Qualia Mind Review

Writer and nootropic fan Alex Whybrow delivers his full verdict on this potent supplement in our Qualia Mind review. Read on to find out if it’s right for you…

Qualia Mind is the brainchild of Qualia Life Sciences, LLC – a company that was established in 2015 “with the mission of creating best in class well-being products by employing a unique methodology to research and development based on complex systems science”.

They are a company that we are familiar with here at Soma Analytics, so we were very keen to put their Qualia Mind through its paces in this Qualia Mind review.

They claim to have a real focus on science, and that appeals to us – they aim to produce products to help your body to manage its own biochemistry and maintain balance. This, again, is something that we can wholeheartedly get behind.

Qualia Mind has grown to become one of the more popular and certainly well-known products on the nootropic market, so we wanted to take a closer look at it. By doing so, we can help you decide whether this is the right product for you – whether it is the nootropic that can help you to unlock your potential.

Like most of the products we review, this is a nootropic with a focus on cognitive performance – in particular, focus and memory, as well as looking to give a boost to energy levels. It’s an attractive proposition, but we have heard these claims before.

The only way to find out for sure is to study the formula, look at the science, and trial it ourselves. In this article, we share all our findings and key information to help you decide if Qualia Mind is a nootropic worth buying.

Qualia Mind Benefits

We mentioned above that Qualia Mind targets cognitive improvement – “for mental improvement,” as it says on their website. In this section we are going to be looking at exactly what they mean by this, broken down into four main everyday benefits:

Enhance Memory & Brain Health

As we all know, we don’t have to be old to struggle with our memory. Information overload can leave us struggling to recall facts, figures, or ideas as and when we need them.

When our memory is limping, so does our productivity. Whenever I’ve taken nootropics, one of the most noticeable and enjoyable improvements I see is in how much quicker I get through my workload because my thought processes aren’t dithering on recalling information.

The health of our brains can make a huge difference, too. Which is why the best nootropics work at preventing cognitive decline.

Fuel Focus & Concentration

Focus can be a downfall for many. When we struggle to concentrate, our brains flag at understanding, learning, and memorizing. So it goes hand in hand that focus and concentration is often top priority in a nootropic supplement.

From students to CEOs, construction workers, healthcare staff, surgeons, or writers like myself, all of us could hugely benefit from refined concentration and endurance.

Amplify Drive & Productivity

This goes a little further than just focusing on the task that you are working from – the drive to push yourself to do more. Less mental fatigue, and more get up and go to get things done both professionally and personally, including exercise.

Promote Mental Clarity

This sort of brings everything together – having mental clarity means that you are fully engaged in whatever you are doing. You have a sharp memory, you are focused, and your judgement is completely unclouded.

Problems seem easier to unpick, and solutions more easily created.

Now, I can’t imagine that there are many people reading this that wouldn’t be attracted to the prospect of all these benefits. This is the dream, isn’t it? To fulfil our true potential.

And these benefits can be a reality from nootropic ingredients – the best nootropics really do deliver these changes, and I’ve experienced them myself.

The truth, however, lies within the formula, which is what we’re looking at next.

Qualia Mind Ingredients

Qualia, as a business, is committed to science and research.

All the ingredients they use are the result of thousands of hours of work by “top scientists in complex-systems modeling, neurobiology, organic chemistry as well as dozens of MDs and PhDs” – as stated on their website.

They subjected all of their products to a series of beta tests on top of this research.

Let’s take a look at what they use in Qualia Mind, and what the main ingredients are designed to do for your cognitive function. Hold tight, because there are quite a lot of them.

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Vitamin C

Vitamin C (as ascorbic acid) has an important role when it comes to neuron maturation and myelin formation, which helps to protect them from damage. These two functions are thought to play a big role in how our minds work, with one study showing that higher levels of vitamin C being responsible for improvements with memory, focus, attention and decision making.

Vitamin C, as we know, is also a powerful antioxidant, which fights free radicals that can damage your brain. Vitamin C is absolutely crucial for healthy living and it’s a welcome addition to any supplement.

