I've been following this topic for 20-30 years and this is the only supplement I've taken where I've felt mental state changes. Its a noticeable anxiolytic. If its not a strong one, I can only wonder at what a real strong one must feel like.

Not feeling "performance anxiety" most likely does improve performance for most people.

Where you obtain this stuff is a mystery. Amazon used to ship it, but it appears and disappears. One interesting problem is what is merely OTC in one country is prescription only in another country. This is typical for all the substances in the list. This is typical for most substances, it seems, like stevia and perhaps a hundred food dyes.

Stuff I've tried with no measurable performance gain: caffeine, piracetam (headache), creatine, vinpocetine, choline, some others. Other than occasional headache, not much effect one way or the other.

You can find bulk powder but I find the taste unbearable. Rx aniracetam is far too expensive. I'm just waiting for the day when cortex gets their high-impact ampakine onto the market.

I was really surprised at the effect of aniracetam also. Usually most of these nootropics either do nothing or they jack up your heart-rate like any other stimulants. It's interesting to note that aniracetam is considered an ampakine, which lowers the threshold required for long-term potentiation.

When I was taking aniracetam, the anxiolytic effect was too strong to be placebo. Almost as strong as alcohol. I was genuinely surprised. It makes activities like staring at leaves fluttering almost magical. Eventually I gave it up because this effect wore off and it was too expensive.