Cortigon
Pros
- Delivers a very good serving of phosphatidylserine
- Ginkgo biloba proven to help memory in older people
Cons
- Leucine has no nootropic effects
- Just two active ingredients, both of which have mild effects
- No cholinergic at all!
- Very expensive for what it is!
Cortigon Review Summary
Despite its claims about being a complete cognitive support supplement and a powerful nootropic, Umzu Cortigon looks to us like a complete waste of money and a second-rate brain supplement. It has just two real active ingredients – Phosphatidylserine and Ginkgo Biloba. Leucine has no known nootropic benefits, and the other ingredients are just B vitamins. For the same price as Cortigon you can get a truly comprehensive nootropic stack combining 6-12 proven ingredients.
What is UMZU Cortigon?
Cortigon is a natural nootropic supplement made by UMZU; a supplement company based in Colorado who currently produce a very wide range of supplements. Cortigon is just one of their stacks designed to enhance mood and cognition, but it is their only supposedly comprehensive brain supplement.
According to the website, Cortigon delivers:
- Focus enhancement
- Stress relief
- Increased memory retention
- Improved mental clarity
These are standard benefits that pretty much every brain pill on the market claims to give you. Like every other nootropic on the market today, Umzu claim that Cortigon is one of the best nootropics on the market today, offering total cognitive enhancement.
The question is, does Cortigon really work?
Is Cortigon good for focus and memory? Does it relieve stress? Will Cortigon cause side effects? Is it the best nootropic for you? Read our Cortigon review below to find out!
Cortigon Ingredients
What ingredients are in UMZU Cortigon? Do they really work? Any review of Cortigon needs to focus on this question first and foremost.
Here is the Cortigon ingredients list as it looks on the bottle:
In case that image isn’t clear, here is a list of the ingredients in Cortigon and their doses:
- Vitamin B1 – 100mg
- Vitamin B6 – 15mg
- Vitamin B12 – 1000mcg
- Phosphatidylserine (SerinAid) – 300mg
- L-Leucine – 100mg
- Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract – 100mg
Below is an overview of each ingredient. In each case, we will explain what the ingredient is, what it does (or doesn’t do), and how we see it fitting in with Cortigon’s stated benefits. Please post any questions about Cortigon’s ingredients in the comments section at the end.
Vitamin B1 – 100mg + Vitamin B6 – 15mg + Vitamin B12 – 1000mcg
B vitamins are vital nutrients. They are needed for a broad range of bodily functions, most notibly energy metabolism. Specific B vitamins also have their own unique effects on the body. B12, for example, is vital for the creation, maintenance and functioning of nerve cells, including your neurons. Supplementing with the B vitamins in Cortigon will increase energy levels as well as supporting long-term nerve cell function. However, the benefits are not typically noticeable unless you have a severe B vitamin deficiency.
Phosphatidylserine (SerinAid) – 300mg
Phosphatidylserine is a great nootropic. It is a staple ingredient in all of the best natural nootropics, and it is often taken alone by older people looking to prevent cognitive decline. Phosphatidylserine is a vital building block of your brain cell membranes. Low phosphatidylserine levels is correlated with poor memory and focus. Supplementing with phosphatidylserine has been shown to improve cognitive function across a broad range of measures. The 300mg we get from Cortigon is a massive dose; more than 200mg is excessive and does not produce extra benefits.
L-Leucine – 100mg
L-Leucine is an amino acid. It is among the most abundant amino acids in the human diet; if you eat any protein, you are more than likely consuming a large amount of leucine! It is therefore really confusing as to why UMZU have bothered adding this in as a Cortigon ingredient. Leucine has no nootropic effects, and it does not help with stress or anxiety. Even if it did, 100mg of leucine isn’t going to make a difference, since several times this amount is found in a chicken sandwich! This is a Cortigon filler ingredient for sure!
Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract – 100mg
Unlike leucine, Ginkgo Biloba is a proven and effective natural nootropic. Ginkgo biloba increases cerebral circulation, thereby increasing the amount of oxygen and nutrients getting delivered to your brain cells. It isn’t surprising to learn that clinical trials show Ginkgo biloba to be effective for improving memory function and attention span, especially in older people struggling with mild cognitive impairment. Cortigon contains 100mg, which is far more than clinical trials have used to achieve good results.
Cortigon Formula Review: Does it work?
