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Vinpocetine

WHAT IS VINPOCETINE?

Vinpocetine is an extract from the seeds of periwinkle. Periwinkle (vinca major) is a common garden green for ground cover. The roots of vinca creep along the ground and the plants flower fully in spring, sometimes even throughout the seasonal growth. Known for its pale blue to light purple flower color, vinca was planted in gardens hundreds of years ago and has a long tradition as a tonic to relieve fatigue, especially those forms of advanced age, as well as an astringent, for excessive menstrual flow (period), bleeding gums, inflammation of the mouth and much more. There are a whole range of active ingredients in vinca major, but vinpocetine is the substance that has been the subject of the most interesting and promising research. There are hundreds of studies with laboratory animals and human individuals, especially in the recent European literature. Vinpocetine is a derivative of the alkaloid vincamine and, like vincamine, it is found in small amounts in the seeds of vinca as well as in other plants such as voaconga and crioceras longiflorus. Vincamine has been used around the world to treat dementia senilis with varying degrees of success. Studies have shown that vinpocetine, the sister molecule of vincamine, has many of the same properties, but without side effects such as hypotension, dry mouth, fatigue and tachycardia (increase in heart rate to over 100/min). Furthermore, vinpocetine has been shown to be at least two to four times more effective in improving cerebral blood flow and thus memory and other functions. In addition, no conflicts have been reported in combination with other pharmaceutical drugs.

How does vinpocetine work?

In the broadest sense, vinpocetine is a powerful stimulator of all memory functions. In addition, the ability to perceive and cognize is improved or strengthened and intensified by an increased brain metabolism due to the increased cerebral blood flow. This is achieved by inhibiting an enzyme responsible for the calcium channel. Calcium ions are closely linked to cellular (neuronal) activity regulation throughout the brain. In addition to more efficient cerebral microcirculation, vinpocetine increases brain cell energy through its effect on ATP (the cellular energy molecule) production. Vinpocetine increases brain functioning by more efficiently delivering (making available) glucose along with oxygen, while at the same time providing increased protection against ischemia (reduction or interruption of blood flow to an organ, part of an organ, or a few cells) and hypoxia (reduction of oxygen levels). Glucose has been shown to improve certain memory functions in humans. 1 Since many brain deficiencies (not to mention brain diseases) are caused by inadequate blood flow, damage to neurons due to inadequate oxygenation and inadequate supply of energy (mainly glucose), it really makes sense that anything that can improve brain function in this way will help to improve memory as well as cognitive function.

There is strong evidence that vinpocetine can help them in the following ways:

They feel better

  • Improvement in both long-term and short-term memory
  • Increased alertness
  • Increased protection for the brain cells (neurons)
  • Improved supply and conversion of glucose and oxygen for the brain
  • Improved blood flow to the brain
  • Supporting effect for the functions of dopamine, serotonin and noradrenaline
  • Prevention of ischemic damage in the brain as well as in muscle tissue, liver and other parts of the body
  • Protection against epileptic seizures
  • Reduction of senile brain deficiency symptoms
  • Prevention of exitotoxic (receptor overexcitation) cell death in the brain
  • Reduction of cerebral anoxic damage due to lack of oxygen

You protect your heart function

  • Reduction of arteriosclerotic deposits
  • Increase heart rate and thus increase the nutrient-rich blood flow to the various organs
  • Dilation of the blood vessels (vasodilation)
  • Strengthening of lipoprotein structures in the blood
  • Increasing the elasticity of red blood cells
  • Ridding the body of toxic metals such as aluminum and lead

Improved visual function

  • Protects and improves visual function
  • Reduces retinal degeneration by increasing blood flow to the retina and the optic nerve

Improved hearing function

  • Prevents or alleviates dizziness and vertigo (vertigo)
  • Reduces space motion sickness

and much more

  • Prevents fear of heights
  • Improves joint function
  • Alleviates arthritis
  • Relieves asthmatic complaints
  • Improves menopausal conditions
  • Improves GI functions by acting as a gastroprotective agent
  • Operates as a highly effective antioxidant
  • Acts as a muscle relaxant
  • Lifts the overall mood

