Tribulus Terrestris

(Puncturevine, Protodioscin)


Evidence: High
Possible Benefits: Reasonable
Safety: Reasonable

What is Tribulus Terrestris?

Tribulus Terrestris, also known as Puncturevine, is an adaptogenic herb with a long history of use as a traditional medicine. The root of this herb is often used as a supplement for enhancing libido and sexual well-being while the fruits are used for improving general vitality. This article is about the main benefits of Tribulus Terrestris, its potential side effects, the best time to take it, and more.

Possible benefits

All of the potential benefits mentioned below are dose-dependent. As with other adaptogenic herbs, there is a sweet-spot dose that allows you to get most of the benefits without causing meaningful side effects or tolerance buildup in the body. We will discuss the best dosing protocol later in this article.

Major benefits

  • Increased libido – Tribulus can increase libido in both men and women reporting a general loss of libido. A high dose of Tribulus root (1.5-2.25 grams of an extract or 6 grams of root powder) increased the volume and intensity of erections in infertile men, men with erectile dysfunction, and men with partial androgen deficiency.
  • Increased DHT – While Tribulus does not directly affect testosterone levels, it can increase the levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This is probably the main reason for the herb’s effects on libido.

Minor benefits

  • Reduced pain – This herb appears effective at reducing the perception of pain in response to chemical and heat pain tests.
  • Slower heart rate – People with hypertension experienced a slower heart rate after taking Tribulus.
  • Reduced blood pressure – This effect was also found in people with hypertension but isn’t too consistent as one study didn’t find any meaningful difference.
  • Diuretic effects – 3 grams of the Tribulus fruit daily increase the urine volume by about 200mL/day.
  • Lowered blood glucose – One study found a decrease in both fasting and postprandial blood glucose when people take 1 gram of Tribulus extract daily.
  • Increased well-being – While human research is needed to prove this benefit, one study on rats showed antidepressant effects in stressed rats.

Possible side effects

The side effects below are dose-dependent. The risk for them increases (often linearly but sometimes exponentially) as you increase the dose. Some of the side effects only apply to very high doses.

  • Nausea – This side effect is most common when people take the herb on an empty stomach.
  • Diarrhea – You can usually prevent diarrhea or stomach discomfort by taking this herb with a meal.
  • Problems in fetal development – Lab tests on animals link Tribulus to problems in fetal development so the herb should be avoided if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.
  • Toxicity – As an adaptogen, Tribulus Terrestris acts as a mild stressor on the body. That is usually a great thing as it allows your body to adapt to specific forms of stress and become more resilient. However, stressing the body too much can be counter-productive and cause multiple side effects, including toxicity. While acute toxicity is extremely rare, taking very high amounts of this herb could lead to chronic toxicity and cause health problems over time. To prevent chronic toxicity or the buildup of tolerance, staying below 5 grams of dry herb a day is best unless you have a great reason to take more.
  • Contamination – If growing or storing conditions are not adequately controlled, Tribulus can be contaminated with bacteria, molds, and other potentially harmful microorganisms. Some growers also use pesticides and herbicides, some of which are unsafe. Another issue is that herbal supplements can get contaminated with other supplements and chemicals during the manufacturing process. Choose the brand you get herbs and herbal supplements from wisely. It is often best to use websites like Amazon, where thousands of users have reviewed and rated the products. You are less likely to buy something of lower quality there.

Who should not take Tribulus?

You should probably avoid taking Tribulus Terrestris if you:

  • are allergic to this herb
  • experience a severe adverse reaction after taking the herb
  • are pregnant or breastfeeding (animal studies link Tribulus to problems in fetal development so the herb should be avoided if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding)
  • suffer from an autoimmune disease (adaptogenic herbs can stimulate the immune system, which can worsen symptoms of autoimmune diseases, such as lupus or multiple sclerosis)

Who will benefit the most?

You should consider taking the supplement if you:

  • suffer from hypertension
  • wish to increase libido
  • have low levels of DHT (dihydrotestosterone)
  • have a high budget for supplements and are willing to experiment with a variety of them (Tribulus Terrestris appears safe and is unlikely to do more harm than good for most people)

How much Tribulus Terrestris should you take?

Because Tribulus Terrestris is an adaptogenic herb, it acts as a mild hormetic stressor on the body, which allows your body to adapt and become more resilient to certain kinds of stressors in the long term.

A higher dose does not necessarily lead to more pronounced benefits. Instead, there appears to be an inverted U-shaped dose-response pattern. In other words, you want to find a sweet-spot dose that allows you to get the benefits of Tribulus without putting too much stress on the body or quickly causing the body to develop tolerance to the herb.

