Do tribulus and other herbs increase erections and sex drive?

[Nelson Vergel]

Tribulus Terrestris

Tribulus terrestris L. (Zygophyllaceae) have been used as an aphrodisiac both in the Indian and Chinese traditional systems of medicine. Administration of Tribulus terrestris extract (TT) increased sexual behavior and intracavernous pressure both in normal and castrated rats and these effects were probably due to the androgen increasing property of TT.

In a study done in Bulgaria, twenty-one healthy young 20–36 years old men were randomly separated into three groups—two experimental (each n = 7) and a control (placebo) one (n = 7). The experimental groups were named TT1 and TT2 and the subjects were assigned to consume
20 and 10 mg/kg body weight per day of Tribulus terrestris extract, respectively, separated into three daily intakes for 4 weeks. No changes in testosterone, androstenedione and luteinizing hormone blood levels were observed with either dose.

Other Herbs

There are other herbs that have been promoted as improving sexual function in men. Among these are Ashwagandha, Avena sativa (oat straw), eleutherococcus (the so-called Siberian ginseng), L-citrulline, Macuna pruriens, molybdenum, muira puama or potency wood (you have to love the name), pygeum, Polypodium vulgare, Rhodi-ola rosea, saw palmetto, schisandra, suma, traditional Chinese herbal medicine, and deer or antelope velvet antle. There are no well-designed, controlled scientific studies that support any of those claims.

Many herbal supplements that claim to improve sexual function have been found to contain Viagra or Cialis purchased in China at cheaper prices. The FDA has stopped those companies from selling them but many keep reappearing in the unregulated supplement market.

All supplements that actually increase testosterone, such as androstenedione, are considered performance-enhancing drugs. They have been banned in the United States. This is just as well as they only increased testosterone for a few hours and had the potential to cause liver problems. New supplements keep appearing on the market and claim to increase the body’s production of testosterone or growth hormone. Be very skeptical about those claims and do not waste your money on them!

The best and safest way to supplement your testosterone is to use approved products under your physician’s supervision and care.

 

[JWSimpkins]

Tribulus Terrestris

Tribulus terrestris L. (Zygophyllaceae) have been used as an aphrodisiac both in the Indian and Chinese traditional systems of medicine. Administration of Tribulus terrestris extract (TT) increased sexual behavior and intracavernous pressure both in normal and castrated rats and these effects were probably due to the androgen increasing property of TT.

In a study done in Bulgaria, twenty-one healthy young 20–36 years old men were randomly separated into three groups—two experimental (each n = 7) and a control (placebo) one (n = 7). The experimental groups were named TT1 and TT2 and the subjects were assigned to consume
20 and 10 mg/kg body weight per day of Tribulus terrestris extract, respectively, separated into three daily intakes for 4 weeks. No changes in testosterone, androstenedione and luteinizing hormone blood levels were observed with either dose.

Other Herbs

There are other herbs that have been promoted as improving sexual function in men. Among these are Ashwagandha, Avena sativa (oat straw), eleutherococcus (the so-called Siberian ginseng), L-citrulline, Macuna pruriens, molybdenum, muira puama or potency wood (you have to love the name), pygeum, Polypodium vulgare, Rhodi-ola rosea, saw palmetto, schisandra, suma, traditional Chinese herbal medicine, and deer or antelope velvet antle. There are no well-designed, controlled scientific studies that support any of those claims.

Many herbal supplements that claim to improve sexual function have been found to contain Viagra or Cialis purchased in China at cheaper prices. The FDA has stopped those companies from selling them but many keep reappearing in the unregulated supplement market.

All supplements that actually increase testosterone, such as androstenedione, are considered performance-enhancing drugs. They have been banned in the United States. This is just as well as they only increased testosterone for a few hours and had the potential to cause liver problems. New supplements keep appearing on the market and claim to increase the body's production of testosterone or growth hormone. Be very skeptical about those claims and do not waste your money on them!

The best and safest way to supplement your testosterone is to use approved products under your physician's supervision and care.

Agreed. Unless you have a specific nutrient deficiency contributing to low testosterone (i.e. low vitamin D or zinc.), then all of these so called "miracle" testosterone boosting supplements are expensive junk.

