Attempts to improve memory function with drugs affecting the brain have given unimpressive results. Dietary supplements are more widely available, and there also has been little evidence of their positive effect on memory. Citicoline may be a valuable exception. In several countries it has been registered as a nootropic drug for decades, but recently it did not prove effective in treatment of acute ischemic strokes and brain injuries. In the USA, citicoline attained the status of “generally recognized as safe”, and in the European Union recently it was qualified as a “novel food”. Small randomized, placebo-controlled trials involving healthy volunteers revealed that permissible doses of this novel food produce positive effects in the human brain recognized electrophysiologically, neurochemically, and functionally. Citicoline supplementation may be useful for subjects with memory disorders of mild-to-moderate intensity, those undergoing neurorehabilitation following brain strokes, and for healthy subjects facing requirements for enhanced attention and mental effort.

Keywords: Dietary Supplements, Memory Disorders, Nootropic Agents