So is this The Brain Booster Of The Future?

Essentially the most widely used prescribed lose weight fast drugs of the past decade, modafinil comes with an interesting history. Created in France in the late 1980s as an experimental remedy for narcolepsy, modafinil was authorized for prescription use by the FDA in 1998. however, it was not until the mid naughts which the drug really caught on in America. What happened?

Sold as a sleep-disorder medicine by pharmaceutical maker Cephalon and marketed under the brand-name Provigil, sales of modafinil were just twenty five dolars million in 1999. 8 short years later (2007), revenues topped $800 million — making it even more profitable compared to Viagra or Adderall. Even though sales would later decline due to generic erosion, Provigil remains probably the most popular wakefulness promoting agent (or perhaps eugeroic) sold by prescription. Ironically, it is the point that modafinil is mainly used off-label that is behind the stunning success of its in the States.

Early popularity

Vastly better than amphetamines as well as amphetamine-like stimulants since it doesn’t lead to addiction, jitteriness, crashing, and other negative effects, modafinil was famously put on by U.S. troops that had to keep awake for days on end when fighting in Iraq. Tales of its efficacy shortly reached the home front, and sales of Provigil continuously rose.

Limitless and beyond

In the 2011 movie Limitless, a character played by actor Bradley Cooper exponentially increases his brainpower by taking an experimental nootropic drug called NZT 48. Because art generally imitates life, there is evidence that is compelling that the fictional mind booster was grounded on modafinil. How do we understand?

By the time the movie was in production, modafinil was a poorly-kept secret of the rich and powerful. Extremely well known on Wall Street, it was said to increase concentration, mental acuity, and productivity. Labelled a sensible drug (or nootropic) because it reputedly enhanced one or perhaps more aspects of cognitive function, it was the stuff of legend for anyone that needed for getting ahead. It is not surprising that the prescription drug can be realized in the medicine cabinets of one-percenters the planet over. But have you thought about the rest of us?

Limiting the unlimited