There has not been much scientific work on pine pollen in the west. However, studies are beginning to show that the uses of it in Traditional Chinese Medicine for radiant vitality and slowing or reversing aging are not misleading. Stephan Harrod Buhner, a leading investigator on plant androgens, tells us that, “pine pollen is extremely high in androgens and the amino acids that support healthy endocrine function.” This is a simple list of ingredients for pine pollen which l shall partially be expanded on below.
According to the research, the nutritious components are categorized into five groups:
(1) 20 kinds of amino acid, 8 of which are essential to the body.
(2) 14 kinds of vitamins.
(3) 30 kinds of mineral elements.
(4) About a hundred kinds of enzymes and active substances.
(5) Nucleic acids, fibrins, unsaturated fatty acids, flavonoids, choline, etc.
This will automatically make one come to the conclusion that more is better, hence mega dosing:
“Oral dosing in China runs from 5 to 10 grams per day, which, barring the problems of testosterone going through the GI tract, would give a comparatively high dose of testosterone every day.”
– Stephen Harrod Buhner
The massive doses recommended by Chinese Medicine makes sense when one sees the amount of nutrients involved. As for the testosterone making it through the GI tract, this is a problem best remedied by tinctures. However, tinctures cannot impart the totality of the dense food source that pollen is, so a combination of the two is highly advantageous for men that have started andropause (around 40) and up. As for women and children, taking the powder is the only way that this should be ingested.
A further note before looking at some nutrients, I commonly will throw the whole tablespoon in my mouth and slowly saturate it with saliva, this ensures some digestion off the bat and possible absorption of androgens into the bloodstream under the tongue. I then gulp it down with a mouthful of water and hopefully, the fact that pollen gets everywhere and sticks to everything, one can safely assume that it will do this in the esophagus. Androgens such as testosterone and DHEA can ONLY be absorbed into the bloodstream under the tongue or in the esophagus. They will not survive in the stomach.
One tablespoon approximates to 3 grams of pine pollen. To get 10 grams of pine pollen in an easy manner to remember, I will normally take one slightly heaping tablespoon first thing when I wake up, again around noon or after I work out, and then lastly before going to bed. This has worked well for me but there is nothing saying you can’t more precisely attempt to time it with the peaks of testosterone throughout the day.
Amino Acids
Here are the amounts of amino acids as measured in Pinus montana, similar to Pinus massonia used in our pine pollen supplement:
- Arginine – 99.8 mg
- Histidine – 18.9 mg
- Isoleucine – 53.9 mg
- Leucine – 84.6 mg
- Lysine – 80.2 mg
- Phenylalanine – 57.2 mg
- Threonine – 49.2 mg
- Tryptophan – 14.9 mg
- Valine – 64.6 mg
Thus, while pine pollen will not give you the full dose of acids needed from day today, large doses of it will significantly supplement your normal intake of amino acids. This can only help to ensure your cells have all the building blocks needed during times of stress such as lack of sleep, physical training, or for proper hormonal control. As this list shows, of the essential amino acids, only one is missing methionine. This makes pine pollen a potent source with the ability of someone surviving entirely alone on it coming very close to being a possibility. On the flip side, certain studies have shown that restricting methionine consumption can increase lifespans in some animals (Miller).
As an aside, I wanted to mention arginine for the gentlemen reading this article. Arginine is a known human growth stimulator in sufficient doses. Supplementation with mega doses of pine pollen can help you regularly hit and stay at higher levels of arginine use by the system to enhance growth. Arginine is also a precursor to nitric oxide, an important erection stimulant and strength building factor. You can’t go wrong with having a wholesome source of arginine in a bioavailable form with all the needed cofactors in comparison to the chemical industries practice of isolating the acid.
The nonessential amino acids pine pollen contains are:
- Asparagic acid – 109.8 mg
- Serine – 52.2 mg
- Amino Glutaric acid – 157.9 mg
- Aminoacetic acid – 69.8 mg
- Alanine – 56.4 mg
- Tyrosine – 36.5 mg
- Cysteine – 11.2 mg
- Merionin – 16.6 mg
- Proline – 88.4 mg
Vitamins:
- Vitamin B1 – 607 mg
- Vitamin B2 – 48.6 mg
- Vitamin B6 – 130 mg
- E – 324 mg
- C – 56.2 mg
- D3 – 2.28 mg
- A – 43.2 mg
- Nicotinamide (niacin) – 2400 mg
- Folic Acid – 93 mg
- Beta Carotin – 2.62 mg
A note on the Vitamin D content of pine pollen. Not only does pine have D2 and D3 in amounts between 0.1 and 3 micrograms but also possesses hydroxylated metabolites of D3. This is between 40 and 120 IU’s for those counting. Not a lot but every bit helps.
