Maca: the root of the high Andean plateaus, grown at 4,000 metres

The fact file

Maca in brief.

The essentials on this round root, the size of a large radish, which grows higher than any vegetable in your garden.

A long history

From the Incas to kitchens the world over.

Maca is nothing like a recent fashion. On the Peruvian altiplano it has been grown and eaten for centuries, and it is one of the few plants that made it possible to feed the people of the very high country.

A crop of the high ground

Growing above the clouds.

Above 4,000 metres, life is hard for a plant: frost almost every night, violent winds, burning sun by day and poor soils. Maca grows there all the same, where maize and even the potato give up.

Its cultivation follows a long cycle. The seeds are sown in the rainy season, the root swells for seven to nine months, then it is harvested by hand. It then dries in the sun and the cold for several weeks, right there on the plateaus. Once dried it becomes hard as stone and keeps for years: that is what made it a precious food reserve.

Another particularity: a plot of maca exhausts the land. Farmers then leave it to rest for several years, as pasture, before growing it again. It is a demanding crop, which partly explains its price.

Yellow, red or black

Yellow, red, black maca: the differences.

In a single field, maca grows in several colours, from cream to an almost black purple. Producers sort them at harvest. Three large families are found in the trade, and “black maca” alone is a search in its own right.

The differences between colours come mainly from animal studies carried out in Lima. In humans, most trials have used yellow maca or a mix of colours.

Gelatinised or raw

The question almost nobody asks.

On labels you will read “raw maca” or “gelatinised maca”. The word is misleading: there is no gelatine involved. Gelatinised maca has simply been heated under pressure, which transforms its starch and makes it easier to digest.

Raw maca appeals to those who want “unprocessed” products. But the Andean tradition never eats it raw: it is boiled, roasted or cooked into a porridge.

What it contains

A food first and foremost.

Before being a supplement, maca is a nourishing food. Dried, it is made up mostly of carbohydrates, with protein, fibre and minerals such as iron, calcium and potassium. That is why, in the Andes, people eat far larger portions of it than we do in Europe.

It also contains molecules found practically nowhere else: the macamides and the macaenes. They are what interests researchers most. Like cabbage or broccoli, it finally contains glucosinolates, the sulphur compounds of the brassica family.

One point often misunderstood: maca contains no hormones. The trials that measured hormone levels, in men as in women, observed no change. We come back to this just below.

The studied uses

Maca benefits: what has been explored.

Search for “maca benefits” and you will read a bit of everything. Here are the subjects that have actually been studied, without exaggeration.

One thing is certain: maca is neither a stimulant nor a hormone. It is a traditional food taken over time, within a routine. And unlike coffee, it contains no caffeine.

The dose

What dose of maca per day?

There is no official dose, but the studies and common use give clear markers. They depend on the form you take.

Always follow the directions for use stated on your product's label.

How to take it

One gesture, every morning.

Maca is taken daily, over several weeks. The simplest way is to hook it onto something you already do.

On the taste side, maca powder has a malty flavour that recalls caramel or biscuit. It goes very well with cocoa, banana, cinnamon and coffee. That is precisely what gave us the idea for Brainstoorm.

Maca and coffee

Why put it in your cup?

Maca has a malty taste that sits naturally with coffee and chocolate. Rather than ask you to add a spoonful of powder every morning, we slipped it into the cup you already drink, at a study dose.

A classic coffee brings around 80 mg of caffeine per espresso. Brainstoorm takes the problem from another angle: 20 mg of microencapsulated NewCaff® caffeine, released gradually, and 6,040 mg of actives per cup in the Coffee version, including 3,000 mg of maca, 1,000 mg of Lion's Mane, 1,000 mg of Cordyceps and 1,000 mg of Chaga, with ashwagandha and chicory. That is three times more than competing mushroom coffees, which sit at around 3,000 mg in total.

The Chocolate-hazelnut version goes up to 6,225 mg of actives per 8 g serving, with the addition of rhodiola and cocoa. No mushroom taste at all, hot or cold, with water or milk. The recipes are developed and produced in Toulouse, France, by a French contract manufacturer.

Taste Brainstoorm →

What they say about it

Trustpilot reviews, reproduced as they are.

These reviews are about Brainstoorm, which contains 3,000 mg of maca per cup. They describe a personal experience, which varies from one person to another.

The right combinations

Maca plays as a team.

Here are the combinations we use in our formulas, and why.

Risks and precautions

Maca and risk: what to know before you start.

Maca is a food eaten for centuries in the Andes, generally well tolerated at the doses used in the studies. The side effects reported are mostly digestive, particularly with raw maca: bloating, discomfort. A few people also report difficulty falling asleep if they take it in the evening.

Choosing well

Six criteria so you do not get it wrong.

1. The origin : a maca from the Peruvian Andes, clearly stated.
2. The format : gelatinised if you have a sensitive stomach, raw if you prefer an unheated powder.
3. The colour : yellow for classic maca, red or black if you are after a particular variety.
4. The real dose : milligrams per serving, not just a list of ingredients.
5. Organic : “organic maca” is a much-searched term. It is a plus for the farming, not a guarantee of dose.
6. The guarantee : enough to try it without risk. With us, 60 days satisfied or your money back, a one-off purchase or a monthly subscription (−30 %) as you prefer, and formulas whose recipes are developed and produced in Toulouse, France, by a French contract manufacturer, vegan, GMO-free and gluten-free.

Energy is also found in the Entrepreneur Pack (with Focus), in the BrainPower Pack (with Focus and one Brainstoorm) and in the Limitless Pack (with Focus, Anti-Stress Complex and Sleep+).

Sources

1. Gonzales G.F. et al. (2002). Effect of Lepidium meyenii (MACA) on sexual desire and its absent relationship with serum testosterone levels in adult healthy men. Andrologia, 34(6).
2. Brooks N.A. et al. (2008). Beneficial effects of Lepidium meyenii (Maca) on psychological symptoms and measures of sexual dysfunction in postmenopausal women are not related to estrogen or androgen content. Menopause, 15(6).
3. Stone M. et al. (2009). A pilot investigation into the effect of maca supplementation on physical activity and sexual desire in sportsmen. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 126(3).

Put it into practice

Maca, the Mush n Go version.

You now know all about maca and what to look for on a label. Here is where to find it with us, with vegan formulas whose recipes are developed and produced in Toulouse, France, by a French contract manufacturer, backed by a 60-day money-back guarantee.

In capsules

Energy

Maca paired with Cordyceps, Ginger and vitamin C. Caffeine-free, the 30-day course for the stretches when you are pushing hard.

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In your coffee

Brainstoorm

3,000 mg of maca per cup, with 1,000 mg of Lion's Mane, Cordyceps and Chaga. Coffee or chocolate-hazelnut taste, only 20 mg of caffeine.

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The other ingredients

Keep exploring.

Maca is only one of the actives in our formulas. Discover the other plants and mushrooms, or read our guide to what to replace coffee with.