Phenylpiracetam (also called fonturacetam or carphedon) is a racetam drug, a piracetam with an added phenyl group. It is sold online as a "nootropic" for focus and energy, but it is not approved for human use in the US, and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) lists it as a banned stimulant.
Also known as: fonturacetam, carphedon, 4-phenylpiracetam, Phenotropil.
There is no FDA-approved phenylpiracetam product and no US reference amount. A 2021 study (Cohen) found that racetam supplement labels were often inaccurate, so the amount on a label may not match what is in the product.
Phenylpiracetam is not approved for human use in the United States (Cohen 2021). WADA's 2026 Prohibited List names it as fonturacetam [4-phenylpiracetam (carphedon)] under S6.A, non-Specified stimulants, prohibited in competition. A 2023 review (Jędrejko) notes it was the first nootropic banned in sport, in 1998.
When researchers tested supplements labeled as containing racetams, including phenylpiracetam (Cohen 2021), they found other unapproved drugs, several drugs not declared on the label, and several declared drugs that were missing; 9 of 12 declared amounts were inaccurate.
We could not find placebo-controlled trials of phenylpiracetam in people in English-language journals indexed in PubMed, so its effects and safety in people are not well described. Athletes subject to drug testing should treat it as a banned substance.
We could not find a single published half-life or time to peak for phenylpiracetam that applies to a supplement dose, so we do not list one.
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