PDE5 Inhibitors (Natural vs. Drugs)

“While studying your herbs list, I noticed on the Horny Goat Weed you mention it has PDE-5 inhibitor properties and it sounds like that’s a good thing. Then on Tongkat Ali you mention it has no PDE-5 inhibitors and it too sounds like that’s a good thing. What gives? Which way do I go here?” asks Ken.

The difference is in natural compounds as compared to adulterated drugs.

First off, what is PDE-5?

This is short for phosphodiesterase type 5 which is an enzyme. An inhibitor stops or slows down this enzymatic action, which specifically works on the cyclic GMP in the smooth muscle cells lining the blood vessels.

For the non-technical speak, it basically helps erectile tissue to stay erect.

The class of PDE-5 inhibitors is the drug type from which Viagra, Cialis, etc. all occur. The generic name for such is sildenafil as well as chemical variations of such.

And it’s not just drugs either.

Horny Goat Weed contains a natural constituent called icariin that is also a PDE-5 inhibitor.

Now, we use a natural 10:1 extract that contains between one and three percent icariin. So, our Horny Goat Weed does not work nearly as well as those drugs do in this sense.

Other companies sell isolated icariin which you can get if that’s your thing.

But we like the full spectrum extracts because they have many other benefits, not to mention natural ratios of various compounds, that generally bring more well-rounded benefits with less side effects.

Once again, Horny Goat Weed has a natural PDE-5 inhibiting compound.

This is the only one of our herbs to have that in it. (It being an ingredient in Thor’s Hammer, means it’s also in there.)

But here’s the shady thing.

Some “herbs” on the market may or may not contain the herb that is on the label. Even if they do, some of these used for sexual performance, are spiked with various PDE-5 inhibiting drugs.

The FDA (in one example of them actually doing their jobs) has shut down companies that sell products as such as this is not just illegal but dangerous.

Because we’re committed to quality and transparency, we’ve tested many of our herbs for these drugs and their analogues.

Tongkat Ali is one of them. Ant Extract is another.

These other herbs may also bring a wide ranging of sexual benefits from hormone effecting, nitric oxide raising, and who knows what else. But they do not have PDE-5 inhibiting action (at least that we’re aware of).

Thor’s Hammer contains Horny Goat Weed so it has some of the natural PDE-5 inhibitor from icariin. But it does not contain any of the adulterated drugs.

All of our herbs…are the herbs we say they are.

They do not contain adulterated drugs.

While some drugs have their place, at Lost Empire we like to stick to the natural stuff. And we back that up with our testing.

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Logan Christopher

CEO at Lost Empire Herbs

Logan Christopher is co-founder and CEO of Lost Empire Herbs, which aims to bring performance herbalism into everyday people’s lives. He started studying plants and fungi as a result of his interest in peak performance and strength training. This includes performing feats of strength such as pulling an 8,800 lb. firetruck by his hair, supporting half a ton on top of himself in a wrestler’s bridge position, and routinely ripping decks of cards in half with his bare hands. After visiting the Amazon rainforest, he received a calling to be an “Emissary of Nature” and thus bring humankind back into alignment with nature for health and well-being. You can read more about this in his book Powered By Nature.

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