Bacopa
Bacopa monnieri, a creeping wetland herb also called brahmi
A small creeping herb of wet ground, long used in Ayurveda and studied mostly for memory and attention. Here is every study in people we could find, sorted from each study's summary.
- Part used: leaves and stems
- Most tested: 300 mg of extract a day
- Usually 12 weeks
From every paper to the studies that matter
Most research on bacopa is in the lab. Only a small share tests it in people, and that is what this page is about.
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889 papers mention bacopa. Every record in PubMed, all years
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66 are about people. The rest: 470 lab and animal studies, 125 reviews, 228 on chemistry, farming and more
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31 give bacopa on its own. 24 more test it inside a blend
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17 are randomised against a placebo. The strongest kind of study
Bar lengths use a square-root scale so the small numbers stay visible.
How much research there is
- 31 studies giving bacopa to people
- 17 of them randomised against a placebo
- 1,543 people taking part, where studies say
- 25 systematic reviews pooling the trials
Studies in people, by year published
Bacopa on its own.
What the studies looked at
Each study can measure several things. Choose a topic to see its studies in the list below.
Studies in people with a diagnosed condition are counted here and listed with their population. We describe what they measured, not what they might treat. Most studies also report safety; see below.
What was tested, and how much
Bacopa extracts are made in different ways, and some studies used traditional preparations such as brahmi in ghee, so the same number of milligrams can mean very different amounts of the plant's active compounds. Most studies gave it every day for about 12 weeks.
Daily amount, one dot per study
Studies per extract
Named extracts are the maker's brand. "Not named" means the study didn't say.
All studies in people
Filter the list, then open a study on PubMed. Each row comes from the study's published summary.
| Study | Who took part | People | Extract and daily dose | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singh 2026RCT, active or other control | Adults 50+ given Brahmi ghee, extract or plain ghee | 26 | Brahmi Ghrita and Brahmi extract | 12 weeks |
| Verma 2025RCT, active or other control | Healthy boys aged 8-10 years | 180 | Not named | 13 weeks |
| Lopresti 2025RCT, placebo | Adults 40-70 with self-reported memory and attention problems | 101 | Bacumen, 300 mg | 12 weeks |
| Delfan 2024RCT, placebo | Patients with mild cognitive impairment | 62 | Not named, 160 mg | 9 weeks |
| Keegan 2023Single-arm or open-label | Cognitively healthy older adults | 35 | Not named | 13 weeks |
| Santos 2023RCT, placebo | Adults with Parkinson's disease | 20 | Commercial B. monnieri extract, 450 mg | 13 weeks |
| Kean 2022RCT, placebo | Boys 6-14 with inattention and hyperactivity | 112 | CDRI 08 | 14 weeks |
| Chobe 2022Non-randomised controlled | Older adults with mild cognitive impairment | 72 | Brahmi ghrita | 8 weeks |
| Khot 2022RCT, active or other control | Adults 20-60 with generalized anxiety disorder | 56 | Brahmi vati, 1,500 mg | 6 weeks |
| McPhee 2021RCT, placebo | Healthy adults over 55 doing cognitive training | 28 | Standardized B. monnieri extract | 12 weeks |
| Micheli 2020Non-randomised controlled | Patients with anhedonia, Bacopa added to citalopram | 42 | Standardized extract (20% bacosides), 600 mg | 4 weeks |
| Prabhakar 2020RCT, active or other control | Patients with Alzheimer's disease or MCI-AD | 34 | Not named, 300 mg | 52 weeks |
| Mishra 2019RCT, active or other control | Adults 20-60 with essential hypertension | 68 | Brahmi vati, 1,000 mg | 4 weeks |
| Kumar 2016RCT, placebo | Medical students | 60 | Bacognize, 300 mg | 6 weeks |
| Dave 2014Single-arm or open-label | Children 6-12 with ADHD | 31 | BacoMind, 225 mg | 26 weeks |
| Benson 2014Crossover, placebo | Healthy adult volunteers | 17 | KeenMind (CDRI 08), 640 mg | – |
| Vinjamury 2014Single-arm or open-label | Adults with insomnia | 10 | Not namedOn the skin | 1 weeks |
| Sathyanarayanan 2013RCT, placebo | Healthy urban adults aged 35-60 | 72 | Not named, 450 mg | 12 weeks |
| Bhalerao 2013Other | Children 6-12 with ADHD | 37 | Brahmi ghrtam | – |
| Downey 2013Crossover, placebo | Healthy adult volunteers | 24 | KeenMind (CDRI 08), 640 mg | – |
| Peth-Nui 2012RCT, placebo | Healthy elderly volunteers | 60 | Standardized B. monnieri extract, 600 mg | 12 weeks |
| Morgan 2010RCT, placebo | Healthy adults over 55 | 98 | BacoMind, 300 mg | 12 weeks |
| Stough 2008RCT, placebo | Healthy adults | 107 | KeenMind, 300 mg | 13 weeks |
| Calabrese 2008RCT, placebo | Healthy older adults aged 65 and over | 54 | Standardized B. monnieri extract, 300 mg | 12 weeks |
| Pravina 2007Single-arm or open-label | Healthy adult volunteers | 23 | BacoMind, 450 mg | 4 weeks |
| Raghav 2006RCT, placebo | Older adults with age-associated memory impairment | – | Standardized B. monnieri extract (SBME), 250 mg | 12 weeks |
| Roodenrys 2002RCT, placebo | Healthy adults aged 40-65 | 76 | Not named | 13 weeks |
| Nathan 2001RCT, placebo | Healthy adult volunteers | 38 | Not named, 300 mg | – |
| Stough 2001RCT, placebo | Healthy adult volunteers | – | Keenmind, 300 mg | 12 weeks |
| Mukherjee 1966Other | Unclear (no abstract) | – | Not named | – |
| Ghosh 1966Other | Healthy adults ("normals") | – | Not named | – |
What's known about safety
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In trials
Mostly well tolerated in trials of about 12 weeks. Stomach upset, nausea, cramps and more frequent stools are reported most often.
Morgan 2010 and Calabrese 2008, 12-week trials at 300 mg a day; Basheer 2022, review of 5 trials
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In the UK
Bacopa was used in food supplements in the EU before 1997, so it can be sold in them without novel food approval. Other foods may need approval first. We found no official UK or EU upper limit.
EU Novel Food Status Catalogue; FSA novel foods guidance; searches of EFSA, FSA and COT, Oct 2026
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Check first
In lab tests bacopa extract slowed enzymes the body uses to break down many medicines, and one case report describes a reaction alongside a prescribed medicine. It hasn't been studied in pregnancy or breastfeeding. Speak to a pharmacist or doctor first if you take regular medicines or either applies to you.
Ramasamy 2014, lab study; Acquarulo 2022, case report; no trials in pregnancy found, Oct 2026
Where these studies come from
We list every published study of bacopa in people. This first version is built from each study's summary; full-paper checks come next.
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We search
PubMed, the world's main library of medical research, for every paper on L-theanine.
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We keep studies in people
Lab and animal work is counted but left out of the list, because it doesn't tell you what happens in people.
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We note the basics
Who took part, how many, how much and for how long, from each study's published summary. A second check corrects what the first read gets wrong.
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We read them in full
Results appear once we've read the whole paper and checked every number. The date at the top shows when this entry was last updated.
Download the study list
Every study in people as a spreadsheet, 31 rows, free to reuse with a link back.
Versions
Each update to the data gets a new version number, so you can tell what changed and when.
See every version
1.0 · 19 Oct 2026. First release. Every published study giving bacopa on its own to people is listed from its summary. None is read in full yet.
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