 

[Gene Devine]

Icariin is the active ingredient in Horny Goat Weed and is a natural PDE5i. The problem is most Horny Goat Weed has only 10% Icariin and we need more like 60% taken multiple times a day. I use it along with other things as some know here and believe it works to enhance the effect desired.

Interactions with Sexuality

6.1. Erections

Icariin is a selective PDE5 (enzyme) inhibitor[37] with an IC50 value between 0.75-1.1mM depending on PDE5 isoform[37] and an EC50 of about 4.62mmol/L in increasing cGMP in the corpus cavernosum of the penis;[38] Icariin has approximately 100-fold greater affinity for PDE5 than other PDE isozymes.[39] This effect can be potentiated by the modification of two hydroxyethyl ether moieties to the compound, which increase this inhibition 80-fold,[40] but this modification is not naturally occurring. At 10mg/kg bodyweight in mice (110mg for a 150lb human) Icariin exerts pro-erectile properties[36] and seems to have more effectiveness following repeated doses.[35][36] It has shown efficacy over 30 days at 5-10mg/kg in an animal model of erectile dysfunction related to blood flow,[41] which correlates to a 55-110mg dose for a 150lb man.
Other compounds in the Epimedium family that have PDE5 inhibitory potential are Icarisid II derived from Epimedium wanshanense (not significantly different in potency than Icariin; approximately half of Viagra)[42]
Secondary to PDE5 inhibition, Icariin appears to be a potent pro-erectile agent. It is clearly outperformed by Viagra
Lower doses (1-5mg/kg) are able to improve neuronal Nitric Oxide Synthase (NOS) expression[36] and inducible (iNOS) expression[35][36] content in addition to PDE5 inhibtion. Effects on iNOS and nNOS do not appear to differ greatly from each other at the dosages of 1mg, 5mg, and 10mg/kg bodyweight,[36] suggesting low doses could also exert benefit but by different means.
Icariin may also promote Nitric Oxide signalling via increasing expression of NOS enzymes, which may work synergistically with the PDE5 inhibition
Icariin has also been linked to increasing neurite growth of major pelvic ganglia in vitro[36] which may be downstream of P13K and MEK/ERK activation.[43]

 

[Michael Frank]

Prior to being on TRT I used Nutrex's Vitrix (tribulus) for over a month. I can say honestly I noticed better morning erections when I took the supplement. I know my t-levels were in the low to mid 200's at the time I took the supplement. Placebo effect or not it did work. After learning so much on Testosterone Wisdom and here, I have moved on to Gene's dream stack! Now if I can only get my stubborn ass M.D. to allow me to try Trimix I would be a happy camper. He said he is hesitant because of the painful erections it produces and the extended time frame of erection can do more harm than could to my member..

 

[Gene Devine]

Prior to being on TRT I used Nutrex's Vitrix (tribulus) for over a month. I can say honestly I noticed better morning erections when I took the supplement. I know my t-levels were in the low to mid 200's at the time I took the supplement. Placebo effect or not it did work. After learning so much on Testosterone Wisdom and here, I have moved on to Gene's dream stack! Now if I can only get my stubborn ass M.D. to allow me to try Trimix I would be a happy camper. He said he is hesitant because of the painful erections it produces and the extended time frame of erection can do more harm than could to my member..

Find a Doc in your area who specializes in Trimix!

This drug is a Godsend for men in my opinion.

Want to know something funny?

My wife loves it so much she's now demanding it every time we fool around!

Just a great drug for so many reasons!!!

 

[Nelson Vergel]

I would bet all my money that most of those OTC supplements that increase erections have cialis or viagra cheaply bought in China. Over 25 companies have been spot tested by the FDA and found to have ED drugs in their "erection supplements".

 

[paco]

On muira puama, from Life Extension Foundation. Would somebody like to vouch for or refute this? I've never tried it, but I'm intrigued to see if it can help with my low libido.

