Yerba Mate and Impotence?

[teajock]

A friend of mine from Brazil recently told me that it's common knowledge in Brazil that Yerba Mate consumption can cause male impotence. I hate to cause a stir here, and I am NOT trying to claim this is true. I just wanted to know if anybody else had heard this, and if so, are there any studies to support the rumor?

[Sydney]

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that if yerba caused impotence, we'd know it.

The stuff is so common in Uruguay, for instance, that containers of hot water for public use are readily available so people can top off. If impotence resulted, the population would reflect it.

[Pentox]

Lol unless it's the government's secret method of population control!

[Mary R]

I think there are quite a few legit studies linking excessive caffeine with erectile dysfunction, and yerba maté does pack its share of caffeine...

But outside of that, I've not heard this particular claim.

[Chip]

...a jingle from the boob tube is ringing through my head right now...

VIVA VIAGRA.....

[Eastree]

...a jingle from the boob tube is ringing through my head right now...

VIVA VIAGRA.....

And Elvis is SPINNING in his grave ... who knew a dead man could cry?

[Mary R]

If we could only harness the power generated from his spinning corpse, we could become Vegas's sole energy provider.

[Eastree]

If we could only harness the power generated from his spinning corpse, we could become Vegas's sole energy provider.

Pair him with Darwin, and we could power the WORLD! Name it after a He-Man character and when people ask how the lights areon, others would have to say, "By the power of Greyskull!"

[Wesli]

My guess is that riding a bike works against reproduction a lot better than yerba.

[Phathom]

The tea does contain a lot of caffeine, and as such acts as a diuretic. The US Army found that mate was also an antidepressant (MAOi), and soldiers whom were already on antidepressants, they instructed to abstain from using yerba mate in South America.

[scruffmcgruff]

Wow, yerba mate is an MAOI? That's a potentially serious issue, I'm (not) surprised that doesn't get published more!

[elpuma]

[quote="Phathom"]The tea does contain a lot of caffeine, and as such acts as a diuretic. The US Army found that mate was also an antidepressant (MAOi), and soldiers whom were already on antidepressants, they instructed to abstain from using yerba mate in South America.[/quote]

Where did you read this? Can you provide a link?

[elpuma]

[quote="teajock"]A friend of mine from Brazil recently told me that it's common knowledge in Brazil that Yerba Mate consumption can cause male impotence. I hate to cause a stir here, and I am NOT trying to claim this is true. I just wanted to know if anybody else had heard this, and if so, are there any studies to support the rumor?[/quote]

I have been drinking Yerba Mate for the past decade, and have never noticed this kid of reaction. Quite the opposite. From the time I drank my first sip of Mate I clearly noticed two effects: It literally awakened my entire mind and body (no matter how tired I was, and without the jitters associated with coffee) and it stimulated my libido. In fact, if I happen to be in a 'low libido' mood, the consumption of Mate brings me out of it.

It's very different from Coffee. Mate seems to simultaneously awaken and relax you.

There's no doubt in my mind that it's good for you. But like everything in life, moderation is the key.

[Phathom]

I pulled up the page, and it says "2. The method of claim 1 wherein said active agent is an extract of Yerbamat (Ilex paraguariensis)" and "[0031] FIG. 8 shows the inhibition of MAO A and MAO B for Yerbamat." I found this entry a patent application made on: October 2, 2003; #20030185908; patented by Williams, Jonnie R. ; et al. My resource from the army had been removed, perhaps it was inaccurate or just old.

I consider the millions of people that drink mate, I highly doubt its MAOi inhibition is as strong, or would cause the same dietary issues. Unless you are already taking a MAOi - a seldom prescribed medication, presumably because of the dietary issues - your blood pressure could always be checked.

Weird, I got a spam warning, if this is a double post, I apologize.