“(D3) plays an essential role in the regulation of intestinal calcium and phosphorus absorption, calcium mobilization from bones, and reabsorption of calcium and phosphorus in the kidneys.” Everyone knows how important vitamin D is to health, so having some extra in the diet is never really a bad thing because most everyone is deficit in these essential compounds (but please don’t depend on your diet to get sufficient quantities as it is rather difficult to do contrary to popular opinion the sun is the best and healthiest way to ingest it).
Other Constitutes
There are an immense number of other constitutes. Many different minerals, for example, though I did not list them as I could not reliably make the conversions to milligrams with the information provided. A couple that are common to plants but are not largely studied between human interactions are:
Gibberellins – Structurally very similar to testosterone. These are basically plant steroids that jumpstart the first stages of germination. Spray them on growing buds and they will grow exponentially. They are found most in the buds and pollens of plants. They have been found to actually connect with testosterone receptors in the human body. Basically, they can mimic testosterone in the body and, as Stephan tells us, “because of their adrenal and pituitary actions, they stimulate androgen production in the body; energy levels increase.” They act as prostate regulators, up-regulating when the prostate is too small (one study had castrated rats keep their prostates from shrinking) and down regulate when the prostate is too big and inflamed. They are also anticancerous and anti-inflammatory in the rest of the body.
Brassinosteroids – Another essential element to plants, brassinosteroids are being used by plant growers as a “high efficient, broad-spectrum, safely and multipurpose plant growth regulator…” Pine pollen contains many of the over 30 different kinds already identified. Two of the brassinosteroids in pine pollen are the mechanism through which the liver safely removes xenobiotic substances, such as xenoestrogens, from the body system. They have strong antiviral actions and are, “considered to be highly novel steroidal compounds with unique anticancer actions while possessing very low toxicity.”
Megadose
If you have already experienced some of the benefits of pine pollen at much smaller doses, just imagine how incredible you will feel when you start ingesting much higher amounts. All of us have been megadosing pine pollen as of late and we are blessedly fortunate to have the ability to do so. None of us can imagine not consuming pine pollen on the regular for the rest of our, what seems more and more, very long-lasting natural lives. So megadose, because its natures supplement, a gift freely given by the pine trees to sustain us in exceedingly happy, healthy lives.
We also now have available a 250 gram container. This was created for mega-dosing with pine pollen as described on this page. In China, pine pollen is usually taken at doses of 5-10 grams per day for all the nutrition and healthful benefits it provides. At a dose of 10 grams a day (approximately 3 tablespoons) this supply will last 25 days. At five grams a day it would last 50 days. Of course, you can also order it as a stockpile with regular dosing, as its like buying four 50 gram bags and getting one free.
There are approximately 83 tablespoons per 250 gram container.
Sources:
1) Buhner, Stephen H. Pine Pollen: Ancient Medicine for a Modern World. Springvale: SurThrival, 2011. Print.
2) Buhner, Stephen H. The Natural Testosterone Plan: For Sexual Health and Energy. Rochester: Healing Arts Press. 2007. Print.
3) Miller, Richard A.; Buehner, Gretchen; Chang, Yayi; Harper, James M.; Sigler, Robert; SmithWheelock, Michael (2005). “Methioninedeficient diet extends mouse lifespan, slows immune and lens aging, alters glucose, T4, IGFI and insulin levels, and increases hepatocyte MIF levels and stress resistance”. Aging cell 4 (3): 119–125.
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Vks says
What are the best androgenic herbs/tonics you have come across other than piene pollen and Shilajit?
Zane Christopher says
The Tongkat Ali is the best I have tried on the market. Doesn’t mean there isn’t better but we don’t get to try many other companies stuff since we just use our own. Other herbs that work really well, Cistanche, Pine Bark, Boron actually has helped me, properly prepared ginseng Ashwagandha…much of the stuff that does work we tend to try and sell. There are more like I haven’t tried out.
Check out the men’s hormone health page.
martin says
what might i expect when mixing these 3 herbs, pine pollen powder, tongkat ali, and he shou wu? also it said that pine pollen should be taken in mouth with no drink and dissolved with saliva to absorb in the blood stream for more androgenic effects is this completely true? plus how much herbs is it ok to take? and are their any i should be worried about mixing?
Zane Christopher says
The effects of mixing any three herbs on any random individual are fairly unknowable to a large extent. Hopefully, among other things, you would have more energy, more confidence, a greater sense of well-being, and on and on. The part about letting sit in the mouth to potentially absorb some androgens under the tongue is conjecture. There is no studies and this only comes from trying to get the androgens in tincture form in a similar manner. Does it work? Hard to say but its worth a try if you like to experiment and don’t mind the taste.
