{"id":161,"date":"2010-02-16T18:51:46","date_gmt":"2010-02-16T18:51:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/vitamins.ultimatefatburner.com\/?p=161"},"modified":"2015-02-12T16:28:01","modified_gmt":"2015-02-12T21:28:01","slug":"damiana-herb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/damiana-herb.html","title":{"rendered":"Damiana Herb Natural Aphrodisiac: Benefits and Side Effects"},"content":{"rendered":"

Damiana<\/strong> is an herbal shrub native to Central\/South America and Mexico. The official name of the herb is Turnera diffusa<\/em> (although it may also be called Turnera aphrodisiaca<\/em>). In traditional\/alternative medicine, it’s regarded as an aphrodisiac with a variety of reported effects on both the hormonal and reproductive systems.<\/p>\n

As a medicinal plant, damiana has been used to treat menstrual disorders, anxiety and diabetes. It reportedly has stimulant, diuretic and laxative effects as well<\/a>. It is also claimed that damiana has marijuana-like psychoactive effects, especially when smoked.<\/p>\n

Research on damiana is scattered and somewhat limited. Nonetheless, there are a few small studies that lend support its reputation as a sexual stimulant. For example, damiana was reported to improve the “copulatory performance of sexually sluggish\/impotent rats<\/a>,” in addition to reducing the “post-ejaculatory interval”<\/a> in rats that were sexually exhausted.<\/p>\n

In-vitro tests also indicate that Turnera diffusa<\/em> extracts inhibit the aromatase enzyme responsible for testosterone conversion to estrogen<\/a> and induce smooth muscle relaxation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If these activities also occur in-vivo, they could contribute to the reported effects on libido and sexual performance.<\/p>\n

There are also a few small studies that suggest damiana can relieve anxiety<\/a>, reduce high blood sugar<\/a> and contribute to weight loss<\/a> although\u2014needless to state\u2014far more work needs to be done before damiana can be recommended for any of these conditions.<\/p>\n

Commercially, damiana is available in capsules, tablets, tinctures, dried leaves\/powders, smoking mixtures and even liqueurs<\/a>. A tea can be made from damiana leaves by steeping a teaspoon of dried herb in a cup of water for about fifteen minutes.<\/p>\n

It may take a few days for the effects of damiana herb, which are usually mild, to be felt. The herb is generally recognized as safe (GRAS), though some side effects have been reported<\/a>. These include disorientation, dizziness, headache, diarrhea and\/or insomnia. Since damiana may induce abortion, it should not be taken during pregnancy.<\/p>\n

Several drug interactions are possible with the use of damiana herb. It should not be taken concurrently with progestin drugs, or drugs that reduce blood sugar.<\/p>\n

If you’re interested in experimenting with damiana, our recommended online source for this supplement is iHerb.com\u2014you can buy it for less than $10<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Damiana is an herbal shrub native to Central\/South America and Mexico. The official name of the herb is Turnera diffusa (although it may also be called Turnera aphrodisiaca). […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[25,14,7],"tags":[55],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=161"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1105,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161\/revisions\/1105"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=161"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=161"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatefatburner.com\/vitamins\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=161"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}