One of the most popular prescription drugs of the past decade, modafinil comes with an interesting history. Developed in France in the late 1980s as an experimental therapy for narcolepsy, modafinil was approved for prescription use by the FDA in 1998. But it was not until the mid naughts that the medication truly caught on in America. What happened?
Marketed as a sleep-disorder medicine by pharmaceutical maker Cephalon and sold under the brand-name Provigil, sales of modafinil were merely $25 million in 1999. 8 years which are short later (2007), revenues topped $800 million -- which makes it even more profitable compared to Adderall or Viagra. Although sales would later drop due to generic erosion, Provigil remains probably the most popular wakefulness promoting representative (or maybe eugeroic) sold by prescription. Ironically, it's the point that modafinil is typically used off-label that's behind its stunning success in the States.

Promptly celebrity
Vastly greater than amphetamines and amphetamine-like stimulants as it does not result in addiction, jitteriness, crashing, as well as other negative effects, modafinil was famously used by U.S. troops that needed to remain awake for days on end when fighting in Iraq. Tales of its efficacy shortly reached the home front, along with sales of Provigil steadily rose.

Unlimited and beyond
In the 2011 movie Limitless, a character played by actor Bradley Cooper exponentially boosts his brainpower by taking an experimental nootropic drug referred to as NZT 48. Because art often imitates life, there is evidence that is compelling that the fictional mind booster was founded on modafinil. How can we understand?
By the time the movie was in production, modafinil was a poorly-kept secret of the rich and powerful. Wildly widely used on Wall Street, it was believed to increase productivity, mental acuity, and concentration. Labelled a smart drug (or maybe nootropic) because it reputedly improved one or best nootropics examine more areas of cognitive function, it was the stuff of legend for any person who was looking for getting ahead. It is no wonder the prescription drug can be discovered in the medicine cabinets of one percenters the earth over. But have you thought about the remainder of us?

Limiting the unlimited