Free reading
Supplements Sold for Male Enhancement: What the Federal Pages Say
What NCCIH concludes about supplements sold for male enhancement, the two tribulus trials carried together, what ashwagandha’s evidence is actually about, and how many of the nine have a federal page.
Written and reviewed by the Maxforce Editorial Desk · Last updated October 29, 2026
Quick answer
NCCIH: “No complementary health approaches have been shown to be safe and effective for sexual enhancement or treating erectile dysfunction (ED).” Two of the nine ingredients in this category’s typical formula have a federal consumer page; five have none. One tribulus trial was positive and one was null, and both belong in the same sentence.
2 sentences that set the burden
What NCCIH concludes about this category
The plainest two sentences on this subject anywhere in the federal record.
This product category has a federal page written about it specifically, which is more than most supplement categories get. Read it before any individual product, because it sets what a product would have to overcome.
The verdict, in two sentences
NCCIH, the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, states it once and without hedging: “No complementary health approaches have been shown to be safe and effective for sexual enhancement or treating erectile dysfunction (ED).” And on the herbal products in particular: “Currently, there is no definite evidence that any herbal products are effective or safe for ED.”
What those sentences say, and what they do not
They describe a whole class of approaches rather than one jar, and they are not a finding that anything has been proved useless. No definite evidence is an absence of a finding in either direction, which is a different thing from a negative result. What the two sentences do is set the burden.
Why the amounts decide everything that follows
Every research finding here belongs to a specific preparation at a specific amount. Take the amount away and what is left is a plant name appearing in two places, which is not a link between them. So the sections below carry the amounts alongside the findings.
86 men in 2017, thirty in 2014
Tribulus terrestris: two trials, and both have to be carried
Honesty here cuts both ways, and one ingredient has something real behind it. NCCIH cites two trials of tribulus terrestris and they disagree. Both belong here together, because printing either alone would misrepresent the source.
The 2017 trial, in 86 men
NCCIH: “A 2017 prospective, randomized controlled trial in 86 men with mild to moderate ED found that following a 12-week treatment of extracts of the plant Tribulus terrestris, significant improvement in sexual function was observed with Tribulus terrestris compared with placebo.”
The 2014 study, in 30 men
NCCIH, immediately alongside it: “An earlier study (2014) conducted in 30 men with ED found that Tribulus terrestris was not more effective than placebo on improving symptoms of ED or serum total testosterone.” NCCIH reports the pair as conflicting primary studies and draws its own conclusion in the sentence quoted above.
And then the amounts, which is where it ends
The 2017 trial ran twelve weeks on an extract at a research amount. In the typical formula sold in this category — and in this one — tribulus terrestris is row eight of nine inside an 82 mg blend. Because FDA requires blend members to be listed in descending order of predominance by weight, and because caffeine is printed at 5 mg in row five, every row below it is no more than 5 mg. A positive twelve-week trial at a research amount is not evidence about 5 mg or less of the same plant.
2 to 4 months, and fertility markers
Ashwagandha: a real finding, about something else
Ashwagandha is the other ingredient with published work behind it, and what that work is about matters more than the fact that it exists.
What the finding actually says
NCCIH: “There is some limited evidence that suggests that taking ashwagandha for 2 to 4 months may increase testosterone levels and sperm quality.” Read the endpoints. Testosterone levels and sperm quality are fertility markers. They are not erection, not libido and not performance, and a product sold for those three cannot borrow a finding about these two. The window is two to four months, longer than most buyers give a supplement.
What NCCIH’s own effectiveness verdict names
Two conditions, and neither is sexual: “Research shows that some ashwagandha preparations may be effective for insomnia and stress.” On the body of work NCCIH is measured rather than dismissive: “Many clinical trials (studies in people) have looked at the use of ashwagandha for a variety of health conditions. However, many of the studies have had small sample sizes and have used a variety of ashwagandha preparations.”
And the amount, again
Ashwagandha is row six of nine, directly below the printed 5 mg caffeine row, so it is 5 mg or less. The trials NCCIH describes use preparations dosed in the hundreds of milligrams a day. Even crediting the 567 mg dry-powder footnote and dividing it nine ways, this row does not reach them.
2 of 9 with a page and a fact sheet
The coverage map: two of nine have a federal page
Nine ingredients make up the typical formula in this category, and they are the nine on this jar. Here is how many a reader can look up.
Two of nine have both
Green tea and ashwagandha have an NCCIH consumer page each and an NIH ODS fact sheet each. Caffeine has FDA’s consumer update. L-arginine has no standalone page and appears inside an ODS health-professional fact sheet on exercise, a document about skeletal muscle rather than sexual function. Five of the nine have no federal page at all.
The bar measures federal consumer coverage, not quality. A hatched track means no federal page exists.
