Sparta Nutrition CogniKeto

Sparta Nutrition is on a mission to be one of the dominant forces behind the rapidly expanding keto diet trend. So far, we've seen a Keto Coffee creamer and Keto Shred (diet aid drink).

A nootropic drink for low-carb dieters

But what about those times when you've got some brain fog while transitioning into ketosis, or just when you need to get focused without amino acids that may spike blood sugars? Sparta Nutrition has you covered there too, as the brand is aiming to take the cognitive-boosting effects of the keto diet one step further with CogniKeto.

Inside, you'll see some of the high-energy ingredients the brain and body loves to use, such as BHB and MCT, but it gets even better than that.

Mike's CogniKeto Review with Blood Ketone Tests

This stuff is the real deal!

CogniKeto hits so many notes that it's exactly what the market's been waiting for. Can't say enough good things about it. Watch the review above, or dig into the ingredients below:

CogniKeto Ingredients

Sparta Nutrition isn't pulling any punches with its keto nootropic here. At two scoops, you're going to get hit with some heavy doses of some of the most potent neurologically arousing compounds around.

Note: Doses listed below are based on one full serving (i.e. 2 scoops).

• BHB Salts (10g)

  CogniKeto looks to optimize brain function from its combination of BHB boosting compounds and nootropics.

  If you've seen other keto supplements before, you're well acquainted with BHB salts. They're basically what makes a keto supplement "keto". Short for beta-hydroxybutyrate, BHB salts are a form of exogenous ketone the body can use as an alternative fuel source in place of glucose.

  Each full serving of CogniKeto delivers a whopping 10g dose of BHB salts in the form of:

  • 4.5g Calcium BHB
  • 3g Sodium BHB
  • 2.5g Magnesium BHB

  Realize that BHB is what your body generates when it burns fat for energy - this is known as ketogenesis and is what defines the state of "fat adaptation". If you're a low-carber who isn't yet in that mode, you can put yourself in a temporary state of ketosis with these BHB salts, or if you're a keto dieter, you may get additional energy available to you and your brain.

  But do they help with cognition?

  While BHB salts certainly help with transitioning into and remaining in ketosis, little has been done in the way of seeing if BHB salts improve brain function in healthy humans.

  One study giving patients with Alzheimer's noted that supplementation with MCTs increased brain levels of BHB, which led to improvements in recall.^[1] We're still learning about this horrific disease, but one school of thought is that it's based upon damaged mitochondria in the brain, something ketones can actually help improve. Although Alzheimer's patients have abnormal glucose metabolism, BHB (and MCT) bypass such problems!

  The brain loves ketones, so why not fuel it with them for maximum performance?

  While this supplement is not intended to treat or cure any neurodegenerative disease, when a supplement works for one, it's a good starting marker.

  The brain loves ketones

  The good news is that the brain uses ketones nearly immediately, as it prefers them over carbs and will use them preferentially (the rest of your body, on the other hand, needs to deal with carbs first, as high blood sugar levels are toxic).

  Anecdotally-speaking, some individuals do feel increased mental sharpness after taking BHB salts. This could be attributed to simply having a bit more easy energy, which is simpler than having your body go through the process of ketogenesis.

• MCT Powder (2g)

  Medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) are a type of fat that bypass the liver and can be used as an immediate source of energy by the body, similar to how glucose is used by the carb-driven population. As we mentioned above, MCTs can be beneficial for improving cognitive function, especially if you're hypoglycemic.^[1,2]

  Similar to the above discussions, the brain can quickly use the ketones that are generated upon taking MCT, and the brain loves ketones. And similarly, they've had success in research. When 40mL MCTs were blended with 152mL heavy whipping cream and given to memory-impaired adults, their BHB levels rose at both 90 and 120 minutes, and they showed improvement in cognitive measures.^[18]

  Realize, however, that the doses used there were about 20 times what's in CogniKeto, and the heavy whipping cream adds a confound. However, it goes to show that MCTs do raise BHB levels a bit, which the brain prefers and dosed high enough, they may be able to improve memory recall and other cognitive markers in some patients.

  This will likely work better fasted, as more MCTs will then get converted to ketones.

• Alpha GPC 50% (1,200mg)

  Alpha GPC Caffeine Jump Power: Caffeine and Alpha GPC are great for brain boosting, but they're also awesome for enhancing performance.^[22]

  WOW! This is a lot of choline!

  On to the actual nootropic ingredients, CogniKeto comes out swinging with a monster dose of 1.2g of Alpha GPC 50%. This means each full serving of the keto cognitive booster supplies users with 600mg Alpha GPC.