Muira puama is a rainforest herb classified in the Brazilian Pharmacopoeia as an aphrodisiac. In a trial of men with decreased libido and other sexual issues, 62% of those taking muira puama reported positive results in regard to libido, while 51% of those with a common sexual problem felt that the herb was helpful.37 A second trial examined men with decreased libido and found that 85% of the test subjects taking muira puama enjoyed an enhanced libido, 90% had improved sexual function, and 100% of test subjects experienced an increase in intercourse frequency.38

******************************************


Muira puama has been the subject of two published clinical studies conducted by Dr. Jacques Waynberg, an eminent medical sexologist and author of 10 books on the subject. The first study, conducted at the Institute of Sexology in Paris under Waynberg's supervision, was reported in the November 1994 issue of The American Journal of Natural Medicine. The study population consisted of 262 men complaining of lack of sexual desire, or inability to attain or maintain erection.
The result: After two weeks, 62 percent of patients with loss of libido rated the treatment as having a dynamic effect, while 52 percent of patients with erectile dysfunction rated the treatment as beneficial.


Waynberg's second study, "Male Sexual Asthenia," focused on sexual difficulties associated with asthenia, a deficiency state characterized by fatigue, loss of strength or debility. The study population consisted of 100 men over 18 years of age who complained of impotence or loss of libido, or both. A total of 94 men completed the study. Muira puama treatment led to significantly increased frequency of intercourse for 66 percent of couples. Of the 46 men who complained of loss of desire, 70 percent reported intensification of libido. The stability of erection during intercourse was restored in 55 percent of patients, and 66 percent of men reported a reduction in fatigue. Other beneficial effects included improvement in sleep and morning erections.


Treatment with Muira puama was much more effective in cases with the least psychosomatic involvement. Of the 26 men diagnosed with common sexual asthenia without noticeable sign of psychosomatic disorder, the treatment was effective for asthenia in 100 percent of cases, for lack of libido in 85 percent of cases, and for inability to obtain an erection in 90 percent of cases.

 

[rob]

Good question.

 

[ERO]

On muira puama, from Life Extension Foundation. Would somebody like to vouch for or refute this? I've never tried it, but I'm intrigued to see if it can help with my low libido.

Muira puama is a rainforest herb classified in the Brazilian Pharmacopoeia as an aphrodisiac. In a trial of men with decreased libido and other sexual issues, 62% of those taking muira puama reported positive results in regard to libido, while 51% of those with a common sexual problem felt that the herb was helpful.37 A second trial examined men with decreased libido and found that 85% of the test subjects taking muira puama enjoyed an enhanced libido, 90% had improved sexual function, and 100% of test subjects experienced an increase in intercourse frequency.38

******************************************


Muira puama has been the subject of two published clinical studies conducted by Dr. Jacques Waynberg, an eminent medical sexologist and author of 10 books on the subject. The first study, conducted at the Institute of Sexology in Paris under Waynberg's supervision, was reported in the November 1994 issue of The American Journal of Natural Medicine. The study population consisted of 262 men complaining of lack of sexual desire, or inability to attain or maintain erection.
The result: After two weeks, 62 percent of patients with loss of libido rated the treatment as having a dynamic effect, while 52 percent of patients with erectile dysfunction rated the treatment as beneficial.


Waynberg's second study, "Male Sexual Asthenia," focused on sexual difficulties associated with asthenia, a deficiency state characterized by fatigue, loss of strength or debility. The study population consisted of 100 men over 18 years of age who complained of impotence or loss of libido, or both. A total of 94 men completed the study. Muira puama treatment led to significantly increased frequency of intercourse for 66 percent of couples. Of the 46 men who complained of loss of desire, 70 percent reported intensification of libido. The stability of erection during intercourse was restored in 55 percent of patients, and 66 percent of men reported a reduction in fatigue. Other beneficial effects included improvement in sleep and morning erections.


Treatment with Muira puama was much more effective in cases with the least psychosomatic involvement. Of the 26 men diagnosed with common sexual asthenia without noticeable sign of psychosomatic disorder, the treatment was effective for asthenia in 100 percent of cases, for lack of libido in 85 percent of cases, and for inability to obtain an erection in 90 percent of cases.

I have sh*tty libido even on TRT (I have low SHBG) and I have tried it to no effect. Maybe its just me though and it would work better for someone else.