This is our Stonehedge Health Dynamic Brain vs Onnit Alpha Brain comparison. We’re going to check their ingredients, benefits, side effects, pricing, and customer reviews to see which is more effective at enhancing your cognitive performance, and by extension – which is better value for money.
Dynamic Brain vs Alpha Brain SUMMARY:
If you’re not sure whether to go for Dynamic Brain or Alpha Brain, we’d say neither one. While Dynamic Brain has far more ingredients than Alpha Brain (and if we had to choose – is also better), it’s still far from a good nootropic supplement.
Dynamic Brain, much like Alpha Brain, is hiding its ingredient doses behind a proprietary blend. In addition, both supplements use Huperzine A which is an ingredient that needs to be cycled. Prolonged use of this ingredient can lead to side effects.
However, by taking a break from using Alpha Brain or Dynamic Brain, you’re diminishing the effects of their other ingredients (assuming they’re dosed properly in the first place – we can’t know since they’re inside proprietary blends).
While Dynamic Brain has slightly better ingredient choices, it’s still lagging behind market leaders.
What do we recommend?
Dynamic Brain vs Alpha Brain: About the Products
About Dynamic Brain
Dynamic Brain is a dietary nootropic from Stonehedge Health, a California-based company.
As a nootropic, Dynamic Brain is designed to give you:
- Improved brain function
- Optimized memory & focus
- Clearer thinking and information processing
Dynamic Brain is a natural brain supplement and is also vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO, and free of harmful fillers or synthetics.
The recommended dosage for Dynamic Brain is 2 capsules per day, 20-30 minutes before your meal.
So, can Dynamic Brain live up to its claims? Does it really improve memory and focus like its manufacturers say it does? We find out below.
You can also read our complete Dynamic Brain review for a more detailed insight into this product.
About Alpha Brain
Alpha Brain is a dietary supplement made by Onnit, a popular supplement company in the ownership of an equally popular biohacker and author Aubrey Marcus.
Alpha Brain is designed to support your brain functions like memory, concentration, and recall amongst others.
Alpha Brain is caffeine-free, gluten-free, and uses nootropics like Alpha GPC and L-Theanine to help you:
- Improve alpha brainwaves for calmer thinking
- Support the production of mood-regulating neurotransmitters
- Optimize communication between brain cells for more efficient information processing
Alpha Brain contains 90 capsules per bottle. The recommended dose is 3 capsules per day.
Out of all the nootropics you’ll see, Alpha Brain is definitely one of the most popular ones. It is backed by celebrities like Joe Rogan, and as a result, we have high expectations from this supplement.
The company has the budget, the brains, and the resources to make a great nootropic formula, so we expect nothing less from it.
So, let’s go ahead and see if Alpha Brain really is as effective as they say, and if it is safe for everyday use and a good value for money as a whole.
Dynamic Brain vs Alpha Brain: Ingredients
Dynamic Brain and Alpha Brain have completely different formulas. Although they have several common ingredients – such as vitamin B6, Bacopa, and Huperzine A – Dynamic Brain has far more ingredients than Alpha Brain in its formula.
That doesn’t mean it’s better, however.
Out of over 35 ingredients in Dynamic Brain, many of the key ones are inside a proprietary blend. What is a proprietary blend? It’s a mixture of ingredients that shows their combined dosage on the label – you don’t see the dose of each ingredient. This is an issue because we can’t asses the ingredient doses for safety and effectiveness.
Alpha Brain doesn’t fare anything better, though. It too uses proprietary blends – not one, but three. Actually, most of Alpha Brain’s ingredients are masked within these blends so you can’t see their doses. As a result, it’s impossible to tell how (in)effective Alpha Brain and Dynamic Brain are.
Needless to say, both formulas have massive flaws, which is a shame considering that some of the ingredients they use are proven as effective for memory, focus, mood, and cognitive function. Their undisclosed amounts mean we can’t tell if these ingredients are optimally dosed (likely not – if they were, there would be no need to use proprietary blends in the first place).
See for yourself.
Dynamic Brain’s Formula
When you look at Dynamic Brain’s label, you will be greeted with a whole lot of different ingredients.
But you can only see the doses of vitamins and minerals. The rest of the ingredients have their dosages hidden.
For example, Phosphatidylserine and Bacopa are amazing nootropic ingredients. Both are completely natural, with amazing effects on long-term memory function and brain development. (studies: 1, 2)
However, they need to be properly dosed to work and to avoid side effects. Since their doses are hidden within Dynamic Brain’s proprietary blend, we can’t tell if they work at all.
But even if the ingredients were optimally dosed, Dynamic Brain has another big problem – it uses an ingredient called Huperzine A.
What is Huperzine A, you ask? It’s a compound studied for its beneficial effects on memory. It helps your brain make more acetylcholine which is necessary for regulating your brain’s executive functions.
However, Huperzine A is only effective when supplemented short-term – for a few weeks or so. After that, you need to take a break from it, in order to avoid side effects. Long-term daily use of Huperzine A is known to lead to headaches, insomnia, nausea, and cognitive impairment.