A clear memory

Over decades, many studies have been carried out on healthy individuals to find out what effect Vinpocetine has on both long-term and short-term memory. The results were clear and unambiguous: vinpocetine improves memory function and increases intelligence. In a double-blind cross-over randomized study, 12 healthy female college students took either 10, 20 or 40 mg of vinpocetine or a placebo twice daily for 2 days and were tested on the third day one hour after taking the morning dose.3 Then the women switched their dosing rule and were tested on the third day as before. Double-blind means that neither the scientist giving the vinpocetine (or placebo) knew what he was giving, nor did the participants know what they had been given. The study consisted of a complete psychological test. While no remarkable changes were observed in the subjects who had received a placebo, the participants who had received the highest vinpocetine dosage of 40 mg were able to both absorb and recall far more serial information. Examples of serial information may include multiple entries in lists, telephone numbers, etc. In another study, 8 healthy individuals were given 40 mg of vinpocetine followed by a dose of flunitrazepam (injection narcotic), a drug that causes memory impairment.4 After a test was conducted, the effect of the flunitrazepam was found to be far less memory impairing than expected, confirming an improvement in short-term memory function with the administration of vinpocetine. A remarkable improvement in memory function was measured in another memory study in which 12 subjects were given either 40 mg vinpocetine or a placebo for 2 days.5 A series of different tests were carried out in which the subjects had to react quickly, for example, when briefly shown previously learned signs or words. The results show a clear advantage due to the stimulating effect of vinpocetine on short-term memory. Vinpocetine also showed an increase in the activity of noradrenergic (exitatory) nerve endings at a dose that was proportional to the memory-enhancing effect.6 The higher the dose, the better the effect on memory function. The results of another study indicate that vinpocetine stimulates the brainstem, resulting in increased activity in the ascending noradrenergic and possibly also in the serotonergic (inhibitory) channels, both of which are associated with memory function. This increase in activity is believed to be due in part to the improved cognition that vinpocetine can achieve, while normalizing oxygen conditions and thus protecting against hypoxia.7 After 5 healthy male subjects were given vinpocetine orally in a single dose of 10 mg, it was found that the elasticity of their red blood cells increased.8 High elasticity of red blood cells increases the brain's capacity for action and reduces its vulnerability while improving its transport capacity. In fact, cerebral deficiency symptoms are accompanied by decreasing red blood cell elasticity. This is where vinpocetine really shows its valuable properties in terms of neuron protection. In Japan, dementia patients were given 15 mg vinpocetine for three weeks. A subsequent study showed an increased ATP concentration. ATP stands for adenosine tri-phosphoric acid and is the universal energy transfer molecule which, together with the increased oxygen released from haemoglobin and increased vasodilation of the blood vessels in the brain, leads to accelerated and improved cerebral blood flow.9 Another Japanese study was carried out in a geriatric hospital. It investigated brain-damaging clinical pictures such as cerebral infarction and cerebral hemorrhage, cerebral arteriosclerosis and ischemic attacks in 207 patients.10 In a crossover study, these patients received 5 mg vinpocetine or one of two drugs ifenprodil tartrate (IT) or dihydroergotoxine mesylate (DM) 3 times a day for 4 weeks. Vinpocetine prevented more infarctions and improved hemorrhages more than the two drugs, with IT being successful with 67% to 60% and DM with 78% to 59%. Even the treating physicians had to admit that vinpocetine was superior to the two control drugs. In another six-month study, 288 patients were involved with the same treatment (5 mg three times a day). Here, vinpocetine had a success rate of 77%. In contrast to the two drugs IT and DM, vinpocetine showed no side effects.

Against amnesia and for a good memory

Hypoxia in the brain (reduced oxygen levels) can trigger amnesia, i.e. something can be forgotten that would normally have remained in the memory. Senile dementia and age-related cognitive impairment are also characterized by amnesia. Vinpocetine has been shown to be effective against both ageing and amnesia (forgetfulness, memory impairment), partly due to its antihypoxic effect.11 Amnesia is also closely related to so-called long-term reinforcement, i.e. the ability to remember things over long periods of time. The anti-amnesic effect of vinpocetine works here in the form of long-term memory reinforcement by helping to store memories better, to restore them or simply to recall them.12 The duration of memory storage can be determined in the laboratory by measuring electrical potentials, among other things. In brain-damaged rats, reduced long-term memory function could be remedied by vinpocetine, while at the same time a normalization of corresponding electrical potentials was observed.13 In another rat study on the influence of antiamnetic agents on improved perceptual ability, vinpocetine was able to bring about a significant improvement in long-term memory.14

