Oct 09, 2026

Do Libido Supplements for Women Work? Causes, Then Trials

A woman in her forties laughing into her phone at a sunlit kitchen island, a navy cardigan over her shoulders, a yellow enamel colander of lemons beside her

Low sex drive in women usually has a cause to find first: a relationship under strain, exhaustion, a new baby, the pill, an antidepressant, low iron or the hormone changes of perimenopause, and the NHS says treating the cause is what brings desire back.¹ The botanicals sold for libido have been tested in small, short trials: maca in 45 women on antidepressants over 12 weeks, a fenugreek seed extract in 80 women over 8 weeks, Korean red ginseng in 32 menopausal and 41 premenopausal women, tribulus in 67, 45 and 40 women, and saffron in 38 women, with questionnaire gains in some and no difference from placebo in others.^{4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13} Causes first, then the trials by size, then what a UK label is allowed to say.

What causes a low sex drive in women?

The NHS list: relationship problems; stress, anxiety or depression; vaginal dryness; pregnancy and a new baby; lower hormone levels around the menopause; medicines, including some for high blood pressure and antidepressants; hormonal contraception; too much alcohol; and heart disease, diabetes, an underactive thyroid or cancer.¹

Two of those causes have numbers. In a meta-analysis of antidepressant trials that asked about sex directly, sexual dysfunction emerged in 25.8% to 80.3% of patients depending on the medicine; a few antidepressants were no different from placebo.² For the combined pill, a review of 36 studies in 13,673 women found 85% of users reported no change or an increase in libido and 15% a decrease, the fall concentrated in the lowest-oestrogen pills.³ Iron is the forgotten cause: in 129 women aged 18 to 45, every domain of sexual function scored lower in the 52 with iron-deficiency anaemia than in the 77 without, and heavy periods are the usual reason a woman's ferritin is low.¹⁴ If your periods are heavy and you are always tired, read should you take iron supplements for heavy periods first.

Is loss of sex drive permanent? Rarely, because most causes change: medicines can be switched, babies sleep eventually, iron can be corrected, the menopause has treatments. The NHS says see a GP if you are worried, if a medicine or contraception may be responsible, or if desire has not returned after pregnancy.¹

At what age is a woman's libido highest?

There is no peak age in the data. A survey of 2,467 women aged 20 to 70 in the UK, France, Germany and Italy found low desire became more common with age while the distress it caused became less common.¹⁵ Desire falls on average, the bother about it falls faster, and individuals vary more than age groups.

What do the trials show for maca, fenugreek, ginseng, tribulus and saffron?

Small groups, four to seventeen weeks, questionnaire outcomes, the largest effects in the smallest trials.

Botanical	Trial	Women	Dose and length	Result
Maca	Postmenopausal crossover, 2008⁵	14	3.5 g powder a day, 6 weeks	Lower sexual dysfunction and anxiety scores; no change in oestradiol, FSH, LH or SHBG
Maca	Antidepressant-induced dysfunction, 2015⁶	45	3 g a day, 12 weeks	Remission 9.5% against 4.8% on placebo, mostly in postmenopausal women
Fenugreek	Menstruating women with low drive, 2015⁷	80	600 mg seed extract a day, 8 weeks	Higher desire and arousal scores; free testosterone and oestradiol rose
Korean red ginseng	Menopausal crossover, 2010⁸	32	3 g a day, 8 weeks each arm	Arousal domain 3.10 to 3.50; two cases of vaginal bleeding
Korean red ginseng	Premenopausal crossover, 2015⁹	41	3 g a day, 8 weeks each arm	Scores rose on ginseng and on placebo; no difference between them
Tribulus	Low desire, fertile years, 2014¹⁰	67	7.5 mg extract a day, 4 weeks	Desire, arousal, lubrication and satisfaction improved against placebo
Tribulus	Postmenopausal and premenopausal, 2016 and 2018^{11, 12}	45 and 40	750 mg a day, 120 days	Desire and arousal improved; free testosterone rose; 3 per group left for side effects in 2016
Saffron	Women on an SSRI antidepressant, 2013¹³	38	30 mg a day, 4 weeks	Arousal, lubrication and pain improved; desire did not

A 2010 systematic review found four maca trials in total and called the evidence limited.⁴ Read the table with that in mind: 14 women is a pilot, a crossover with 23 completers cannot show a small effect, and a questionnaire gain is not a changed sex life. What the trials do establish is the doses tested: maca powder 3 to 3.5 g, fenugreek seed extract 600 mg, ginseng 3 g, saffron 30 mg.

What about libido after 50 and after the menopause?

This is where the GP route is strongest. The NHS lists hormone replacement therapy as the treatment for menopause-related loss of libido, and says testosterone gel or cream can help low libido for some women around the menopause, prescribed through a menopause specialist.^{1, 16} Behind that sits a meta-analysis of 36 randomised trials in 8,480 women: testosterone increased desire, arousal, orgasm and satisfactory sexual events in postmenopausal women and reduced distress, with acne and hair growth the main side effects.¹⁷ Vaginal dryness has a local treatment: vaginal health after the menopause covers it, and which menopause supplements have evidence sets the supplements beside HRT. "Will my wife get her libido back after the menopause" is a question for her GP with those options on the table.

