- The manufacturers of herbal Viagra tablets often claim that their products are entirely natural. However, the FDA has found that several contain traces of sildenafil citrate — the active ingredient in Viagra.
- Even if a natural alternative to Viagra doesn’t contain sildenafil, it may still prove dangerous. Some herbal supplements can cause kidney or nerve damage.
- Overall, it’s safer and more effective to take an FDA-approved drug under the guidance of a medical provider.
At first glance, herbal remedies would seem to have a lot going for them. Instead of harsh chemical compounds, these supplements purportedly rely on natural plant-based materials that herbalists have found to be effective in treating an array of human ills, including erectile dysfunction. And as a general rule, they’re cheaper than prescription medications.
So much for superficial appearances. FDA investigators have found that many of these so-called herbal remedies for ED, including various supplements touted as herbal Viagra, contain the same chemicals as the drugs for which they offer alternatives.
However, because these natural remedies are not subject to the same stringent testing and regulations as prescription drugs, the amount of those active ingredients varies widely. In some cases, it may be too little to have much effect, while in others the amount of the active ingredient may be far higher than recommended maximums for daily intake.
The “Promise” of Herbal Viagra
You may wonder why there’s all this fuss about getting the active ingredients of Viagra for a fraction of the price you’d pay for it in brand-name Viagra.
The unadvertised presence of sildenafil citrate — Viagra’s active ingredient — in some of these herbal remedies might seem like a bonus. After all, you’re likely getting it for a fraction of the price, and you’re potentially dodging the admin that comes with getting a physician-approved prescription.
However, a bonus dose of sildenafil citrate isn’t all it seems. When you’re unaware of the dose, there’s no way of knowing if it’s an effective level. Worse, hidden sildenafil can be life-threatening for some men.
In early 2015, the FDA warned consumers to avoid using the herbal remedy Herb Viagra after laboratory analysis of the product confirmed the presence of sildenafil, which was not listed on the label.
The FDA pointed out that the use of Herb Viagra — or any similar herbal remedy — could be particularly dangerous to men who were also taking nitrate-based drugs, prescribed to treat angina and hard-to-control high blood pressure.
Because men taking these drugs are warned to steer clear of PDE5 inhibitors (popular ED drugs such as Viagra), they might be looking for herbal alternatives to these prescription drugs and innocently put themselves in harm’s way.
The FDA reiterated their findings about Herb Viagra in 2020, along with a reminder that they can’t test all natural supplements, so an absence of a warning doesn’t mean a remedy is sildenafil-free.
About Herbal Remedies for ED
Although FDA tests have shown some herbal ED remedies to contain varying quantities of the active ingredients in prescription ED drugs, others do offer herbal ingredients that herbalists have long found useful for the treatment of impotence. Such natural ingredients include yohimbine, horny goat weed, ginseng, and saw palmetto.
However, the fact that some ingredients in these herbal remedies are natural doesn’t mean they’re safe. Saw palmetto is a natural form of PDE5 inhibitor that’s native to the southeastern United States. It has some success in treating benign prostatic hyperplasia, with easier erections coming as a side effect. In a rare number of cases, saw palmetto has been linked with liver damage.
Similarly, while horny goat weed isn’t dangerous on its own, it may interact with other ingredients to cause liver injury. Ginseng does have antioxidant properties, but with uncontrolled doses it may cause hormonal disruption that causes breast growth in men and alters menstrual cycles in women. It can also cause nausea, gastrointestinal problems, and hypertension.
What’s more, consumers have no reliable way to ascertain exactly what ingredients — and in what quantities — are in these so-called natural remedies. Unlike FDA-approved drugs, they’re unregulated, so manufacturers don’t face penalties for dangerous or ineffective doses.
FDA: Tainted Sexual Enhancement Products List
The FDA website features a page devoted to Tainted Sexual Enhancement Products, a growing list of herbal remedies that FDA inspectors have found to contain “hidden drug ingredients.” As of May 2023, there are 411 products on this list.
Such hidden ingredients are most often one or more of the active ingredients found in prescription ED drugs, such as Viagra, Levitra, and Cialis. Among the herbal products on the FDA’s list are Goldreallas Original; Shengjingpian; Rhino 5, 7, 8 and 9; Duramaxxx; and Big Penis Male Sexual Stimulant, all of which were found to contain varying amounts of sildenafil. Others on the list have hidden tadalafil (Cialis) and vardenafil (Levitra).
While phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors are the most common hidden ingredients in products on this list, there are others. Here are just a few examples:
- Sibutramine: This prescription medication was previously used for weight loss but has been withdrawn from the market in several countries due to safety concerns.
- Phenolphthalein: Phenolphthalein is a laxative that was once used in over-the-counter (OTC) products but has been banned in the United States because of concerns that it may cause cancer.
- Fluoxetine: Fluoxetine is an antidepressant (Prozac) that’s only available by prescription.
Herbal Sexual Enhancement Products in the Headlines
Herbal sexual enhancement supplements hit the headlines in the fall of 2015 when former NBA star Lamar Odom was found in a coma after allegedly ingesting 10 “Reload” tablets before arriving at a legal Las Vegas brothel. (It was also alleged that Odom had taken unknown quantities of cocaine.)
In June 2013, the FDA had announced that testing revealed that supplements under the Reload label contained undeclared sildenafil. Their recommendation at that time was that “consumers should stop using this product immediately and throw it away.”
Although Odom eventually recovered, his experience put him into a Nevada hospital on life support for a few days. Odom’s case is an extreme example, but it serves as a cautionary tale of the potential dangers of taking any “herbal” medications that may contain undisclosed ingredients.
In an interview by USA Today, Robert Glatter, an emergency physician at New York City’s Lenox Hill Hospital, likened taking one of the herbal ED remedies to playing Russian roulette.
“You don’t know what you’re getting any time you open a bottle of ‘herbal Viagra.’ ” – Robert Glatter, MD
FDA-Approved Medications for ED: A Reliable Option from eDrugstore
If you’d prefer to rely on FDA-approved medications to treat your symptoms of ED, you can learn more about these drugs and place an online order with us. eDrugstore is a reliable online drugstore that sources the drugs we sell from licensed U.S. pharmacies. To get started, visit eDrugstore’s ED medication guide. When you shop with eDrugstore, virtual health visits and shipping are always free.
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