We cannot say we’re particularly impressed with the Cortigon formula. Overall, UMZU Cortigon looks like an awful brain supplement, severely overpriced and unlikely to deliver on its promised benefits.
Cortigon contains just 3 ingredients. Of these, two are proven nootropics capable of enhancing focus, learning and memory. We’re talking about Phosphatidylserine and Ginkgo biloba. These two Cortigon ingredients are clinically proven to improve mental performance and promote good brain health over the long-term. They may even be effective for helping with age-related memory loss, although more research is needed there!
But these two ingredients alone do not make for a comprehensive, powerful brain supplement. Users may experience mild improvements in cognitive function after many weeks of supplementing with Cortigon. But you will not experience the dramatic improvements in focus and learning you experience with other nootropics.
One third of Cortigon’s formula is taken up with Leucine. This is one of the most abundant amino acids in the human diet. You consume multiple grams per day anyway. It has no nootropic effects. The 100mg in Cortigon is a complete waste of time and money – a classic filler ingredient if we’ve ever seen one!
Overall then, UMZU Cortigon is an underwhelming, unimpressive nootropic supplement.
If you are hoping to experience a rapid increase in focus, motivation and mental energy, Cortigon is going to disappoint. There are far more effective nootropic stacks on the market today than Cortigon; nootropics that really work and offer good value for money!
Cortigon Side Effects: Is it safe to take?
UMZU Cortigon may not be the most effective nootropic in the world – to put it mildly – but one big benefit is that Cortigon is unlikely to cause side effects.
All three Cortigon active ingredients have been tested in independent clinical trials. They are all deemed perfectly safe regular human consumption in otherwise healthy individuals.
People at high risk of stroke or aneurysm may want to refrain from using Ginkgo biloba as it increases blood flow in the brain via vasodilation and increasing blood viscosity.
The B vitamins in Cortigon are all dosed accoridng to recommended dose ranges.
The phosphatidylserine dose in Cortigon is above the standard dose used in nootropics, but it is in line with doses used in clinical trials. A very small number of users experience anxiety from large doses of phosphatidylserine, although this is rare and usually mild.
Cortigon therefore looks like a safe natural nootropic to us.
Cortigon Review Conclusion: Should you buy it?
We cannot recommend Cortigon to anyone looking for a good brain supplement. Regardless of whether your goal is quickly boosting focus and processing speeds or supporting long-term memory function as you get older, UMZU Cortigon is not the right choice for you!
The fact that UMZU claim so many benefits for Cortigon – enhanced focus, memory, mental energy, clarity, and so on – seems like a bit of a joke to us.
This supposedly comprehensive nootropic contains just two active ingredients (aside from B vitamins and the useless Leucine). Together, these ingredients can support long-term memory function. But they are not going to give you noticeable improvements in focus, learning or mental energy, certainly not before several weeks of consistent Cortigon use.
Needless to say, there are far better nootropics out there than Cortigon.
Looking For Something That Really Works?
See Our Current #1 Rated Cognitive Enhancer: Nooceptin
Nooceptin is our current top rated nootropic. We tried Nooceptin ourselves and found that it works exactly as advertised. Taken together, the ingredients rapidly increase focus, accelerate mental processing speeds, and enhance working memory.
Nooceptin is a truly comprehensive nootropic, providing both immediate and long-term benefits. It does not cause side effects and is considerably better value than other nootropic stacks on the market today.
Nooceptin has been found to effectively:
- ✔️ Boost Overall Cognitive Function
- ✔️ Improve Memory
- ✔️ Enable Better Communication
- ✔️ Enhance Concentration
- ✔️ Improve Multi-tasking
- ✔️ Boost Mental Energy
The really special thing about Nooceptin, however, is its long-term effects. When taken daily for prolonged periods, Nooceptin stimulates neuron growth and improves overall brain cell health. This means it enhances cognition in a deep, meaningful way that keeps giving you benefits after you stop using it.
Simply put, Nooceptin is the ideal brain supplement for people who need to mentally perform at 100% capacity for hours on end. At $69.99 per course, we think it's hard to find a more effective and cost-effective nootropic right now.
Brian Johnson is current Editor of Vagarights.com and a long-time writer for VAGA. A former psychologist, Brian is passionate about improving mental health and finding ways to stave off cognitive decline. He is an expert on nootropics, cognitive enhancement and biohacking more broadly. You can see his work on Google scholar.
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