There is no FDA approved herbal
Viagra. Viagra is not an herbal
drug. It is a prescription medication
manufactured and marketed by
Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, and
is approved by the FDA for treating
erectile dysfunction in men.
The chemical name for Viagra
is Sildenafil citrate. This
prescription drug is used to
treat impotence in men by increasing
blood flow to the male sexual
organ when a man is sexually
stimulated.
Since the launch of this drug
in 1998, Viagra has taken the
pharmaceutical industry and
the world by storm by becoming
the fastest selling and the
most popular prescription medication
on the market. With its instant
success many companies have
also decided to jump onto this
big cash bandwagon and have
started to produce and market
herbal equivalents of Viagra.
Many of these so-called herbal
products claim to enhance a
man’s sex drive naturally
by using herb and plant extracts.
Some of these drugs contain
substances that improve blood
flow in the body by relaxing
the walls of the blood vessels.
However no herbal products specifically
relax blood vessels in the male
sexual organ as Viagra and its
similar prescription medications
do. As a result, these herbal
remedies also tend to have side
effects and can cause low blood
pressure and limit the flow
of blood to vital organs in
the body. Herbal medication
can also be less effective because
it works over a longer period
of time, while with Viagra results
occur nearly immediately.
One of the most popular herbal
drugs is called yohimbe and
it is marketed for sexual enhancement.
However this herb has potentially
lethal side effects when taken
in excessive amounts. Another
popular herb is Muira puama
or Ptychopetalum olacoides.
This herb has been used by Brazilian
natives as both an aphrodisiac
and a nerve stimulant. Ginkgo
biloba extract is another so-called
‘Viagra alternative’.
It works by relaxing the blood
vessels in the body.
What needs to be kept in mind
here is that no herbal medication
receives FDA approval in the
US, so it quality and dosage
regulation cannot be verified.
It is thus impossible to endorse
any so-called ‘herbal
Viagra’ as a safe product.
Also the sites which market
these so-called herbal Viagra’s
do not provide buyers with all
the necessary information and
facts about the products or
warn patients to have their
heart checked out to see if
it can take the stress of intense
sexual stimulation. Again what
needs to be remembered is that
erectile dysfunction may be
a sign of heart disease or blood
vessel problems. These conditions
can often go undetected and
untreated in patients using
herbal treatments, who unknowingly
put themselves and their health
at risk by taking these drugs.
According to a survey conducted
of 33 websites selling herbal
substitutes for Viagra online,
many red flags were spotted
including; No information from
medically trained staff, No
warning about ED-associated
heart disease, No information
about contraindications or side
effects, Lack of referenced
information and disclaimers
and most importantly no information
on effectiveness of the herbs
used.
All this goes to show that
there is no real substitute
for the prescription drug Viagra,
which should only be taken under
medical supervision and prescribed
by a qualified doctor.
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