Determining Your Most Effective Piracetam Dosage

Because the effects of Piracetam are subtle and vary from person to person, it can be difficult to say with any certainty what an optimal dose is. If you are just starting to take Piracetam you will likely have to experiment for a bit before you find the piracetam dosage that works best for you. Luckily piracetam’s safety and low toxicity make it an ideal choice for this type of experimentation, as even at very high doses you aren’t in any danger of overdosing or experiencing dangerous side effects. Before you start experimenting in order to find your ideal dose, you’ll need to pick a starting point. Research has shown that the most effective dosages of piracetam may be quite a bit higher than what is usually recommended, however.

What Dosage Should I Start At?

Beginners to piracetam are often told to start by taking 800mg – 1600mg once or twice per day. If you’re completely new to piracetam and haven’t purchased it in bulk, or if you just want to get your feet wet by taking a small amount to start than this is a pretty good amount to begin with. Plenty of people experience good results at this dosage, and you can always up it later if you feel underwhelmed by the benefits it provides.

One recent study gave participants a single dose of either of 2.9 grams, 4.8 grams, 9.6 grams, or a placebo. The participants then completed various cognitive performance tests which were analyzed using EEG potential maps. The study found that a dosage of 4.8 grams produced the greatest improvements in cognitive performance. ¹ Note that this dosage is much higher than the one typically recommended for beginners.

The bottom line here is that you can start by taking 800 mg – 1600 mg and increasing the dose to see if it improves your results, or you can start by taking around 4800 mg and decreasing the dose to see if that helps.

Finding the Sweet Spot

Unlike many drugs, taking a higher piracetam dosage doesn’t always improve its effectiveness. In fact, very high doses are often less effective than smaller doses. Think back to the study mentioned above; the dose of 4.8 grams produced the best results. ¹ This means that the optimal dosage of piracetam resembles a bell curve, each person will have an optimal dosage which provides the best effects. If you are taking a relatively low dose, try increasing it; if you’re taking a dose of 4.8 grams or higher, you may find that lowering it actually provides better results.

Keep in mind that you probably won’t immediately notice benefits from piracetam. It usually takes a week or two of daily usage before people begin to notice piracetam working, while some people will have to use it daily for up to three weeks. If you have just started taking piracetam don’t assume it isn’t working or that you need to immediately change up your dosage. Take it for a few weeks, then make adjustments if necessary.

Should I Start With an Attack Dose?

People often recommend that complete beginners begin with a higher “attack dose” of piracetam on the first few days after they first start. The logic behind this is that doing so will cut down on the week or two of daily use that is necessary for most people to experience benefits. These attack doses are usually recommended by people who are taking 800 mg – 1600 mg once or twice a day.

There isn’t any research which suggests that taking attack doses is an effective way to make the benefits of piracetam present themselves any sooner than normal, however these attack doses are typically much higher than the 800 – 1600 mg recommended. If the study which suggests doses around 4.8 grams are more effective is to be believed, than this could be why some people experience better results when taking one.

I wouldn’t recommend taking an attack dose, but there certainly isn’t any harm in it if it’s something you want to try. If the attack dose you want to take doesn’t exceed 4.8 grams then you will probably be better off just taking that dose as your normal daily dose, and reducing it later if you feel it isn’t effective.

Resources

Read our full article on piracetam.

1) Single doses of piracetam affect 42-channel event-related potential microstate maps in a cognitive paradigm.
Neuropsychobiology. 1993;28(4):212-21.