Why ‘Herbal Viagra’ really is a contradiction in terms, and you don’t know at all what you’re actually getting

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Wednesday, October 14, 2015, 5:15 PM

There are two issues with “herbal Viagra”: the herbs and the Viagra.

First, there’s the herbs. People gravitate to medicines with this word on them because they want to stay away from medicine.

But when you mix in alcohol, it can become completely toxic.

Indeed “herbal Viagra” is a bit of an oxymoron. You’re getting the herb and you’re getting the Viagra. But you don’t know what else you’re getting. The herbs are not regulated by the FDA. It is absolutely not safe.

The FDA has issued a variety of warnings about herbal "Viagra" products.

It’s well known that medications such as Viagra, Levitra and Cialis dilate the blood vessels in order to treat erectile dysfunction. But these herbal treatments may have a reverse factor and may constrict the blood vessels, leading to heart attack, liver failure and kidney failure.

Everybody is under intense pressure to perform, but that pressure only leads to more cases of erectile dysfunction, which in younger men tends to be more psychological than physical.

There’s sometimes a placebo effect when a patient takes a pill, and he thinks it’s working because he’s taken action, but turning to unregulated options is unwise.

People think an herb is safe. And they think that the more the merrier — and that is a complete myth.

Talk to your doctor if you have a problem. But don’t touch a pill without knowing what you’re doing. There really could be rat poison in it — I’m not kidding.

Don’t touch it.

Dr. Samadi is chairman of urology and chief of robotic surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital and professor of urology at Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine.