Pharmacological Strategies to Improve Mental Performance

Considering the current booming use of cognitive enhancers in the general population, triggered by their uncontrolled availability through online purchase, defining clear policies and guidelines regarding their use in professional contexts is both necessary and urgent. Whereas these regulations remain a national prerogative, depending on culture and legislation (as described in more detail in Chapter 18), the present chapter aims to provide the scientific evidence base to make informed decisions regarding the benefits of pharmacological measures as a mental performance enhancement tool. Substances that are believed to enhance mental performance are often referred to as “smart pills” or “nootropics”, from the Greek “nous” meaning mind and “trepein” meaning turning/bending (Napoletano et al., 2020), and can be defined as drugs that increase the cognitive ability of anyone taking it, independently from whether the user is cognitively impaired (e.g., jet lag, sleep deprived), suffers from a neuropsychiatric disorder (e.g., Alzheimer’s disease), or is a healthy person. This chapter presents the evidence base regarding the latter, the use of pills to enhance mental performance in healthy persons without any medical indication.