When you scratch the surface of Horny Goat Weed (Epimedium extract) and look into what it actually is, then inevitably you will soon be asking the questions ‘What is icariin?’ & ‘How does it work?’
The answer to those questions is that icariin is the key active flavonol contained within Horny Goat Weed plant extract, and is entirely responsible for all of the sexual healing properties in which Horny Goat Weed is known for. The science and biology behind icariin in terms of how it works to help the sexual functioning of men, comes down to two different beneficial actions in which icariin exerts on the male body:
1) The Ability Of Icariin To Tackle ED/Impotence
The first major sexual health benefit of icariin is it’s ability to boost Nitric Oxide levels. A boost in Nitric Oxide is vitally important for healthy male erectile function because Nitric Oxide acts as a chemical transmitter, instructing the successful and plentiful delivery of blood to the penis tissue, hence if Nitric Oxide production becomes somewhat impaired then a man will experience a reduction of blood delivery to the penis resulting in either a partially erect or worst case scenario a completely non-erect penis, even when sexually stimulated.
Icariin has the much loved ability to rejuvenate the transmission of Nitric Oxide signalling when the supplement is taken over an adequate length of time and this rejuvenation results in greatly improved circulation around the body, most notably here, to the penis tissues.
2) The Ability Of Icariin To Boost Sex Drive
Increasing the levels of free-circulating testosterone around the body, improving overall testosterone delivery, is the next benefit of taking Horny Goat Weed containing a ‘standardized’ percentage of icariin. So how does this equate to boosted levels of sex drive? Well Testosterone has for a long time shown to be the primary male sex hormone, contributing to all facets of the male sexual make-up. Primarily though, Testosterone hormones are critically responsible for such health aspects as strong sexual desire (sex drive) and also the healthy production of sperm.
Due to icariin being able to encompass both a boost in the transmission of Nitric Oxide and the production of free-circulating testosterone, it not only vastly improves erectile function but also increases sex drive on a mental and physical level and these two key factors are precisely why Horny Goat Weed has such an expansive reputation for being known as the ‘all-in-one male enhancement supplement’. It’s worth noting that these beneficial effects of icariin are prominent in men of all ages, so whether your 20 or 65, the sexual health benefits are there for the taking.
Which Horny Goat Weed Supplements Contain The Most Icariin?
At this point we have a firm grasp on what icariin is and how it works in terms of male sexual health, however we now need to look at two more extremely crucial elements before you go off to find your Horny Goat Weed capsules and these two elements are ‘icariin strength’ and ‘icariin quality’.
1) The ‘Strength’ Of Icariin:
The Epimedium plant is extracted down to yield Horny Goat Weed extract powders which contain various different levels of actual icariin content. This icariin content is measured as a percentage and the percentage range runs from 10% icariin content ‘standardized’ up through in varying percentages to the most pure, that being ‘standardized’ extract of 60% icariin strength. You should note that we mentioned the word ‘standardized’ at both ends of the icariin strength spectrum, this is a key factor, as the standardization of icariin guarantees that the percentage stated is what the extract actually contains. This is very important as there are Horny Goat Weed extracts available which contain 70%, 80% up to 98% icariin content, however at 70% and beyond the icariin flavonols suffer from composition instability and often lose their effectiveness due to the lack of remaining plant structures existent at the post-extraction stage. This imbalance of the icariin flavonols at 70%+ purity is the exact reason that extracts of that purity cannot be standardized and hence cannot be guaranteed of their effective potency.
2) The ‘Quality’ Of Icariin:
The quality element of icariin is much more cut and dry than the strength percentages that we’ve just explained. There is basically ‘bad quality icariin’ and ‘good quality icariin’ and the way in which to separate the good from the bad is quite simple. Whenever you are looking at a Horny Goat Weed extract product always make sure to check the part where it tells you which percentage of icariin the product contains and when checking this you need to vitally examine as to whether or not the word icariin is spelt as simply ‘icariin’ or alternatively as ‘icariins’ (notice the latter includes a letter ‘s’ on the end). Icariins (i.e. with the ‘s’) is not pure icariin but rather icariins is a very low grade mixed compound which contains various Epimedium based substances at a certain percent. On the other hand, actual pure icariin (notice no ‘s’ on the end this time) will contain an actual percentage of icariin flavonols. The point here being; to avoid icariins as you are wasting your time and money on a low potency blend, if you want a supplement that actually works, then stick to products that contain ‘icariin’.
Which Purity Of Icariin Do I Need To Take?
The various grades of icariin strength percentages mentioned above are vital, as icariin percentage can mean the difference between getting the desired results you need or failing to gain the best effects. The key rule as stated above is to stick to the standardized percentages within the 10% to 60% range.
If you’re a man who is perfectly sexually healthy but wants to see if they can boost their sexual vitality even more, then a 10% or 20% icariin product will be perfectly adequate. Should you be a man who suffers from a slight reduction in sex drive then an extract within the 30% to 40% icariin range will work just fine. However, if you are a man who actually suffers from a noticeable reduction in sexual health, whether it be low sex drive and/or erectile dysfunction (impotence) then ideally you’re going to want to pick-up a 50% icariin or 60% icariin Horny Goat Weed product in order to gain the maximum benefit possible from this amazing extract.