Catuaba supplement

Catuaba is a medium-sized tree found in the Amazon forest in the northern part of Brazil. In Brazilian herbal medicine, Catuaba bark is considered a central nervous system stimulant with aphrodisiac properties and a bark decoction is used for nervousness, poor memory, and sexual weakness. Apparently the Topi Indians have known about the sex-enhancing properties of catuaba for many centuries.
   The scientific name of Catuaba is Erythroxylum catuaba), while other common names for catuaba are Chuchuhuasha, Tatuaba, Pau de Reposta, and Caramuru. We have also found catuaba research studies done with Erythroxylum vacciniifolium and Anemopaegma mirandum. We are not certain whether they are referring to the same catuaba plant. We are not aware of specific human studies regarding the role of catuaba in erectile dysfunction as of August 2007.

Catuaba Bark Powder 500 mg, 60 capsules, Physician Formulas
 Passion Rx with Catuaba bark extract -- Formulated by Ray Sahelian, M.D. for Men and Women
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Indigenous tribes of the Amazon Rainforest and city dwellers in Brazil have used Catuaba bark for generations as a natural herbal remedy for libido enhancement. Catuaba and muira puama are the most famous of all Brazilian aphrodisiac plants. This double concentrated catuaba bark extract uses new extraction methods to concentrate and preserve the active ingredients in this high quality Amazon plant with the equivalent of 500 mg of bark per ml. of extract (30 drops).

Catuaba Supplement Facts
Catuaba Bark Powder - 500 mg *   
   (Erythroxylum catuaba)

Passion Rx with catuaba
Some of the herbs in Passion Rx include Maca, Catuaba extract, Horny-Goat-Weed extract, Muira Puama, Tribulus, Tongkat ali, and Yohimbe.

What the research says about Catuaba
We found few studies regarding catuaba. Back in 1992, researchers in Japan found catuaba extracts (species Erythroxylum catuaba) to have potential antibacterial and anti-HIV activity. Catuaba, when given to mice, protected them from E. Coli and Staph infections/ Catuaba was also able to prevent the HIV virus from attaching to cells, and, in addition, catuaba prevented the death of white blood cells exposed to the HIV virus. Of course, more studies are needed before catuaba can be recommended for use by patients infected with the HIV virus. 

What's in Catuaba?
The substances found in Catuaba include alkaloids (catuabine A, B, and C), tannins, aromatic oils and fatty resins, phytosterols, and cyclolignans.
How does Catuaba work?
The mechanism of action regarding catuaba's aphrodisiac properties is currently not well understood.

Catuaba side effects
There are no known side effects with catuaba, however the use of catuaba in North America is relatively new since for centuries catuaba has been used predominantly by Amazon natives. Little is known about catuaba's long-term safety.

What about drug interactions with Catuaba?
So little is known about catuaba that it is difficult to say how catuaba interacts with other herbs or medicines. However, we do know that it is often used safely with muira puama by natives in northern Brazil.

Reports from users
More than half of users find catuaba to be beneficial, particularly is erection enhancement. Most of the positive catuaba responses mention an enhanced ability to maintain erections. Dennis, 47, says, “I do find catuaba helps me have better erections after several days of use, and a friend told me to combine it with muira puama. The combination seems to be more effective. I had previously noticed that muira puama enhanced my libido, and since the catuaba helps with my erections, it seems logical to combine them.”

Catuaba Dosage and Availability
Catuaba has been historically consumed by Amazonian natives as a tea made from the bark. Indigenous Brazilians claim that after drinking one to three cups of catuaba tea steadily over a period of a few days or weeks, the first effects that occur are usually erotic dreams, and then increased sexual desire. Claims have been made that an alcohol tincture extract of catuaba contains more of the active ingredients and provides better results, although I have not come across such research. 
   Catuaba capsules are sold consisting of a range from 500 to 1,000 mg. The recommended dose would be 0.5 to 1.5 g of catuaba per day. One full dropper of the alcohol tincture can be taken twice a day with breakfast and lunch. Catuaba is commonly found in two-ounce liquid bottles; one milliliter provides about 500 mg. There are also different extract potencies of catuaba, such as a 4:1 extract.
   A google search reveals that catuaba is available in many formulas, often combined with other herbs. There are probably hundreds of libido products marketed over the counter, and it quite likely that many of them are effective while others provide disappointing results.

Catuaba Summary
 The well-documented historical use, and my personal experience with patients, lead to to believe that catuaba does have aphrodisiac properties. With the popularity of catuaba gradually becoming more prominent, it would help  us all if more attention and research focused on the potential benefits of this interesting plant.

