It may seem like a daily battle to maintain the muscle you have gained, keep your physique looking in top shape, and even hold onto the energy levels that you have been used to. As soon as an adult male reaches the age of 25, he will begin to notice certain declines in physical capabilities and activity.
This is most commonly related to diminished testosterone levels in the body. Once an adult male reaches the age of 24 or 25, his body will naturally begin to produce less testosterone. Complicating matters further is the fact that the testosterone that is produced will likely be bound to a certain protein called albumin or to the Sex Hormone Binding Globulin, more commonly referred to as SHBG.
This natural process of aging can leave men feeling more fatigued, struggling to get through a workout routine, or experiencing a diminished libido. There are numerous testosterone boosting supplements on the market that contain a wide range of ingredients. Some include coleus forskohlii.
Understanding What Coleus Forskohlii Is
Coleus forskohlii is actually a plant that is commonly called Plectranthus barbatus. Forskolin is the chemical that is found in coleus forskohlii.
Coleus forskohlii has been used since ancient times to treat various health conditions, especially heart disorders such as high blood pressure and angina. It has also been used to help treat asthma and other respiratory disorders. When taken orally, this ingredient can help to diminish the impact of certain allergies and other skin conditions. It is also used to help treat obesity, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), urinary tract infections, blood clots, insomnia and other sleep disorders, and sexual problems in men.
It is this last treatment possibility that should be of most interest to adult men who are looking to boost the testosterone levels in their body naturally.
Forskolin works predominantly on the muscles in the heart as well as walls in the blood vessels. It can produce a more powerful heartbeat and widen those blood vessels which helps to lower blood pressure. It is unclear whether this is one reason for an increase in energy levels and sexual drive among male subjects.
How Effective is Coleus Forskohlii?
There have been several research studies conducted through the years on coleus forskohlii and whether or not it is effective at boosting testosterone or on male sexual desire or performance. We have culled four of those research studies here for closer scrutiny.
Two of these research studies were conducted on human subjects, one basically looked at certain characteristics of human subjects, and one was conducted on certain cells of laboratory rats.
Study #1:
This research study was conducted by Godard, Johnson, and Richmond in 2005 at the University of Kansas, the Department of Health, Sport and Exercise Sciences. These researchers were focused on how coleus forskohlii would affect overweight and obese male subjects. They tested 15 overweight or obese men and had another 15 in a placebo group.
The test subjects received 250 mg of a 10% forskolin extract twice per day for a 12 week period. It was determined that serum free testosterone levels significantly increased in the test group, compared to the placebo group. Within each independent group, there wasn’t a significant difference among the test subjects, but when the test group was compared to the placebo group, the increase was considered dramatic.
This helped to decrease body fat percentage and fat mass, but it also had a change in bone mass for the test group.
The researchers concluded that oral ingestion of this ingredient for a 12 week period showed an effect at altering body composition and increasing bone mass as well as serum free testosterone levels in these test subjects.
(Read more about this study at NCBI.)
Study #2:
In the second research study we looked at, conducted in 2005 by Henderson, Magu, et al. at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, these researchers were interested in how ingredient could help mildly overweight women.
They tested 12 moderately overweight females and had seven in a controlled placebo group. These women received the same amount of extract as the male subjects from the previous study (250 mg of 10% CF extract). They received this extract two times of the day for 12 weeks.
The researchers concluded that the CF supplementation did not do anything to promote weight loss, but it might have had an impact on reducing weight gain. They did not measure for testosterone levels, but they did find similar benefits as the previous research study.
(Read more about this study at JISSN.)
Study #3:
Conducted in 1982, by Litosch, Mills, and Fain, this research study was basically looking at how forskolin impacts human adipocytes. There was no note about the institution through which this research study was conducted, and that does take into account the conclusions the researchers found.
They did not test for testosterone levels, but it did show that forskolin does increase AMP production in adipocytes. This could potentially be beneficial for free testosterone production in the body.
(Read more about this study at NCBI.)
Study #4:
Conducted in 2005 by Luo at the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology for Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, this researcher wanted to determine a relationship among testosterone production for certain Leydig cells in rats.
The researcher found that Leydig cells begin to produce less testosterone at nine months for the laboratory rats tested. A significant reduction in testosterone production was seen at 15 months of age. There was also a significant decline in luteinizing hormone levels by nine months, which is important when talking about testosterone production.
(Read more about this study here.)
Conclusion
There is evidence that coleus forskohlii is effective at boosting testosterone levels in the body. The two research studies conducted on human subjects both focused on obesity as their primary goal, but the residual findings support the claim that this testosterone boosting supplement can actually be beneficial in boosting free testosterone levels.
One drawback from the first research study we looked at was that there was a very large error bar associated with this study. That means the findings the researchers made could be flawed, at least to some degree.
What separates Prime Male from all other testosterone boosters on the market? A number of factors including an unmatched guarantee, a synergistic formula, and some of the best results you’ll find anywhere.