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Vitamin D3

Your brain tissue contains many vitamin D receptors and it has been proven that vitamin D can help to remove amyloid plaques, which can lead to Alzheimer’s Disease. By maintaining strong levels of vitamin D, you can help prevent cognitive diseases.

This is an ingredient more for long-term brain health than daily cognitive performance, but it is important to keep vitamin D levels high to achieve this long-term protection to the brain.

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Thiamine

Thiamine (as thiamine HCl), or Vitamin B1, is essential to brain cell metabolism, which in turn are precursors to important cell components. If you have low levels of thiamine, you may experience ‘brain fog’ and poor memory. It is so important that you keep these levels to the required amount for your brain to function correctly.

Thiamine can also help support ATP, which supplies your brain with energy. The more energy your brain has, the quicker you can think.

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Niacin

Niacin (as niacinamide) is thought to help protect your brain cells from injury and stress, which can cause memory loss and dementia. It also helps to stimulate the production of mood boosting neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. Studies have suggested that niacin is great for both brain health and cognitive performance.

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Vitamin B6

Found naturally in foods such cereal, chicken and eggs, studies have suggested that vitamin B6 (as pyridoxal-5-phosphate) is good for brain development, mental function and mood. A B6 deficiency can lead to confusion, dementia, or an inability to focus, so it is important to keep levels up.

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Riboflavin

Riboflavin, also known as vitamin B2, is an essential nutrient for the brain’s energy levels, and also optimizes production of a cellular antioxidant called glutathione. Riboflavin also encourages healthy adrenal function, which will be beneficial for our blood pressure, immunity, response to stress, and metabolism.

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Folate

Folate, or vitamin B9, is another nutrient that’s essential for the brain. It helps promote a positive mood and healthy hearing and vision, and supports the healthy function of nerve and brain cells.

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Biotin

Biotin is another member of the B-complex vitamin (B7), and is loved for its ability to support glucose metabolism. Since the brain is sensitive to how glucose is metabolized and delivered, this is really important and helpful.

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Magnesium

Magnesium plays an important part in supporting other neurotransmitters, and is super helpful in producing serotonin and dopamine for a healthy stress response. It is also essential for triggering and producing brain energy, nerve transmission, and blood-brain barrier integrity.

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Vitamin B12

If you don’t have enough B12 in your body, the deficiency can impair your brain function – especially your memory. In a study of elderly people in Korea, it was found that there was a correlating link between B12 levels and cognitive function, so it is very important to make sure you are getting enough.

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Pantothenic Acid

Pantothenic acid (as calcium pantothenate), or vitamin B5, is found in every single cell in your body. It is vital for brain function, helping to boost memory and regulate your nervous system by producing neurotransmitters, such as acetylcholine.

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Acetyl-L-Carnitine HCl

Found in red meat, Acetyl-L-Carnitine is involved in fatty acid metabolism which has a direct impact on your brain function. Like vitamin B5, it aids the production of acetylcholine. Studies have shown that it can slow down the effects of dementia, and that it can increase your capacity to learn.

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Nutricog®

Nutricog® is a patented blend of Terminalia chebula fruit extract and Boswellia Serrata Gum Resin Extract, both of which support healthy neuroprotective functions.

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Rhodiola Rosea Root Extract

Rhodiola rosea root extract has been used for centuries to help people with anxiety, depression and fatigue. It stimulates the nervous system and in a trial it is proven to show “significant, consistent and steady improvements in stress symptoms, fatigue, quality of life, mood, concentration, disability, functional impairment and an overall therapeutic effect”.

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N-Acetyl-L-Tyrosine

N-Acetyl-L-Tyrosine (or NALT), is particularly useful during stressful situations – it converts into L-DOPA, which produces dopamine. In times of stress, this can help you to think more clearly.

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Taurine

Taurine is an amino acid that works to calm your brain by increasing glycine and GABA. It works throughout the nervous system and helps to prevent brain deterioration.

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L-Theanine

L-Theanine is another amino acid. This one helps to alleviate anxiety, and similar to taurine, it is particularly effective in times of stress.