Catuaba as anti-inflammatory
 We are not sure how similar this catuaba plant is to other species such as Erythroxylum catuaba.

 Inhibition of platelet phospholipase A2 activity by catuaba extract suggests antiinflammatory properties.
Phytother Res. 2004 Nov;18(11):942-4. Laboratory of Neuroscience, Department and Institute of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, Brazil.
In the inflammation process, phospholipase A2 (PLA2) catalyses the cleavage of the sn-2 ester-linked fatty acids from phospholipids, being the enzyme responsible for arachidonic acid (AA) release by cells for the biosynthesis of the prostaglandins and thromboxanes via the cyclooxygenase system, and the leukotrienes and eicosatetraenoids via the lipoxygenase pathway. AA mobilization by PLA2 and subsequent prostaglandins synthesis is considered to be a pivotal event in inflammation. Therefore, drugs that inhibit PLA2, thus blocking the COX and LOX pathways in the AA cascade, may be effective in the treatment of inflammatory processes. New strategies for the treatment of inflammatory processes could be detected by a search for active principles of vegetal origin that control the lipid mediator production by inhibition of PLA2. The present data are part of a wide explorative investigation on the effects of Trichilia catigua (catuaba), which found that PLA2 activity was totally inhibited by catuaba at a concentration of 120 microg/mL, suggesting that this natural substance may have antiinflammatory properties.

Catuaba extract availability by herbal suppliers
Catuaba extract is sold in a number of concentrations and extract potencies including a 4 to 1 standardized extract.

Catuaba questions
Q. I have read that taking the powder of catuaba will do little vs. a catuaba tincture of it. Do you know anything regarding this? could you let me know.    
   A. Our research staff has taken catuaba powder in capsule form and has noticed its potency. There have not been any studies comparing tincture versus powder so anyone making such claim is not basing it on actual research.

Q. Here's a bit of feedback from one user's perspective. First background info: Male, 50 years, 6'2", 225lbs, somewhat sedentary (office work), generally good health (my blood pressure and cholesterol are just a little high.....) Libido is fine - in fact less would be better. However, I'm not as young as I used to be. Twice a week and everything seems to work fine. But at a more desirable 5 times a week, I seem to need a little, uh, "assistance" some mornings. Catauba: I've tried Cialis, and catauba works in a similar manner and is every bit as good. Taken in the evening it can result in an erection lasting most of the night which gets in the way of normal tossing and turning resulting in a difficult night's sleep. Taken in the morning it seems superior to Cialis or Yohimbe. This is one catauba capsule (500mg) as purchased from Physician Formulas. For me at least, the strong effects seem to last about 6 hours or so for 1 catauba capsule. I have not tried it on a continuous basis but rather on an as needed basis - much like you would use Viagra, for example.

Q. I'm not sure which herb to try first can u tell me which among horny goat weed, muira puama, catuaba, etc, which among all of these has a good record in terms of erectile dysfunction, i think it's catuaba, am i right?
   A. Catuaba seems more focused on erection while muira puama may be be more for libido, horny goat weed could do both, but people's responses could vary.

Q. I discovered this Sure Erect Pills website some months ago. Could this be a genuine product that works as well as they  claim? They do say: "Clinical trials in progress at various academic institutions have shown encouraging results in patients with ED without producing any side effects." If true, that does make Sure Erect Pills product interesting.  
   A. We are not familiar with Sure Erect Pills.

Q. Can you tell me about Viagra alternative herbs. I see many of them mentioned on the internet. Also, your thoughts on xanthoparmelia and the herb zallouh.
   A. See this link viagra alternative for some suggestions. See a discussion of xanthoparmelia scabrosa.

Q. Would taking a catuaba supplement along with hoodia cause problems? Also, which is a better sexual enhacer, catuaba or suma?
   A. It's hard to say, but the combination would be okay if the dosages are kept low. See hoodia gordonii side effects for information. Suma is a weaker aphrodisiac than catuaba.

Q. I would like to know if taking the herb catuaba herb would make you fail a drug test? I've heard that it is in the coca family, but that it does not contain any of the properties of cocaine.
   A. We seriously doubt catuaba supplement use would make one fail a drug test, but since we have no personal knowledge with this, we can't be 100 percent sure, but 99.9 percent sure.

Q. Why is there magnesium stearate in this catuaba supplement pill when a powder and a binder is not needed? I have a skin condition that is sensitive to magnesium stearate. Do you know how I can purchase catuaba without magnesium stearate?
   A. The manufacturer of the catuaba product prefers to use magnesium stearate in order to prevent clumping of the herb during manufacturing and encapsulation. You may find other catuaba on the market through a google search that do not have magnesium stearate added.
 

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