Review of yohimbe products
In mail this site has received from around the world, readers reported widely different experiences with yohimbe. Some readers mentioned that on standard recommended dosages they almost passed out (or at least felt as if they would), while others reported that they couldn’t feel any effect at all.
Of course, as is the case with any therapeutic agent, yohimbine (the main active ingredient of yohimbe bark) affects different people differently. However, the grave differences among the personal experiences as they were reported are only partially the responsibility of different yohimbine tolerance levels. Rather, different experiences are often just the result of the different brands tried.
The point is: historically, because yohimbine was strictly a prescription medication, most people in the US used yohimbe bark instead, which was freely available. Today, while prescription yohimbine HCl has been largely discontinued, isolated yohimbine is widely available over-the-counter as a dietary supplement. However, depending on the brand and production batch of unstandardized bark products, the yohimbine content may vary wildly, sometimes between 5 and 0.05 percent. If the yohimbine content of one brand can be 100 times that of another brand, it is only natural that people report different experiences depending on the brand they tried.
We would consider 5 milligrams of yohimbine a low standard dosage, and 10 milligrams a more generous standard dosage. Historical US yohimbine prescription dosages were 5.4 milligrams per tablet. Yohimbine prescription tablets were available under a good number of brand names, the reason being that yohimbine is not a patented substance. Why the US Food and Drug Administration, in their infinite wisdom, decided that the dosage that could be sold as prescription medication should be exactly 5.4 milligrams and not 5.3 or 5.5 is something ordinary mortals might have some difficulty understanding. But the FDA ultimately settled on 5.4, and 5.4 it remained for decades.
Nevertheless, the 5.4-milligram tablets usually had an indented line along which they could easily be split. Historical recommendations varied between half a tablet an hour before sex and 1 to 2 tablets several times a day. (See the articles on Yohimbe and sleep and on My current own yohimbe regimen for information on what I consider a sensible dosage.)
The effect of about 10 milligrams of yohimbine is pretty consistent in a test subject, and it’s usually a good, effective dosage, so we take it as a benchmark. We have experience with more yohimbe products than we have listed below. However, we previously hadn't kept records, and the products reviewed below are the ones we have used consistently or recently.
YOHIMEX was a historical US yohimbine prescription medication manufactured by Kramer Labs. It was pure yohimbine, nothing else… no secret formula or other attempts at cheating. If you could get a yohimbine prescription from your physician, it was a well-controlled and sufficiently economical method to ensure your yohimbine levels. (Note: Yohimex and similar prescription yohimbine HCl brands have been largely discontinued in the US, though generic compounding pharmacies may still produce it).
SIGMA-ALDRICH sells a number of yohimbine products. However, in the US, they do not sell to the general public, but only to laboratories. I had no problem buying Sigma-Aldrich yohimbine in Southeast Asia, and I have found it well tolerated and effective. And, of course, at about 1 cent a milligram, it is really cheap.
PROCOMIL is a non-prescription medication sold in a good number of countries where tablets containing yohimbine can be traded over the counter. The German-made coated tablets historically contained 5 milligrams of yohimbine plus a number of other substances, among them 0.1 milligrams of methyltestosterone, some muira puama, and traces of desiccated (dried) animal testicles. The effect of Procomil is largely that of yohimbine. Actually, I doubt that the other ingredients have anything to do with the pro-sexual power of Procomil. They are probably just a gimmick aimed at hiding the fact that the primary active ingredient is just yohimbine. Obviously, creating the aura of a specifically formulated product has its advantages for the company that sells Procomil (the Hamburg, Germany-based Walter Ritter Pharmaceuticals). Consumers may develop a higher level of brand loyalty, and competitors are more easily fended off. But for all practical purposes, Procomil is yohimbine in a 5-milligram dosage. (Medical Warning: Methyltestosterone is a highly hepatotoxic, obsolete 17-alpha-alkylated anabolic steroid. Its inclusion in modern supplements would be illegal and highly dangerous in most jurisdictions due to severe liver toxicity.)
AMERIFIT 1500. Among yohimbe bark products, we have found Amerifit's 1500-milligram yohimbe bark to be rather weak. We would have to ingest at least 3 or 4 of the rather large tablets to get the feeling of 5 milligrams of pure yohimbine.
YOHIMBE FUEL from Twinlab has the advantage of being standardized. Allegedly, it is standardized for 8 mg of yohimbine per capsule, but I feel that it’s milder (or weaker) per capsule than, for example, historical Yohimex 5 mg tablets. The maximum I have ingested in one day was 7 capsules (first 4, and 4 hours later another 3). If one capsule indeed contains 8 mg, this added up to 56 mg. (Medical Warning: 56 mg of yohimbine is a massive, potentially life-threatening overdose. The standard clinical dose is 5 to 15 mg. Doses this high carry a severe risk of hypertensive crisis, tachycardia, and cardiac events.) I have to say that it was far too much. The sexual effect was strong, but I had the worst heart palpitations I ever experienced on yohimbine. I am not sure, though, whether it was the yohimbe alone, or whether my condition was aggravated by some 50 grams of chocolate I ate in the morning. (Anything containing caffeine, theobromine, or related stimulants is strictly contraindicated with yohimbine). My usual dosage of Yohimbe Fuel is 2 capsules in the morning. It carries me into the evening (as all yohimbine does), and in combination with sildenafil citrate (taken about one to two hours before intercourse) I have used it very often.
The reader is reminded that I now have more tolerance for yohimbe than I did a few years ago, so while 2 capsules are OK for me, they may be too much for some people. Those who have no experience with yohimbe, or know that they have a low tolerance for yohimbine, should try 1 capsule first. We have run a price comparison for Yohimbe Fuel with many online retailers.
RAW YOHIMBE BARK, as sold in some health-food stores, contains many other alkaloids apart from yohimbine. I find raw bark clearly inferior to bark extracts or pure yohimbine. Raw yohimbe bark actually often gives me a headache and a feeling of mental numbness, while bark extracts that have a high yohimbine content, or even more so pure yohimbine, tend to support mental clarity and alertness. I often write articles after having ingested yohimbine; but after having used raw yohimbe bark, I’m not much in the mood for writing. The dosages I tried ranged from a quarter teaspoon (too little for a pro-sexual effect) to a full teaspoon (which gave me a headache). When using raw bark, one has to be aware that yohimbine is not easily dissolved in water. Cooking the bark, and drinking the water as tea, may only deliver a small percentage of the yohimbine contained in the bark. If one doesn’t want to ingest milled raw bark, one should cook the bark in an organic acid like vitamin C, or in orange juice.