The number of herbs you can take is in my opinion as board as the amount of different foods you eat. Should you take that many is up for debate. If it helps you in taking 10+ herbs a day then there is nothing wrong with it in my mind. What you need to be careful for is if you take any pharmaceuticals at the same time as many herbs do interact with certain medications. As far as I know of the top of my head, no there are not really any you cannot mix with each other. Traditionally though, you should take certain supporting herbs with certain primary herbs as a way of keeping your body in balance because even herbs (though far milder then pharmaceuticals) can push someone with a condition (like being a hot person, in temperament for example) deeper into that condition (like using hot herbs which put more wood on the fire).
Hope that helps!
Chelsie says
Can you explain why women should only take the powder? I was on testosterone injections for a while and just recently stopped but noticed a decrease in stamina, energy, and sex drive. I would like to boost my testosterone levels naturally instead. I’m not looking for the bodybuilder effect. I’m just looking for better quality of life. Will this help those areas for women?
Zane Christopher says
We recommend that women, especially younger women below forty stick with the powder. We actually have many older women take the tincture now and get really positive results from it. If you are interested in that I would recommend starting at a much smaller dose, 1/4-1/2 of a dropper and slowly raising it to where you are comfortable. Women need testosterone just as much as guys, just in much smaller amounts. It is a quest of ours to let women know that more testosterone for them doesn’t mean becoming a bodybuilder. In fact, it usually helps tone them up instead. Certainly, balancing low T even for women will have far reaching body effects.
If you do try that out, please let us know how it goes! We could really use some more woman testimonials for the tincture so that women lose the fear of bulking up. Thanks for the question! :)
sam says
Hello again. a friend of mine gave me a present which is tongkat ali root powdered not extract and i truly don’t know where he got it from but he says it is from a good source. Anyway my question is since it is not an extract BUT just powdered what is the dose that I should take it in? Thanks.
Zane Christopher says
Dose would be a lot more then the extract. You should also be careful about some of the tannins or saponins in that root. The main reason they water extract it is because raw consumption can be hard on the liver. I would suggest trying some water extractions yourself though Tongkat Tea might be just a bit too hard to get down!
sam says
Hello. I’m a bit confused here. you say that the tincture is the way to go for boosting testosterone and yet you say the powdered form is best for morning wood, but aren’t they related please clarify? Thank you.
Zane Christopher says
Hello Sam, Yes that is a bit confusing isn’t it. Well to clarify, the tincture has long bit purported to get testosterone from the pine pollen directly into the bloodstream. It is believed that androgens in the pollen are broken down by the stomachs acid. Is this true? No one really knows. Because the pollen has such an ability to induce morning wood, I suspect that at the very least, the acids cannot destroy all the androgens and/or everything else in the pollen allows the body to produce more testosterone in a very quick fashion. The morning wood test should hold true for the tincture as well though in that case I believe. I did recently try it and it seemed to hold true for me at any rate.
Larry says
I recently switched from the regular pine pollen to the megadose and the results have been unbelievable. My wife is very, very happy. I highly recommend putting some of the powder in your mouth mixing with your saliva and letting it get under your tongue as Logan has suggested. I really feel this is better than any vitamin nutritional supplement I have ever taken. I am taking the nettle root and plan on adding the shijalit and tongkat ali. I want to be a workout warrior. I feel healthier and stronger.
R/T says
Love this powder. Tastes great and feels good to me after taking for a couple months now. The slumber lumber test scored an A+.
Really like how it’s a T-boost and all-around health nutrient that I’ve gladly substituted for multivitamins. Tried a couple of the pine pollen tincture bottles too, and they may have indeed given more drive, aggression (more androgenic) but I dislike the alcohol, and feel I have the T-boost covered by taking Tongkat Ali.
Keith munt says
Can it be taken as an enema?…I have a male friend that likes herbs in his ass as opposed to swallowing them,
Cheers!
admin says
I suppose it can and would probably have more of a testosterone-boosting effect that way, since it bypasses gastric juices and is absorbed directly by the intestinal walls.
It would be great to hear how that worked out for your friend!
Michael says
I recently purchased the Pine Pollen tincture which I’ve only used for a few days so far.. I am now thinking about getting the Megadose powder as well to get all the benefits that Pine Pollen can deliver.
I was just wondering if it would be fine to mix one or two tablespoons of the Megadose powder in my daily protein shake. The shake contains 25 grams of whey protein powder and sometimes I’ll put in a few grams of creatine. Will it be okay to take the Pine Pollen powder like this? Thanks
admin says
That’s would be totally fine. If you want more of a testosterone-boosting properties, the tincture is the way to go. If you prefer the vitamin & mineral powerhouse that pine pollen powder is, then go for that. Combining them should provide the maximum benefits.
David says
Can we get the beneficts of pine pollen powder taking pine pollen tablets?
admin says
I guess you will get some of the benefits, but we prefer the powdered form as it doesn’t contain any additives and you’re actually tasting the herb you’re taking.