scientists think forskolin could help improve how our brains work, specifically, it might have effects on two systems in our brain called the adenosinergic and cholinergic systems.

The adenosinergic system is like a communication network in our brain. Forskolin seems to help this system work better, essentially boosting the “cellular Wi-Fi signal.” It does this by increasing something called cAMP levels in our brain, which helps cells communicate better with each other.

Curiously, caffeine, the stuff in coffee that wakes us up, can lower the effect of forskolin. That’s because caffeine works as an adenosine receptor antagonist – it’s like it’s blocking the cellular Wi-Fi signal that forskolin is trying to boost. Also, when more adenosine, another part of the cellular Wi-Fi, is present outside of cells, forskolin works even better.

The cholinergic system is another important communication network in our brain that involves a substance called acetylcholine. Acetylcholine is vital for memory and learning. Coleus forskohlii leaves, where forskolin comes from, can slow down the process that breaks up acetylcholine. This slowdown is caused by something in the leaves called rosmarinic acid.

If you think of acetylcholine like letters in the mail, rosmarinic acid stops the mail from being shredded so quickly, leaving more letters (or acetylcholine) around for the brain to use. This could help improve memory and the way we think.

So in other words, forskolin, a compound found in the Coleus forskohlii plant, might boost our brain’s performance. It can potentially strengthen the brain’s Wi-Fi signal (adenosinergic system) and keep more “letters” around for the brain to use (cholinergic system). However, this is all based on early science experiments, and we need more research to confirm these benefits in humans.

What Do Real Users Have To Say?

Here’s a quick review from a YouTube creator called Stephen Timoney, which speaks on his experience with NeuroFuel:

Here are also some real customer reviews I’ve come across from third-party websites (sites other than the official brand’s website):

“When I started taking this, I was trying one or two pills at a time (as it’s pretty expensive) but didn’t feel any noticeable affects and figured it was junk. After trying out some other supplements, I came back to finish off the bottle at the full dosage of 3 pills, since I might as well.

Wow! These things really work, but it seemed to take a few days to kick in the first time round. I do stack it with 200mg of caffeine in the morning and one dosage of Nutrition Essentials Neuro Clarity (St Johns Wort, L-Glutamine, etc) at lunch time along with my One a Day vitamin, and I’ve noticed that I’ve got a sustained focus and motivation to keep powering through the desk job part of my business, and mental stamina for the long hours, blue collar service part of my business. It’s a calm, in-control sort of feeling, and as an asocial introvert by default, I notice that my interactions with people while operating machinery under pressure is a little more fluid, and irritates me less, which is a big deal in my line of work.

I’ve tried another popular supplement (probably the most popular one in the nootropic community, which I won’t mention) and the major side effect with it was, at full dosage, I had SERIOUS trouble sleeping. Ciltep doesn’t have this side effect, and has at least 80% of its efficacy on the third day of taking it straight. I started a regimen of full dosages of Ciltep on Thursday ~ Saturday, as my most stressful days are typically on Saturdays, and I’ve been kicking butt, working 14 hours on my feet. I’ve had a monster energy drink with me in my cooler, just in case, but I haven’t needed it since I’ve been on Ciltep. I used to be addicted to monster, and was having two per day, and sometimes three on Saturdays for the last three or four years until I discovered nootropics, just to give you an idea. Just a side warning, if you’ve never been hooked on energy drinks, don’t start! If you are, try tapering off of it with the help of nootropics.

Also, a major difference with the afore-un-mentioned supplement is that, that one didn’t make me smarter. It for sure boosted my motivation (the area I needed the most help) and focus especially when I was doing stuff around the house. I love to clean when I’m on it for some reason. The unfortunate thing about this is, I would start doing things before thinking about the process of the task first, and would have to do it over, or realize afterword that I could have done it in a more efficient way. Basically, my speed and zeal went up but my accuracy went down because my brain can’t catch up, so my overall productivity didn’t increase in relation to my increase in activity.

In contrast, Ciltep improved my cognitive abilities and helped me route signal paths (audio) in my mind in elegant ways I hadn’t thought of before, with both speed and accuracy. I imagine, if you work in computer coding, IT, electrician, or any kind of highly technical engineering which involves creative problem solving and challenges in synthesis, Ciltep will greatly enhance your efficacy.

I’m sold. I just ran out, and re-ordered another bottle, and it’s going to be my go-to for sure. Your mileage may vary, but I recommend that you give this a try.” – Daisuke Takeoka

“Really, really wanted it to work. After not feeling anything remotely close to what some reviewers here describe, I thoroughly read through the longecity thread for CILTEP non-responders, and added more excercise to my routine and some additional supplements that CILTEP coul be requiring and I couldv’ve lacked.