Mental alertness and quality of life

With regard to the effect of nutrients on the brain, their cumulative effects on brain tissue could be a potential cause for concern. Accumulation, i.e. an accumulation or too much of whatever, is undesirable in any case and could lead to disorders of important brain functions. A study with 5 healthy test subjects who were given either 5 mg or 10 mg vinpocetine three times a day showed no cumulation. 15 In a double-blind placebo study, 20 mg vinpocetine twice daily was given to 40 adult outpatients with chronic cerebrovascular insufficiency (insufficient cerebral blood flow) of both sexes. After 45 days of oral administration, the scientists observed increased mental alertness and thus reduced confusion, improved memory, reduced fear and anxiety, and a reduction in depression and fatigue, while at the same time a positive effect of emotional stability was observed.16

In an English hospital at the University of Surrey, oral vinpocetine was studied in 203 patients suffering from the first stage of mental dementia as well as mild psychotic disorders.17 They received either 10 mg or 20 mg three times a day for 16 weeks. Compared with placebo, both vinpocetine groups showed improved cognition and cognitive ability, a general improvement in quality of life as a result of reduced depression. Surprisingly, there was no notable difference between the two doses of vinpocetine, suggesting that there is an effective maximum dose.

Antioxidant power

Not surprisingly, vinpocetine also acts as an antioxidant by protecting neurons from intracellular toxins, similar to the effect of vitamin E.18 The antioxidant effect of vinpocetine in terms of inactivating free hydroxyl radicals is quite similar to that of vitamin E.19 Vinpocetine may be able to play an important role even in the repair of oxidatively damaged neurons due to its antioxidant effect.20 In another study investigating the antioxidant potential of various substances, including their effect on free hydroxyl radicals, it was shown that vinpocetine was able to protect hyaluronic acid (the main component of synovial fluid and thus a lubricant for the joints) from damage.21 Is it any wonder that vinpocetine has a beneficial effect even in arthritis?

Against the ageing process of the brain

There is a widespread fear of becoming a victim of dementia, such as Alzheimer's disease, as we age. However, there are also forms with far lesser impairments of cognitive ability, the problems of which should not be underestimated, known as age-related cognitive impairment (AAC). AWS refers to the year-on-year decline in mental clarity, sharpness and precision. But it can also mean something worse. Some researchers argue that AWS begins at a relatively young age, only that we don't notice it until an advanced age. Whatever the case, what is certain is that vinpocetine can help maintain and/or regain mental clarity. Old rats were given a low dose of vinpocetine twice daily for three weeks, resulting in a significant decrease in the age-related reduction in dopamine release.22 The survival time of mice in the absence of oxygen was significantly prolonged by administration of vinpocetine.23 Vinpocetine's sister molecule, vincamine, showed an increased firing rate of noradrergic neurons in an area of the brain associated with age-related decline in memory, the locus coeruleus (bluish-gray area at the lateral edge of the anterior portion of the rhomboid fossa with numerous pigmented ganglion cells).24 It is believed that the same is true for vinpocetine, which may help us better understand its age-reducing qualities. When rats were treated with vinpocetine without prior knowledge that they were suffering from ischemia (reduced oxygen delivery due to circulatory disorders), cerebral glucose conversion was shown to be far more efficient, while locally cerebral blood flow increased, both indicative of cerebral repair. With these data, we have strong evidence that vinpocetine provides protection against ischemic injury.25 In a double-blind trial, twenty-two elderly patients with cerebral dementia received vinpocetine.26 They were given 10mg of vinpocetine three times daily for 30 days and then 5mg three times daily for another 60 days. Another group of 18 elderly patients were given placebos during the 90-day study. At the end of the 90 days, the vinpocetine-treated patients were examined and underwent geriatric tests such as the Sandoz clinical estimate and a psychological test. The researchers found that the degree of mental disability had decreased in 73% of patients receiving vinpocetine at day 30 and in 77% at day 90. Ultimately, only 13% of the patients receiving vinpocetine showed no improvement. No serious side effects were observed and 59% of patients treated with vinpocetine were rated as "good" to "excellent" by their doctors. Vinpocetine treatment as described above was carried out with 42 elderly patients suffering from chronic cerebral hypofunction and published in The Journal of the American Geriatric Society.27 A group of 42 patients also received a placebo during the 90-day study. Those patients who received vinpocetine performed better in all tests, as in the previous study. Side effects were minimal.

