A six-year trial started in 1999 will likely yield more definite answers. Meanwhile, doctors are also studying the compounds often mixed with ginkgo in commercial formulas–vinpocetine, an extract of the periwinkle plant; huperzine-A, a club-moss extract, and Acetyl-L-carnitine and DMAE, long cited as memory enhancers. But current evidence says that mental exercise is still the best way to stay sharp. So try a supplement, but remember: memorizing the names of all those chemicals may fortify your brain more than the chemicals themselves will.