I started with the recommended dose, 3 pills right upon waking, about 20-30 minutes before eating. I tried two pills in the morning and one at noon, tried lowering the dose to 1 and 2 pills, raising it to four. I tried downing it with water and downing it with milk. I tried them on an empty and full stomach, I cracked open the pills and mixed them into my breakfast yogurt.

I tried absolutely everything besides snorting these things, and I got absolutely nothing.

Now, I’m aware of the real-world effects of nootropics. It’s not like I’m expecting an NZT experience here. I didn’t even get this pill for the cognitive or memory enhancements, there were just nice side effects. What I wanted from this pill was the “razor-sharp focus” that was advertised. Now my bottle is almost over, I’m 40 bucks poorer and have exactly as much trouble focusing as I did before.

Not saying it’s a placebo, that Natural Stacks are phonies (their Smart Caffeine is great), or that the reviewers here are lies/exaggerations/paid posts, but this just didn’t work for me. At all. – Xavier Arias

“First, the CILTEP (now NeuroFuel), their flagship product, which is made with 5 ingredients: artichoke extrace, Forskolin, L-Phenylalanine, Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALCAR), and Vitamin B6. I won’t be without Ciltep to start my day! It took me about 2 months to work out the perfect dosage for me – not everyone is the same, so try until you get it right for you.

This, in combination with Natural Stacks Serotonin, Natural Stacks Dopamine and Natural Stacks Smart Caffeine (they added L-Theanine so that one doesn’t get jittery like some caffeine pills or other nootropics), are an amazing way to start your day.

Then, after lunch I take another of these, Dopamine, and another Natural Stacks Serotonin, and I am no longer drowsy in afternoons, nor am I irritable. These stacks by Natural Stacks aren’t the big bang in the morning and afternoon, they are the smooth flow throughout my day. I stopped taking them for a while and that’s when I noticed the difference in my life with Natural Stacks and without Natural Stacks, and I have to say that I prefer my life with Natural Stacks. I am a 56 yo woman who owns and runs a business.

These products really help me to stay positive throughout the day, and again, Natural Stacks’ Dopamine and Serotonin shots in the afternoon assist me to be the awesome, positive, person that I am in the morning. I am allergic to most prescription drugs and a very few foods but I’ve not had one bad reaction to any of Natural Stacks products -this is probably due to the fact that they use non-GMO, all natural supplements (no synthetic ingredients) AND you will NEVER see the words “proprietary blend” on their ingredient list.

I no longer trust “proprietary blend” because any dose can be in that blend – it seems that a lot of nootropics on the market have similar ingredients (I haven’t seen any other nootropic out there using dried artichoke extract) but in dosages either too low to do any good, or too high which makes one a bit high – not in a good way Once you subscribe to their email newsletter you will get notice of flash sales, some are private to subscribers only- these are huge discounts that allow me, on my fledgling business income, to be able to afford continuing to take these stacks. I also highly recommend their Serotonin and Smart Caffeine, okay, and their Krill Oil too (it’s so small).

Ciltep is made with 5 ingredients: artichoke extract, Forskolin, L-Phenylalanine, Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALCAR), and Vitamin B6. I won’t be without Ciltep to start my day! It took me about 2 months to work out the perfect dosage for me – not everyone is the same, so try until you get it right for you.

I’ve read some of the other reviews – and everyone is different. But I will say that I’ve been researching and trying different nootropic stacks that are on the market, and for me, Natural Stacks is exactly what I wanted and needed. Thanks Natural Stacks for making great products.

I was NOT paid, coerced, or given any future discounts to write this review. I wrote this review because, most of the time, I base new purchases on what the reviewers have to say about the product, and when a product is as good as this one, I want to tell the world about it.” – Brkpnt

Frankly, I’m quite surprised by some of these reviews given how miraculous they sound despite many of the ingredients lacking sufficient high-quality evidence.

Yes, you come across some negative reviews (simply claiming they didn’t feel anything different) but the bulk of the reviews report positive changes. Again, I’m surprised.

What’s The Bottom Line?

Natural Stacks combines several ingredients, each with potential benefits for brain health and function.

But, current scientific evidence suggests that while these components may have beneficial effects on cognitive function under specific circumstances, such as deficiencies or age-related cognitive decline, their impact on healthy individuals for cognitive enhancement is not as well established.

With that being said, I was surprised by the abnormal amount of raving reviews on third-party websites (i.e. Amazon) claiming that this nootropic does, in fact, improve memory, focus, and motivation.

From an ingredient standpoint, I’m not impressed by NeuroFuel, but I think I would try it just to see if what the reviews say are true.

Editor’s note: The content on this website is meant to be informative, but it should not be taken as medical advice. The content of our articles is not intended for use in the diagnosis, prevention, and/or treatment of health problems. It’s always best to speak with your doctor or a certified medical professional before making any changes to your lifestyle, diet, exercise routine, or trying a new supplement.