  If you're not aware by now, we're huge fans of this highly bioavailable form of choline for its ability to effectively increase levels of acetylcholine in the body leading to improved memory, attention, and physical performance too.^[3,4,5]

• Caffeine Anhydrous (125mg)

  Caffeine is well-known for its energy and alertness boosting properties. As a potent, and fast acting, CNS stimulant, caffeine arouses the senses and gives you the energy to get moving at any time of day. It's also a valuable nootropic too, and has been shown countless times to improve focus, attention, and mood.^[6,7,8]

  At 125mg per full serving, CogniKeto is supplying the caffeine equivalent of about 1.25-1.5 cups of coffee, plenty enough to get your brain (and body) firing on all cylinders.

• Lion's Mane Extract 10:1 (100mg)

  Lion's Mane is an incredible mushroom that touts some extremely unique nootropic benefits including increasing Nerve Growth Factor.

  We recently delved deep into the ancient fungi in our mega-post titled Lion's Mane: The Nerve Growth Nootropic Mushroom, so head there if you want the full story on this funky fungi. But the bird's-eye view of this nootropic's actions and benefits in the body is that it increases nerve growth factor, offers neuroprotection and improves memory recall.^[9,10,11]

  Typically, we prefer to use Lion's Mane extracts standardized for 20-30% beta-glucans, the "good stuff" inside Lion's Mane that gives the ingredient its cognitive boosting properties. Other studies using whole plant extracts have found benefit from giving individuals 3g per day, split into three 1g doses.^[12]

• Rhodiola Rosea (100mg)

  A commonly supplemented supplement for crushing stress and anxiety, rhodiola is a popular adaptogen than improves the body's response to all sorts of stressors. Rhodiola also offers some nootropic benefits as well, particularly with respect to cognitive function, memory, and offsetting mental fatigue.^[13,14]

• L-Theanine (75mg)

  Theanine is a popular nootropic / relaxation compound. Present in tea leaves, theanine helps smooth out the jarring hit from caffeine, but it also synergizes with caffeine to promote a sense of heightened "controlled" focus. Several studies have shown the synergistic relationship of the two:

  "...suggests that L-theanine and caffeine in combination are beneficial for improving performance on cognitively demanding tasks."^[15]

  "...'Headache' and 'tired' ratings were reduced and 'alert' ratings increased. There was also a significant positive caffeine x L-theanine interaction on delayed word recognition reaction time."^[16]

  Consider the ratio vs. caffeine

  The trick for L-Theanine is that it's highly variable for people. Some people like a 1:1 caffeine to theanine ratio, while others like a 2:1 or 1:2 ratio of caffeine to theanine. Here, Sparta is using a 1.66:1 ratio of caffeine to theanine, which is close to the 2:1 ratio we generally prefer. At 75mg, this is hopefully enough to get the cognitive/focus effects of caffeine without any of that "too relaxed" vibes that come with higher doses of the nootropic.

• Huperzine 1% (1mg)

  To sustain the increased acetylcholine levels users get from Alpha GPC, CogniKeto also includes the acetylcholine "extender" Huperzine. Yielding 100mcg of Huperzine A per serving, this extract of the huperzia serrata plant inhibits acetylcholinesterase, the enzyme that degrades acetylcholine.^[17]

  We always recommend pairing a choline source (such as Alpha GPC) with Huperzine to provide a strong (and long-lasting) acetylcholine punch to the body for potent and sustained focus.

On the Formula

"We formulated CogniKeto for a few reasons. Of course, a well-dosed nootropic can provide the masses with a myriad of benefits including increased focus and energy, but, there was more to my thought process here.

There are quite a few studies that show how well the brain functions on ketones, as well as studies showing it can improve overall brain health. Some of which have become well-known studies on some serious brain diseases. I think brain health, since it's not mentioned very much in our space currently, is something that should be taken a bit more seriously and I thought offering a product with additional benefits for an improvement in cognitive health would be pretty novel and provide value to a consumer.

From Lion's Mane's studied ability to increase Nerve Growth Factor, to the literature for Ketone esters regarding brain health, or the attention increasing effects of Alpha GPC, etc, it was a no-brainer that this product could nail a few niches and we decided to proceed forward. We're very confident the public will see the value CogniKeto has to offer and it'll be a very popular product for Sparta."

Flavors Available

Increase focus and energy while obliterating mental fatigue and stress with CogniKeto.

As we've seen with the other members of Sparta Nutrition's keto series of products, each one is launched in only one flavor. The sole flavor that you can find CogniKeto in currently is Lemon Lime.

BHB salt-laden supplements are notoriously "salty" tasting, so it will be interesting to see how Sparta handles the flavoring challenges of this one, especially with the "earthy" Lion's Mane and Rhodiola ingredients inside as well.

Takeaway

This is a fantastic formula, especially for low-carb or keto dieters who are on an empty stomach. But even when on carbs, it should be "felt", we're just not sure how many benefits will be conferred compared to low-carbers.

CogniKeto is a worthy addition to any person looking to maximize brain function throughout the day, and not just for the ultra-low-carb keto crowd. At two scoops (one full serving), you'll realize what a real nootropic product can do and experience for yourself what it's like to be running on all cylinders when working.

See also: Keto Coffee creamer and Keto Shred.