Why some of those pages no longer exist
Part of the answer is a date. MedlinePlus withdrew its herb and supplement database on 29 July 2025, the one federal-domain place a consumer could look several of these names up. NCCIH describes the unevenness: “The amount of scientific evidence on dietary supplements varies widely—there is a lot of information on some and very little on others.”
How to read an absence
Absence of a page is absence of a page. For five of these nine there is no published caution, no published interaction and no published amount, in either direction. The scale rail on the home page shows the three with a reference figure.
1 appointment, and what to take to it
What to do about a new or worsening symptom
If you are reading this because something has changed, the most useful page for you is not a product page. Here is what the federal pages tell a man to do.
A new or worsening symptom is a reason to be examined
MedlinePlus: “ED can be a sign of health problems. It may mean your blood vessels are clogged. It may mean you have nerve damage from diabetes.” And: “If you don’t see your doctor, these problems will go untreated.” A symptom of this kind is information about the rest of your body: it can be the first visible sign of a cardiovascular or an endocrine problem.
There is nothing awkward about the appointment
MedlinePlus says the quiet part out loud: “Some people have trouble speaking with their doctors about sex. But if you have ED, you should tell your doctor.” A clinician hearing this is hearing about a common problem with known causes and known treatments. On timing: “If problems last more than a few months or cause distress for you or your partner, you should see your health care provider.”
What to take with you, and the last sentence here
Take the jar. The panel is legible and complete, which is genuinely to this label’s credit, and it is the useful thing to hand over: nine named ingredients, 82 mg of blend, caffeine at 5 mg, 3 g of added sugar a day. FDA puts the whole of this page in one sentence: “Talk to a health care professional before buying or trying a new product for your health.”
Questions
Maxforce FAQ: the category questions
Does any federal page support these ingredients for sexual performance?
No. NCCIH is direct: “No complementary health approaches have been shown to be safe and effective for sexual enhancement or treating erectile dysfunction (ED).” And: “Currently, there is no definite evidence that any herbal products are effective or safe for ED.”
Is there anything positive at all?
Two things, and both come with conditions. NCCIH cites a 2017 randomised trial in 86 men where NCCIH reports that “significant improvement in sexual function was observed with Tribulus terrestris compared with placebo” after twelve weeks — alongside a 2014 study where it “was not more effective than placebo”. And NCCIH notes “some limited evidence” that ashwagandha “for 2 to 4 months may increase testosterone levels and sperm quality”.
Is ashwagandha’s testosterone finding about performance?
No. It is about testosterone levels and sperm quality — fertility markers. NCCIH’s own effectiveness verdict for ashwagandha names insomnia and stress, and neither is sexual.
Why do five of them have no federal page?
Because federal agencies write consumer pages for the botanicals most asked about. MedlinePlus’s own herb database, which used to cover several of them, was withdrawn on 29 July 2025. NCCIH notes that “The amount of scientific evidence on dietary supplements varies widely—there is a lot of information on some and very little on others.”
What should I do about erectile difficulty instead?
MedlinePlus: “if you have ED, you should tell your doctor”, because “ED can be a sign of health problems. It may mean your blood vessels are clogged. It may mean you have nerve damage from diabetes.” It adds that “Your doctor can offer several new treatments” and that “Getting more exercise, losing weight, or stopping smoking may also help.”
References
Sources for this page
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Dietary Supplements Marketed for Weight Loss, Bodybuilding, and Sexual Enhancement: What the Science Says. www.nccih.nih.gov. Accessed September 25, 2026.
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Ashwagandha: Usefulness and Safety. www.nccih.nih.gov. Accessed September 25, 2026.
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Green Tea: Usefulness and Safety. www.nccih.nih.gov. Accessed September 25, 2026.
- NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Dietary Supplements for Exercise and Athletic Performance. ods.od.nih.gov. Accessed September 25, 2026.
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Sexual Enhancement and Energy Product Notifications. www.fda.gov. Accessed September 25, 2026.
- MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine. Erectile Dysfunction. medlineplus.gov. Accessed September 25, 2026.
Next
Keep reading
The claim and the federal record
What the jar claims, what the sales page claims, and what is published.
Read it →All nine ingredients
Each one against the federal record, with the derived bound beside it.
Read it →How to read a proprietary blend
The six-step method that produced the 5 mg cap, transferable anywhere.
Read it →Read the federal record before you order Maxforce
30 gummies a jar, one a day, thirty days a jar. Nine ingredients inside 82 mg, of which two have a federal consumer page and five have none. Sales line +1 (302) 200-3480, and 60 days from purchase. Talk to a health care professional first.
Price shown at checkout · 60-day window from the date of purchase · ships from inside the US · sales line +1 (302) 200-3480