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Organic Lion’s Mane Mushroom

Qualia have included a concentrated form of Lion’s Mane extract, called RealLionsMane™. I absolutely love this ingredient and it’s becoming increasingly popular in the nootropics world.

It’s incredibly useful for brain health, neuroprotection, nerve growth, and BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), ensuring the brain is functioning at optimal capacity.

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Polygala Tenufolia Root Extract

This root has been used in Chinese medicine for centuries to achieve a more balanced mood, calmer mindset, and therefore improved mental performance.

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Sabroxy®

Made from the dried bark of the Indian trumpet tree (Oroxylum indicum), Sabroxy® supports healthy BDNF function, which helps maintain neurological health and nerve functions. The flavonoid is contains is called oroxylin-A, which is great for focus and motivation.

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Saffron Stigma Extract

This is a spice Qualia have included from the dried stigmata of the Crocus Sativus plant. It is helpful in a number of ways for neurotransmitters, promoting increased activity and optimizing their performance.

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Lutein & Zeaxanthin

From Lutemax 2020, both Zeaxanthin and Lutein are carotenoids, which are really good for eye health (carotenoids are what give carrots their orange pigmentation!). But more importantly, they play big roles in supporting the connectivity of the brain network, how it communicates, and how well it is protected.

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Alpha-GPC

This cholinergic compound (Alpha-Glycerylphosphorylcholine) is used to increase the level of acetylcholine in brains, which helps fight against memory impairment.

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Cognizin Citicoline

This brain chemical occurs naturally in the body, and many studies have suggested that it can aid mental focus, energy, and attention. It is used as a prescription drug in Japan, which adds weight to these claims.

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Organic Coffeeberry (Caffeine)

Coffeeberry is high in antioxidants, which help to protect your brain against damage, and can also raise your levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which improves your brain function. It is also thought to have a positive impact on mood.

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Phosphatidylserine

There have been several studies that suggest that phosphatidylserine (from sunflower lecithin) can help boost short-term memory, mood and concentration. It can help prevent some of the mental decline associated with aging.

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Celastrus Paniculatus Seed Extract

Celastrus paniculatus seed extract has been found to aid intestinal health, but it is also thought to help brain health as well, decreasing lipid peroxidation. Qualia have included this in patented form SmartSeed, unique to this brand.

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Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract

Ginkgo biloba leaf extract has been shown to help with Alzheimer’s disease, and may boost memory and brain speed in healthy adults. It is more likely to have a preventative impact, rather than a positive one.

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Pyrroloquinoline Quinone Disodium

It has been shown by studies that PQQ can increase blood flow in your brain, in particular the cerebral cortex which is there to aid your memory, attention and focus. With more blood, these three attributes should be improved.

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Boron

Boron is a trace mineral known for supporting optimal sex hormone levels and bone health. It helps support healthy electrical activity in our brains, which drastically helps our cognitive strengths, especially learning and attention (and therefore memory).

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As you can see, this is a very long list of ingredients. There is a lot more than we see in most of the other nootropics that we review, and the doses are actually pretty generous.

Despite the extensive research from Qualia, more independent research needs to be conducted to evidence their claims. However, Qualia have done a good job with this rather potent and generous nootropic, with ingredients which are forecast to deliver increasing evidence as we learn more and more about them.

Taking Qualia Mind Supplements

As a result of the huge list of ingredients, which all have an important part to play in the make up of Qualia Mind, the recommended dose is big. It’s massive, in fact. It is suggested that you take 6 capsules in one go, first thing in the morning.

This will seem like a lot (and it is, in comparison to other nootropics), particularly on an empty stomach, so you can take them after a meal or with a snack if you would prefer. Either way, this is a pretty big commitment to take 6 capsules each and every morning.

Qualia recommends you take them for five days a week and two days off, to avoid any chances of reliance developing. Again, an unusual recommendation from a nootropic, but a sensible one.