But taking a break from Huperzine A will make other ingredients in Dynamic Brain less effective. A catch-22 situation, indeed.
The bottom line is, Dynamic Brain is not a good brain formula. Not only is it missing a few key ingredients (despite using so many), it also hides crucial dosage information and uses several ingredients that aren’t really effective or safe as nootropics (e.g. Huperzine A, grapefruit seed extract, L-glutamine). Some of them are merely filler ingredients used to “bulk up” the product, so it seems like it gives you a lot, when in reality you’re just getting ineffective powder.
Here’s a look at its competitor’s formula.
Alpha Brain’s Formula
The Ingredients in Alpha Brain are:
- Vitamin B6 (10mg)
- L-Tyrosine (unknown amount)
- L-Theanine (unknown amount)
- Oat Straw Extract (unknown amount)
- Phosphatidylserine (unknown amount)
- Cat’s Claw Bark Extract (350mg)
- Alpha GPC (unknown amount)
- Bacopa Monnieri (unknown amount)
- Toothed Clubmoss (unknown amount)
- L-Leucine (unknown amount)
- Pterostilbene (unknown amount)
As you will see looking at the Alpha Brain’s label, most of the ingredients are lumped together in proprietary blends. These blends don’t show the individual doses of every ingredient – you can only see the total amount of the blend. So, we’re in a similar situation as with Dynamic Brain.
If you were shopping for Alpha Brain back in 2011, its ingredient profile might have been called decent.
But today, it’s really showing its age.
There’s no reason to use proprietary blends these days. Users will expect 100% formula transparency, and rightfully so. The best nootropic supplements will show you exactly what and how much is on the label – without any tricks or gimmicks.
This fact alone makes Alpha Brain no less of a disappointment than Stonehedge Health Dynamic Brain.
But much like its competitor, Alpha Brain has other issues besides a proprietary blend. For example, it contains several pointless ingredients with no scientific backing. Oat straw, cat’s claw, and L-Leucine are not nootropics – they have no proven effects on the brain.
Additionally, Alpha Brain is missing several key ingredients for a nootropic – including a better source of choline like Citicoline, Lion’s Mane Mushroom, and more bioavailable B-complex vitamins.
And Alpha Brain uses Huperzine A, just like Dynamic Brain. As we’ve seen, Huperzine A is a compound that you will need to take prolonged breaks from. But taking a break from Alpha Brain cancels out any effects of other ingredients in the formula, assuming they’re optimally dosed in the first place!
All in all, Alpha Brain is definitely far from a good brain supplement. Despite its popularity, it’s no better than its competitor here.
Our Thoughts on Dynamic Brain vs Alpha Brain Ingredients
While Dynamic Brain and Alpha Brain contain some promising ingredients, they’re tainted by the fact their doses are hidden, so you can’t tell if they work.
Any of the current best-rated brain health supplements on our list for this year would blow both Alpha Brain and Dynamic Brain out of the water.
Dynamic Brain vs Alpha Brain: Side Effects
Dynamic Brain contains over 35 ingredients in its formula. Many of them don’t have their doses shown on the label. As a result, the risk of side effects might be a bit higher than with Alpha Brain, which contains only 11 ingredients, though most of them too are masked inside proprietary blends.
That being said, most user reviews of Alpha Brain and Dynamic Brain don’t report side effects, so the risk should be relatively low with both supplements. If you have any concerns, always talk to your doctor before taking a new supplement.
Dynamic Brain vs Alpha Brain : Customer Reviews
Both Alpha Brain and Dynamic Brain have thousands of user reviews online. Due to the sheer amount of reviews – both positive and negative, but mostly positive – it’s difficult to say how legitimate some of these reviews are.
Taking into account the marketing power some of these supplement companies hold, it’s not too hard to have thousands of paid testimonials online, disguised as real and honest customer reviews. This is why it’s best to do research on these products for yourself – checking the ingredients and seeing what studies say about them.
Pricing & Availability
Dynamic Brain costs $49.95-$53.99 for a bottle of 60 capsules, depending on where you buy it. Currently, it sells on Amazon and on the official website.
Alpha Brain costs $79.95 for a single purchase. They do have a discount if you opt for a monthly Alpha Brain subscription. In either case, the price is far too high for the value Alpha Brain offers.
In fact, both supplements are overpriced, considering you can find far more comprehensive, transparent, and effective nootropic supplements at this price range.
Final Verdict
So, who’s the winner between Alpha Brain and Dynamic Brain? While neither one is a good nootropic supplement in our eye, if we had to pick one, it’d be Dynamic Brain. It has more ingredients than Alpha Brain, and many of them are proven by evidence to work.
However, Dynamic Brain is still far from the best nootropic supplement – it hides ingredient doses so you can’t see if they’re safe and effective, and also uses Huperzine A which means you will need to cycle it every few weeks.
All things considered, there are definitely better options available today than either of these two, if you do a little research.
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STUDY REFERENCES:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3746283/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4258547/