What may a UK label say about these botanicals?

Only what the Great Britain register allows. No botanical carries an authorised libido claim in Great Britain, so fenugreek, ginseng, maca and saffron are named on a label by dose and nothing more; where a formula adds nutrients at 15% or more of the reference intake, the authorised wording belongs to them: vitamin B6 contributes to the regulation of hormonal activity and to normal psychological function, while magnesium contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.¹⁸ Supplements in this category are for adults over 18 only.

Who should take care with libido supplements?

Fenugreek and ginseng interact with anticoagulants and antidiabetic medicines; ginseng can affect blood pressure; fenugreek is not taken in pregnancy; and the label says consult a GP if pregnant, breastfeeding, on medication or under medical supervision.¹⁸ Two women in the 2010 ginseng trial had vaginal bleeding, and bleeding after the menopause is a GP visit whatever the cause.⁸ Low desire that comes with pain, discharge or recurring infections is a different problem first; start with what causes BV and why it comes back.

Frequently asked questions

How do I increase my libido quickly?

No trial supports a fast fix: the shortest botanical trials ran four weeks, and the NHS route is to name the cause: a medicine switch, iron, sleep, counselling or HRT.¹

Does the pill make you hornier, or less wet?

In 36 studies, 85% of combined-pill users reported unchanged or higher libido and 15% lower, the fall concentrated in the lowest-oestrogen pills.³ Dryness is a reason to ask a GP or pharmacist about the method; lubricants are the NHS first step.¹

Should I take fenugreek in the morning or at night, and does fenugreek water count?

No trial has compared timing. The women's trial used a standardised seed extract at 600 mg a day for eight weeks; fenugreek water delivers an unknown dose and has no trial behind it.⁷

What happens if a woman takes maca every day?

In the trials, 3 to 3.5 g a day for 6 to 12 weeks was well tolerated and did not change oestradiol, FSH, LH or SHBG in postmenopausal women.^{5, 6} Nothing longer has been studied.

Do probiotics make you wetter?

No trial of live cultures has measured lubrication or desire; the women's live-culture trials measured BV recurrence after antibiotics, set out in the BV guide above. Lubrication tracks arousal and oestrogen.¹⁶

Sources

NHS. Low sex drive (loss of libido). nhs.uk/conditions/loss-of-libido.
Serretti A, Chiesa A. Treatment-emergent sexual dysfunction related to antidepressants: a meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 2009. PubMed 19440080.
Pastor Z, Holla K, Chmel R. The influence of combined oral contraceptives on female sexual desire: a systematic review. European Journal of Contraception and Reproductive Health Care, 2013. PubMed 23320933.
Shin BC, et al. Maca (L. meyenii) for improving sexual function: a systematic review. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2010. PubMed 20691074.
Brooks NA, et al. Beneficial effects of Lepidium meyenii (Maca) on psychological symptoms and measures of sexual dysfunction in postmenopausal women are not related to estrogen or androgen content. Menopause, 2008. PubMed 18784609.
Dording CM, et al. A double-blind placebo-controlled trial of maca root as treatment for antidepressant-induced sexual dysfunction in women. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2015. PubMed 25954318.
Rao A, et al. Influence of a specialized Trigonella foenum-graecum seed extract on testosterone, estradiol and sexual function in healthy menstruating women, a randomised placebo controlled study. Phytotherapy Research, 2015. PubMed 25914334.
Oh KJ, et al. Effects of Korean red ginseng on sexual arousal in menopausal women: placebo-controlled, double-blind crossover clinical study. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 2010. PubMed 20141583.
Chung HS, et al. The effect of Korean red ginseng on sexual function in premenopausal women: placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover clinical trial. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2015. PubMed 26798402.
Akhtari E, et al. Tribulus terrestris for treatment of sexual dysfunction in women: randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study. Daru, 2014. PubMed 24773615.
de Souza KZ, Vale FB, Geber S. Efficacy of Tribulus terrestris for the treatment of hypoactive sexual desire disorder in postmenopausal women: a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial. Menopause, 2016. PubMed 27760089.
Vale FBC, et al. Efficacy of Tribulus terrestris for the treatment of premenopausal women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder: a randomized double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial. Gynecological Endocrinology, 2018. PubMed 29172782.
Kashani L, et al. Saffron for treatment of fluoxetine-induced sexual dysfunction in women: randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study. Human Psychopharmacology, 2013. PubMed 23280545.
Nikzad Z, et al. The relationship between iron deficiency anemia and sexual function and satisfaction among reproductive-aged Iranian women. PLoS One, 2018. PubMed 30521614.
Graziottin A. Prevalence and evaluation of sexual health problems: HSDD in Europe. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 2007. PubMed 17394593.
NHS. Menopause: treatment. nhs.uk/conditions/menopause/treatment.
Islam RM, et al. Safety and efficacy of testosterone for women: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trial data. Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology, 2019. PubMed 31353194.
Department of Health and Social Care. Great Britain nutrition and health claims (NHC) register. gov.uk.

General information, not medical advice: a change in sex drive that worries you, a suspected medicine effect, bleeding or pain during sex are reasons to see a GP or sexual health clinic.

Back to Health Insiders