horny goat weed tincture
horny goat weed as sexual stimulant
Many species of Horny Goat Weed (Epimedium spp) are alleged to have aphrodisiac qualities. According to legend, this property was discovered by a Chinese goat herder who noticed sexual activity in his flock after they ate the weed, named Yin Yang Huo. The over-exploitation of wild populations of Epimedium for use in traditional Chinese medicine is having potentially serious consequences for the long-term survival of several species, none of which are widely cultivated for medicinal purposes.
The “active ingredient” in Horny Goat Weed is icariin, which can be found in standardized extracts from 5% up to 60% potent. Strengths above that are usually reserved for lab use.
Icariin is purported to work by increasing levels of nitric oxide, which relax smooth muscle. It has been demonstrated to relax rabbit penile tissue by nitric oxide and PDE-5 activity. Other research has demonstrated that injections of Horny Goat Weed extract, directly into the penis of the rat results in an increase in penile blood pressure.
Like Viagra, icariin, the active compound in Horny Goat Weed, inhibits the activity of PDE-5. In vitro assays have demonstrated that icariin inhibits PDE-5 with an IC50 of around 1 micromolar,[3][4] while Viagra has an IC50 of about 6.6 nanomolar (.0066 micromolar) and Levitra has an IC50 of about 0.7 nanomolar (.0007 micromolar).[5] Measured differently, the EC50 of icariin is approximately 4.62 micromolar, while Viagra is .42 micromolar. The amount of oral administration of Epidemium extract necessary to achieve these relative concentrations is unclear from the literature.
You can buy Horny Goat Weed in tincture, or better, buy HerbalV8 (for men) or HerbalVW (for women) as they are herbal tonics that contain all the most important herbs (including Horny Goat Weed) for increasing sex drive.