Tongkat Ali: Definition, Benefits, Side Effects & more (2023)

Tongkat Ali is a popular herbal plant that has exploded in popularity over the past two years due to it’s ability to purportedly help improve testosterone and libido markers.

But does it work, is it safe and what should you watch out for? Let’s find out.

What Is Tongkat Ali?

Tongkat Ali si a flowering plant native to Indochina and south east Asia. Also known by it’s scientific name “eurycoma longifolia.”

It was a traditional plant and herbal medicine typically prepared by filing the root in water. While the main uses seem to be as an aphrodesiac, the traditional uses seem to include treatments for fever, dysentary, indigestions and intestinal pain.

Modern day - it’s primarily used as an aphrodesiac, an herbal treatment for ED and a testosterone boosting supplement due to recent mentions across popular media.

Other Names for Tonkat Ali

Tongkat Ali is also commonly known as “long jack”, Malaysian ginseng and eurycoma longifolia.

Tongkat Ali Benefits

Tongkat Ali has a wide variety of benefits including

Improved erection duration and quality
Increased libido
Increased motility
Improved sperm quality
Decreased stress
Decreased cortisol levels
Small reduction in weight for obese populations
Improved self-reported well being status
Slight increase in lean body mass
Slight increase in power output

While the aphrodesiac and testosterone benefits are the most highly touted, the seemingly best-research is around Tongkat Ali’s ability to reduce stress and cortisol levels.

Tongkat Ali Supplement

Tongkat Ali is typically sold as a supplement and able on a variety of websites online. Capsules are usually 200-400mg in range and should be vetted as the popularity has created an entire market of unscrupulous vendors.

Recommended Tongkat Ali Doses

Tongkat Ali is typically taken 200-300mg throughout the day - usually split into separate doses.

There still needs to be more research on what doses are optimal.

Andrew Huberman recommends Tongkat Ali at 400mg / day.

Extracts are done typically 100:1 so you would need 100x of the raw root to get the same benefits of the raw extract.

Tongkat Ali & Testosterone

The claims of testosterone increases due to Tongkat Ali seem to be huge. While these testosterone benefits seem outlandish, the majority of them seem to have benefits towards men with low testosterone already.

In other words, if you have low testosterone, you might see some added benefits, but if you have normal T ranges - you might not find TA as helpful.

However, with more research being done - there are more and more people reporting individual great results with this compound and it seems to be something worth further research.

Tongkat Ali Side Effects

The side effect profile of tongkat Ali is not well known, but may

What Should I Do Before Taking Tongkat Ali?

Tongkat Ali interacts with your hormones. Like any other hormone interacting drug, we highly recommend you get your blood done regularly and especially before you start a protocol.

This way you can monitor and track your progress over time and flag anything if something goes wrong or feels “off”

FAQ on Tongkat Ali

Some of the most frequently asked questions we get about tongkat ali - if you’re wondering these, don’t worry - you’re not alone!

How long before tongkat ali starts to work?

Typically you can feel the results within hours to days, but most people will probably feel a different within the first few hours.

How much tongkat ali to take per day?

Most studies are supplemented at 200-400mg per day.

What is the best tongkat Ali supplement?

Tongkat Ali is not currently regulated by the FDA so you need to make sure you’re getting it from a trustworthy source. Our current TA recommendation is this.

What is long jack?

Longjack is the common name for the plant “tongkat ali” - if you see someone using that term for it - it’s the same product.