I am generally wary of herbals and supplements too... But it definitely wasn't placebo effect with my kid... People who had close contact with him for many hours a day every day and who had no idea I had started giving him the herb noticed a difference. Seriously, of all the therapies and such we have done - this was the only thing I could say that about. I am not sure about claims re "mental acuity" and such... he was just noticeably more cheerful, less fatigued, less rammy and less stressed. He also had no idea what he was taking - I just told him it was a vitamin. I breathed a deep sigh of relief!