Commenter Jakub recently pointed me to a /r/Nootropics thread1 that explained why we should take Noopept sublingually (under the tongue.) Some substances can pass through the mucus lining of the mouth and underneath the tongue more readily than through the digestive tract, and according to anecdote and my personal experience, this may be the case.
Note: Don’t try to take Noopept CAPSULES sublingually! Sublingual is only for people who have the bulk powder.
(You wouldn’t believe how many poor people tried to dissolve the capsules under their tongues…)
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Why I didn’t consider taking sublingual Noopept in the past
When I first got my Noopept well over a year ago, I had seen some posters on Longecity or somewhere else dismiss the idea of taking the drug sublingually, proclaiming that any additional effect may be “placebo.” I tried sublingual Noopept when I first got it, but only held it under my tongue for a minute. At the time I didn’t notice anything different so from that point on I just took it with water and paid no mind to the idea.
As I took it orally and not sublingually from that point on, I usually dosed it a couple of times per day and it worked fine for me. However, after a recent re-investigation of mine, sublingual Noopept dosing made a huge subjective difference as you’ll read from my experience in a moment.
Why should you take sublingual Noopept?
According to the science, the oral bioavailability of Noopept is just 10% compared to an injected dose. This is actually significant since the drug requires such a small dose to act. Most of the effects related to noopept have been studied in rats via injection2. Some substances when taken orally do not survive the digestive tract to affect the body in the desired manner due to all of the various enzymes we have in our bodies that can take substances like noopept apart.
Some people however hate the taste of Noopept. Though it’s way more tolerable than piracetam or some of the other ‘racetams, it’s not pleasant for some. If you got capsules of noopept for the sake of convenience and not tasting the stuff, I won’t blame you. However if you don’t get anything from your current regimen you may want to try sublingual Noopept.
My one-time sublingual Noopept experience
After I read Jakub’s comment and the linked thread, I decided to take some of the old Noopept I had lying around, the sample I reviewed from Powder City, known as Health Supplement Wholesalers at the time.
I had abstained from taking any nootropic drugs daily for many months now so I decided I could try it on a fresh slate. Following one user suggestion to keep the Noopept in the mouth until the flavor goes away as an indication of full absorption (this took about 10 minutes), I felt a “fullness” in my head and my mind was running a million miles an hour. The most obvious effects disappeared after two or three hours.
A second and more recent trial involved sublingual uridine monophosphate about 3 hours prior and sublingual Noopept dosed about 30 minutes prior to my battery of cognitive tests for nootropics for the hell of it. On the reaction time I performed marginally better than usual, on the memory tiles about average, but with Dual-N Back I set a surprising new personal record.
At this moment, I do not know the implications of this method of sublingual Noopept ingestion for cognition and whether it truly benefits it or not. There was an undeniably strong subjective effect however that I will have to do a week or more worth of testing to find out if it has more of a short term or long term benefit.
How to take Noopept sublingually
According to the /r/Nootropics thread and my own experience, you simply hold your dose of Noopept beneath the tongue for up to 10 minutes. As one poster wrote, the flavor diminishes when held in the mouth. In my brief experience with sublingual Noopept, its effects are significantly more potent than swallowing your dosage, so you may want to start with a very tiny amount, about 5 milligrams if possible. “Less is more” is my motto, always start small before trying anything new.
Again, if you don’t like bitter things, sublingual Noopept may not be for you.
Pill Scout is a nutrition enthusiast who strives to find the best substances to enhance the everyday experience.