Using Qualia Mind

As regular reviewers, we were very enthusiastic about trialing Qualia Mind – it is highly regarded in the nootropic industry, and one of the best-selling products around. But as always, we wanted to see for ourselves the impact that it can have on performance levels.

Some background info on our team member who trialed it: he is a freelance web designer by day. He works on our site as well as others, and he has a young family – three children all under the age of seven. Needless to say, he sometimes struggles with mental fatigue and concentration.

He began taking Qualia Mind at the recommended dose – six capsules a day, first thing in the morning.

He reported that, to begin with, he felt quite queasy after taking this dose, suggesting it was too much for him on an empty stomach. However, he persevered with it, as he wanted to see what it could do when used as per the instructions.

For the first week or so, he reported that he didn’t really notice that much. He was well aware that this is quite normal, and it is rare to feel an effect that early.

In fact, Qualia offer a 100-day guarantee, where you can claim a refund if you don’t feel anything after 100 days. So this gave us a benchmark for expectations.

After about a week and a half, though, he did start to notice something. It was just small to begin with, but he found himself having a little more free time at the end of each working day – he would set himself a number of tasks to complete, as usual, and find himself making a start on the next day’s tasks by late afternoon.

He reported that by the Friday of that week, his productivity was significantly improved.

You might call it marginal gains, because he says he didn’t feel any different – he just noticed that he was getting more done. He told us that if he hadn’t been taking notes for us, he may not have noticed it at all – he may have just put it down to having a good week. But he couldn’t deny that there had been a change.

This continued. He found himself, after a few weeks, feeling like he could take on extra work. His week, that was once so tightly packed, suddenly had more capacity for work, and therefore earnings. He was happier with the quality of his work, too.

This led him to a more positive mindset. He felt good about his professional life, and this trickled into his personal life.

It is difficult to say whether the mood boost was a direct result of taking Qualia Mind, or just the fact that things seemed more enjoyable and easier to achieve; but he was honest with us and said that he didn’t really care what was causing it, he was just enjoying it!

He has continued to take Qualia Mind, after the trial finished. He has no intention of stopping any time soon. Other than a little bit of nausea when he first started taking them, which has since subsided, he has not experienced any side effects.

The only issue that he has reported is that it can be a little tough, physically, to take six capsules at a time. To see best results from any nootropic, you need to invest in them for the long-term – so if you struggle to take multiple capsules, Qualia Mind may be difficult to maintain.

Pros & Cons

Qualia Mind Pros	Qualia Mind Cons
Increased productivity	Large dose each day
Better focus and mental endurance	Attentive dose management required
Improved Mood	Expensive

FAQs

Does Qualia Mind have any side effects?

Some people have reported some dizziness, nausea, headaches and indigestion after taking Qualia Mind, but these are generally mild. If you experience any of these, stop taking them and seek medical advice.

If you are taking any medication or have any medical conditions or concerns, always speak with your healthcare provider before starting any new supplement regime.

How long does Qualia Mind take to kick in?

As with most nootropics, you can expect to feel the effects of Qualia Mind about an hour after you have taken it, but it can take a couple of weeks to feel the full effects. We are all different in how we respond to supplements.

Verdict

We found Qualia Mind has a positive impact on productivity and mood when tested. Our tester felt more attentive, focused, and mentally energized to achieve more each day, and make time for other things thanks to his sharpened congition.

And that’s what we love about nootropics; the changes aren’t cranky or jittery – they’re gentle yet highly impactful improvements in our mental ability that ricochet into other areas of our lives.

The biggest downfall here is perhaps the daily dosage – six capsules every day is a lot, as is remembering when not to take them. I’ve personally had excellent results from a nootropic like NooCube, with just two capsules every single day. It’s easy to implement and stick to, and the improvements in my brain’s functioning were crystal clear.

However, Qualia Mind can justify its dosage guidance – with a whopping 31 ingredients packed into its formula, there’s only one way to consume them. And they really have invested a lot into this.

Though other nootropics such as Noocube achieve excellence with a much slicker formula, Qualia Mind is a decent nootropic, with a confident money-back guarantee to prove it. It’s a thumbs up from us.