An ingredient-by-ingredient look at the side effects and drug interactions behind VigRX Plus, using NIH and Mayo Clinic safety information and the product's own clinical trial.
VigRX Plus is generally tolerated, and its 2012 trial of 78 men found side effects at a similar rate to placebo. But its ingredients have documented side effects (insomnia from ginseng, headache and dizziness from ginkgo, stomach upset from several herbs) and real interaction risks with blood thinners, diabetes drugs and heart or blood pressure medicines. Talk to your doctor first if you take any prescription or have a heart, bleeding or blood sugar condition. VigRX Plus is not a treatment for erectile dysfunction; see a doctor about persistent symptoms.
The official VigRX Plus site currently names eight ingredients: damiana, Asian red ginseng, muira puama, hawthorn berry, catuaba bark, saw palmetto, Ginkgo biloba and Bioperine (a black pepper extract). It does not list doses on the page, and the directions say one pill twice a day with meals.
The formula tested in the 2012 clinical trial was a bit longer. Its composition table lists 11 ingredients in a 720 mg capsule: the eight above plus Tribulus terrestris, Cuscuta chinensis (dodder seed) and Epimedium sagittatum (horny goat weed). The trial also used two capsules twice a day, which is double the current label direction.
So before you weigh any of the side effects below, read the Supplement Facts panel on the bottle you actually have. That tells you which herbs you are taking and in what amounts, and it is the list to show your doctor or pharmacist.
The manufacturer's site says the formula has "zero known side effects." That is not how the published safety information on its ingredients reads. Most of these herbs are generally tolerated at normal amounts, but several have documented side effects and a few have real interaction concerns.
| Ingredient | Reported side effects | Main caution |
|---|---|---|
| Asian red ginseng (Panax ginseng) | Insomnia (most common), headache, dizziness; rarely rash, liver damage, severe allergic reactions | May lower blood sugar, interfere with blood clotting and worsen autoimmune disorders |
| Ginkgo biloba (leaf extract) | Dizziness, stomach upset, headache; rarely irregular heartbeat | May raise bleeding risk, especially with anticoagulants such as warfarin |
| Hawthorn berry | Dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle pain | Possible interaction with heart medications; talk to a doctor if you have heart disease |
| Saw palmetto | Mild and infrequent: digestive upset, dizziness, headache | Not for use in pregnancy or breastfeeding |
| Epimedium (horny goat weed) | Dizziness, dry mouth, nosebleed, thirst, vomiting, stomach discomfort; rare rash or allergic skin reactions | May affect heart or breathing function; its main active compound appears to have estrogen-like activity |
| Tribulus terrestris | Mild stomach upset, nausea | Rare case reports of liver and kidney injury, mostly at high doses |
| Bioperine (piperine) | None notable at small doses | In lab studies it inhibits enzymes that clear many prescription drugs |
| Damiana, muira puama, catuaba, Cuscuta | Little human safety data | Evidence is limited, so "no known side effects" mostly means "not well studied" |
The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) lists insomnia as ginseng's most common side effect. Rarer reports include severe rash, liver damage and severe allergic reactions. NCCIH also notes ginseng may lower blood sugar, interfere with blood clotting and worsen autoimmune disorders. If you notice trouble sleeping after starting VigRX Plus, ginseng is the most likely reason.
Ginkgo leaf extract is usually well tolerated, with dizziness, digestive symptoms and headache the most common complaints. The bigger concern is bleeding: NCCIH says ginkgo may increase the risk of bleeding in people taking anticoagulants such as warfarin. Mayo Clinic adds that it may rarely raise the risk of irregular heartbeats.
NCCIH lists dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and muscle pain. In one study of a hawthorn preparation in heart failure patients, the herb was linked to worsening symptoms, and an interaction with the patients' heart drugs was one possible explanation. That is reason enough to check with your cardiologist before taking a hawthorn-containing product if you have any heart condition.
Mayo Clinic lists dizziness, dry mouth, nosebleed, thirst and vomiting for horny goat weed and warns it may affect heart or breathing functions. The NIH's LiverTox database describes it as generally well tolerated, with rare rash and allergic skin reactions, and notes its likely active compound appears to have estrogen-like bioactivity. For Tribulus, LiverTox reports mild stomach upset and a handful of liver and kidney case reports, and says high doses should be treated as potentially harmful in people with existing liver disease.
NCCIH describes saw palmetto's side effects as mild and infrequent. It does not appear to change PSA readings, which matters if you get prostate screening. Bioperine is added to improve absorption, and a lab study found piperine inhibits CYP3A4 and P-glycoprotein, two systems that handle many medications. That has not been tested with VigRX Plus itself, but it is one more reason to run the label past a pharmacist if you take prescription drugs.
The main published study is a 2012 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. It enrolled 78 men aged 25 to 50 with mild to moderate erection problems for 12 weeks.
On safety, the authors wrote that the incidence of side effects and participants' tolerability ratings were similar in both groups, and concluded the product was well tolerated. That is reassuring but limited. The trial was small and short, and it enrolled men aged 25 to 50 rather than older men on multiple medications, so it could not pick up rarer reactions or drug interactions. Its results on performance are covered in our look at whether VigRX Plus works, and who ran and funded the research is part of our check on whether VigRX Plus is legit.
No interaction study has been done on the full VigRX Plus formula, so the safest approach is to treat the ingredients' known interactions as the product's interactions.
Skip it, or clear it with your doctor first, if any of these apply to you:
Stop taking it and get medical help if you notice chest pain, a racing or irregular heartbeat, unusual bleeding or bruising, yellowing skin or eyes, or a widespread rash.
This part is easy to skip but matters most. Mayo Clinic says erectile dysfunction can be an early warning sign of heart disease, sometimes showing up years before other symptoms, because the smaller arteries in the penis show damage first. If erection problems keep happening, raise them with a doctor before relying on any supplement. VigRX Plus is a dietary supplement and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
VigRX Plus is not "side-effect free." Its trial reported side effects at a similar rate to placebo, which is a fair sign it is tolerable for healthy men, but the study was small and short. The ingredients carry real, documented cautions: ginkgo and ginseng with blood thinners and surgery, ginseng with diabetes drugs, and hawthorn and epimedium with heart and blood pressure medicines. If you are healthy, take no regular medication and stick to the label dose, the risk looks low. If you take prescriptions or have a heart, blood sugar or bleeding issue, talk to your doctor first. For the full picture on cost, refunds and results, see our VigRX Plus review.