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Tongkat Ali And Testosterone

Tongkat ali is the latest in a long line of products claiming to be able to naturally enhance a person’s testosterone levels in a similar way to testosterone replacement therapy. However, while many similar products are all talk and no action, Tongkat ali and testosterone are indeed linked, and in multiple ways.

However, given that it’s fairly new in the Western world and looks like a very basic product, as well as the fact that many people have been burned by similar supplements, lots of people simply don’t trust it, which is a great shame.

That’s why we’ve decided to give you all a detailed rundown of the relationship between Tongkat ali and testosterone, to hopefully show you it is indeed worth trying for yourselves.

Table of Contents

What Is Tongkat Ali?

Tongkat ali is a herbal extract produced from the roots of a plant native to southeast Asia known by a variety of different names, including Eurycoma longifolia, longjack, and Malaysian ginseng.

It has long been used in many forms of traditional medicine in Asia, due to the longstanding belief it provides a wide range of health benefits for the human body. For a long time these benefits were based solely on hyperbolic evidence, but clinical trials in recent years have proven many of them are true.

It was determined that its many benefits are produced due to the diverse array of natural compounds it contains, including the quassinoid compounds eurycomanone and eurycomanol, canthin-6-one metabolites, eurycolactones, eurypeptides, and eurylene and teurilene, which are derivatives of a the triterpene squalene (1).

The most popular of its health benefits is an ability to improve a person’s testosterone production and levels, but it also does things like reduce blood pressure, and combat fatigue and fever.

In fact, there are so many health benefits linked to Tongkat ali that we’ve already written two articles covering them all, so anyone wanting to discover everything it does should check those out here and here.

As a result of all the benefits it can offer, the popularity of Tongkat ali has exploded in recent times, and it’s started being included in many supplements, both solo and with other ingredients.

What Is Testosterone?

Testosterone is the main male sex hormone, but is present in men and women, just in far lower amounts in the latter. Required for the human body to function an optimal level, it’s mainly made in the testes of men and ovaries of women, although a small quantity is also made by the adrenal glands of both.

Testosterone is essential to enable the body to function as it should. A healthy amount is necessary to support normal sexual drive, health and functions, protein synthesis, muscle growth, strength and repair, fat loss and storage, bone mass and density, mood and energy levels (2).

Both men and women will see their natural testosterone production and levels drop as they age, but the drop and the effect it has are far more significant in men than women.

How Does Tongkat Ali Boost Testosterone?

Boasts A High Eurycomanone Content

Most of the testosterone boosting properties of Tongkat ali are linked to the fact it contains a very high concentration of a compound called eurycomanone, which is clinically proven to promote steroidogenic activity, which is the process that produces steroid hormones like testosterone.

Eurycomanone has been shown to have particularly prominent anti-estrogenic effects, which means it can reduce or prevent the production of aromatase enzymes. As these enzymes cause testosterone to be converted into oestrogen in the Leydig cells of the testes, inhibiting their production keeps this from happening and stops your natural testosterone levels from dropping.

When taken in large doses, eurycomanone has also shown an ability to inhibit phosphodiesterase (PDE) activity. As a result, an accumulation of cyclic AMP will build up, increasing cholesterol transport and pregnenolone production, which stimulates the more effective biosynthesis of testosterone.

Eurycomanone even stimulates the activation of Cytochrome P450 17A1 (CYP17a), an enzyme that increases the production of two of the main testosterone precursors, which are dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and androstenedione.

You put all this together, and anything that contains eurycomanone, like tonglat ali, will be great for boosting your natural testosterone levels and production (3).

Increases Luteinizing Hormone (LH) Production

Many studies suggest Tongkat Ali stimulates the production of luteinizing hormone (LH). A hormone produced by the gonadotropic cells of the anterior pituitary gland, luteinizing hormone is a hormone that signals parts of the body like the testes to produce more testosterone.

Ensuring you have higher luteinizing hormone levels through the use of Tongkat ali supplementation therefore leads to an increase in testosterone synthesis and levels too (4).

Reduces Sex-Hormone Binding Globulin (SHBG) Production

Tongkat ali is proven to reduce the production of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG).

SHBG is a protein that binds to testosterone in our systems, inhibiting it and making it unavailable for the body to use. By reducing the SHBG levels in your body, Tongkat ali frees up more of the testosterone you’ve naturally produced, making it available for active use in the body (5).

Improves Cortisol Regulation

Tongkat ali also reduces the production of cortisol. Better known as the stress hormone, high cortisol levels significantly inhibit the production of testosterone. By lowering cortisol levels, Tongkat ali supplements indirectly support healthy testosterone production and levels, leading to less interference in the testosterone production process (6).

Enhances the Release of Free Testosterone

The combination of reducing SHBG and cortisol levels simultaneously increases your total testosterone levels, but is specifically good for increasing the amount of free testosterone in the bloodstream. As this is the most bioavailable form of the hormone, the body can use it in the most effective and efficient way possible (7).

Improves Overall Health and Fitness:

By increasing your testosterone levels, Tongkat ali indirectly enhances your muscle mass, energy levels, body composition, and exercise performance too. As all these benefit your testosterone levels on their own, Tongkat ali further encourages optimal testosterone production in a circular fashion with ever increasing results.

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