The return to the self

In addition to all the objectivity of a well-conducted study, it is about the efforts to quantify human experience. In other words, how about the subjective experience, how about the self, i.e. "How do you really feel now?" After years of scientific research with DHEA mostly with animals and some also with humans from which the benefits were clearly visible, but it was not until Yen et al 28 published their "watershed" study that DHEA was seen to directly improve "quality of life". Are there such studies with vinpocetine? A few today. But it won't be long before we have a whole series of them. Vinpocetine is one of the few substances studied that offers a range of different benefits, both perceptually and physically. It stimulates the mind, gives freshness and at the same time helps the cardiovascular and gastrointestinal systems to function better together with the muscles, connective tissue and sensory organs.

Our concept of self and ego develops as we condition ourselves.

Dosage

Many athletes take Vinpocetine as a training booster.

Please follow the instructions of the respective product.

References

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  2. Solti F, Iskum M, Czako E. Effect of ethyl apovincaminate on the cerebral circulation. Studies in patients with obliterative cerebral arterial disease. Arzneimittelforschung 1976;26:1945-7.
  3. Bonoczk P, Panczel G, Nagy Z. Vinpocetine increases cerebral blood flow and oxygenation in stroke patients: a near infrared spectroscopy and transcranial Doppler study. Eur J Ultrasound. 2002 Jun;15(1-2):85-91.
  4. Depresseux JC. The effect of vincamine on the regional cerebral blood flow in man. Eur Neurol. 1978;17(2):100-7.
  5. McDaniel MA, Maier SF, Einstein GO. "Brain-specific" nutrients: a memory cure? Nutrition. 2003 Nov-Dec;19(11-12):957-75.
  6. Santos MS, Duarte AI, Moreira PI, Oliveira CR. Synaptosomal response to oxidative stress: effect of vinpocetine. Free Radic Res 2000;32:57-66.
  7. Bonoczk P, Gulyas B, Adam-Vizi V, Nemes A, Karpati E, Kiss B, Kapas M, Szantay C, Koncz I, Zelles T, Vas A. Role of sodium channel inhibition in neuroprotection: effect of vinpocetine. Brain Res Bull. 2000 Oct;53(3):245-54.
  8. Hadjiev D. Asymptomatic ischemic cerebrovascular disorders and neuroprotection with vinpocetine. Ideggyogy Sz. 2003 May 20;56(5-6):166-72.
  9. Krieglstein J, Rischke R. Vinpocetine increases the neuroprotective effect of adenosine in vitro. Eur J Pharmacol 1991;205:7-10.
  10. Novis SP, Moretto M, Fenelon SB, Barbosa CS, da Graca Torres J. Vincamine in patients with cerebral vascular insufficiency. Arq Neuropsiquiatr. 1975 Mar;33(1):25-32.
  11. Fischhof PK, Moslinger-Gehmayr R, Herrmann WM, Friedmann A, Russmann DL. Therapeutic efficacy of vincamine in dementia Neuropsychobiology 1996;34(1):29-35.
  12. Crispi G, Di Lorenzo RS, Gentile A, Florino A, Pannone B, Sciorio G. Psychoactive effect of vincamine in a group of subjects affected by recurrent depressive syndrome. Preliminary note. Minerva Med. 1975 Oct 20;66(70):3683-5.
  13. Treatment of initial cerebrovascular insufficiency with vincamine. Polycentric research on 828 cases Minerva Med. 1978 Jun 23;69(31):2095-113.
  14. Lohmann A, Dingler E, Sommer W, et al. Bioavailability of vinpocetine and interference of the time of application with food intake. Arzneimittelforschung 1992;42:914-7.
  15. Szatmari SZ, Whitehouse PJ. Vinpocetine for cognitive impairment and dementia. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2003(1):CD003119.
  16. Bereczki D, Fekete I. Vinpocetine for acute ischaemic stroke. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2000(2):CD000480.
  17. Osawa M, Maruyama S. Effects of TCV-3B (vinpocetine) on blood viscosity in ischemic cerebrovascular diseases. Ther Hung 1985;33:7-12.
  18. Hitzenberger G, Sommer W, Grandt R. Influence of vinpocetine on warfarin-induced inhibition of coagulation. Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther Toxicol 1990;28:323-8.