The sweet-spot dose typically ranges anywhere between 700-1500 mg of dry herb daily. This is equal to about 50-90 mg of saponins, the main bioactive compounds in Tribulus Terrestris.

If you buy an extract, it can be an x:1 extract or an extract standardized for saponins. If it is an x:1 extract, divide the dry herb dosage by x. If it is an extract standardized for saponins, only worry about the amount of saponins you take.

The higher end of this range usually provides slightly more benefits in the short term. If you plan to take this herb for a longer time (multiple months or years), the lower end is probably a better way to go since you would develop tolerance faster if you were to take higher doses.

While higher doses are generally safe, taking more than the sweet-spot dose daily would be counter-productive as your body would quickly develop tolerance.

Additionally, very high doses can put too much stress on your system and cause health problems if you take the supplement for a prolonged period.

While this herb could theoretically cause acute toxicity, you would need to take an extremely high dose that is way beyond what is generally found in even the most potent supplements.

Like with most other adaptogens, it is best to cycle Tribulus Terrestris and take about 2 days off every week to reset your tolerance. This will allow you to keep getting the benefits in the long term.

Keep in mind that the effects of this herb are cumulative. Therefore, you must take it for at least 2-4 weeks to notice the benefits. But again, cycling the herb and not taking it at least twice a week is necessary to prevent tolerance in the long term.

Best time to take Tribulus Terrestris

You can take this herb with or without food. Each of these options has its benefits. The main bioactive compounds in the herb should absorb well either way.

If you experience nausea or stomach discomfort when you take this herb, taking it with food should prevent these unpleasant effects or at least make them less intense.

If you take this herb on an empty stomach, the short-term effects will kick in faster and they will be more pronounced but will not last as long.

Whether you take this herb in the morning or the evening typically does not make much difference. Both options are fine so feel free to experiment.

Interactions

  • Lithium
    Tribulus Terrestris can slow down the body’s ability to get rid of lithium, which can increase the amount of lithium in the body.
  • Antihypertensive drugs
    Tribulus can reduce blood pressure. When combined with other blood pressure-reducing supplements or medications, the blood pressure in your body may drop too low.

Where to buy Tribulus?

Amazon is the best option for ordering Tribulus Terrestris and other herbal supplements in most countries. They offer some very affordable products backed by many positive reviews. Also, you can choose from a wide range of brands without having to search through other markets on the internet.

Some brands display the dosage per serving instead of per pill or capsule. Therefore, you may accidentally buy something less potent than you intended. Do not fall for this marketing trick.

FAQ

As with most other herbs and herbal supplements, it is best to cycle Tribulus Terrestris and stay off of it for about 2 days per week to reset your tolerance back to baseline. This will keep your body sensitive to the herb and allow you to keep getting the benefits in the long term.

Yes, you can. This herb should not impact your sleep in any negative way. Whether you take it in the morning or the evening typically doesn’t make much of a difference. Both options are fine so feel free to experiment.

This herb should not become harmful once it exceeds the expiration date but it can lose potency over time. Keep the herb or the herbal supplement in a cold, dark, and dry place, and it should remain just as potent for many months or even years.

As an adaptogen, Tribulus Terrestris acts as a mild stressor on the body. This is usually a great thing as it allows your body to adapt to specific forms of stress and become more resilient. However, putting too much stress on the body can be counter-productive and cause multiple side effects, including toxicity. While acute toxicity is extremely rare, taking very high amounts of this herb could lead to chronic toxicity and cause health problems over time. To prevent chronic toxicity or the buildup of tolerance, staying below 5 grams a day is best unless you have a great reason to take more.

While you could safely take higher doses, there is no point in taking more than 5 grams of dry Tribulus Terrestris daily. This amount should give you all of the benefits without meaningful side effects. Paradoxically, taking a higher dose would likely lead to fewer benefits as the body would become accustomed to the herb.

Unfortunately, the research on this is limited and there is not much information about the half-life of Tribulus in the body.

The effects of this herb are cumulative. Therefore, you must take it for at least 2-4 weeks to notice the benefits. But again, cycling the herb and not taking it at least twice a week is necessary to prevent tolerance in the long term.

Yes, Tribulus is vegan-friendly. If you buy this herb in a capsulated form, beware that the capsules often contain animal-based gelatin. Instead, find a brand that puts its products into cellulose capsules.

No, it doesn’t. The herb does not interfere with fasting in any significant way.

References

Most of the information in this guide is based on scientific research that can be found and verified in the PubMed medical library. We highly encourage you to use the library to verify anything you read in this article. We excluded from consideration studies that are either confounded or have a high conflict of interest.

We hope this guide has helped you determine if you should add Tribulus Terrestris to your supplement stack and how to do it right.

If you have any further questions or want to share your feedback, feel free to send us an email!

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