Ingredient profile
Tongkat Ali in Vapofil: What 10 mg of a 100:1 Extract Means
Vapofil lists 10 mg of tongkat ali from a 100:1 extract. The label's "equivalent to approximately 1000mg" describes the raw root used to make it, not what you swallow. Trials weighed extract too, at 100 to 600 mg a day, so the fair comparison is 10 mg against at least 100 mg. Effects showed mainly in men with low testosterone.
Written by the Vapofil editorial teamUpdated
Profile
What does the Vapofil label say about tongkat ali?
Tongkat ali is the root of Eurycoma longifolia, a Southeast Asian shrub. It is line 6 of 7 on the label.
| Label name | Tongkat Ali (Eurycoma Longifolia) |
|---|---|
| What it is | Eurycoma longifolia root, from a 100:1 extract |
| Type | Root extract (100:1) |
| Position on the label | Line 6 of 7 |
| Amount per serving | 10 mg of a 100:1 extract per serving (label: equivalent to about 1,000 mg of dry powder) |
| What research shows | Small trials used 100-600 mg a day of extract, mostly 100-200 mg; effects showed mainly in men with low hormone levels |
| Strength of evidence | Small trials, at 10x the dose or more |
| Why it is in the formula (brand view) | The sales page makes hormone claims for it that we cover on one page |
| Main caution | A possible rare cause of liver injury; long-term safety is not well documented. Some products tested high in mercury. |
Label literacy
What does a 100:1 tongkat ali extract mean?
Count the squares: how much root goes in, and how much extract comes out.
- On the label10 mg of a 100:1 extractEach grey square is one part of dry plant; it takes 100 of them to make one blue square of extract.
- "Equivalent to"about 1,000 mg of dry root powderThe amount of raw plant used to make your 10 mg. It is not what you swallow.
- The trials100-200 mg of extract a day in the largest trialThat is 10 to 20 of the blue extract squares, or 1,000 to 2,000 of the grey powder squares. (LiverTox, Tongkat ali)
- On the label8 mg of a 10:1 extractEach grey square is one part of dry plant; it takes 10 of them to make one blue square of extract.
- "Equivalent to"about 80 mg of dry herbThe amount of raw plant used to make your 8 mg. It is not what you swallow.
- The researchNo proven dose; products are 250-500 mgMost evidence comes from lab and animal studies. (MSKCC, Epimedium) (LiverTox, Horny goat weed)
What the ratio tells you
- Roughly how much dry plant went into the extract.
- That the extract is a concentrate, not plain ground root.
What it does not tell you
- How much of the active compounds (such as eurycomanone or icariin) is inside.
- That you get the effect of 1,000 mg. Trials weighed extract, so compare extract with extract.
- That the ratio was tested. No lab result or standard is given.
Federal label rules say an extract is listed by the weight of the dried extract (21 CFR 101.36, Supplement labels), which is why 10 mg is the number to compare. In one review, only 11 of 41 tongkat ali products met the recommended level of eurycomanone (Leisegang 2022, Tongkat ali meta-analysis).
A 100:1 ratio means about 100 parts of dry root were concentrated into 1 part of extract. So 10 mg of extract started as roughly 1,000 mg of root.
Dose check
How does 10 mg compare with tongkat ali trial doses?
Flip the toggle to see why the 1,000 mg figure misleads.
-
Saw palmetto berryAbout 1/16 of the studied amountLabel20 mgStudied320 mg a day6.2%
The usual trial dose. A Cochrane review of 27 studies still found little to no benefit for urinary symptoms. (Cochrane review, Saw palmetto)
-
Tongkat ali extractAbout 1/10 of the studied amountLabel10 mg of extractStudied100 mg a day10%
The lowest dose in the largest trial. Other trials used up to 600 mg. (LiverTox, Tongkat ali)
-
Boron, as elemental boronAbout 1/10 of the studied amountLabelabout 1 mgStudied10 mg a day10%
One week in 8 men. 20 mg chelate x 5% = 1 mg of boron. The adult upper limit is 20 mg. (Boron study, 8 men)
-
Nettle leafAbout 1/15 of the studied amountLabel20 mgStudied300 mg a day6.7%
The low end of typical products, which mostly use the root, not the leaf. (LiverTox, Stinging nettle)
-
Horny goat weed extractAbout 1/31 of the studied amountLabel8 mg of extractStudied250 mg3.2%
The smallest common product size. No dose has been proven to work. (LiverTox, Horny goat weed)
-
Sarsaparilla rootAbout 1/300 of the studied amountLabel20 mgStudied6,000 mg a day0.3%
Traditional use, 2 grams three times a day. No controlled human trials. (EBSCO, Sarsaparilla)
-
Wild yam rootNo studied dose to compareLabel20 mgStudiedNo dose shownn/a
No human study shows any dose does anything for men. The body cannot turn diosgenin into hormones. (MSKCC, Wild yam)
Label amounts per 2-capsule serving. Research figures: saw palmetto (Cochrane review, Saw palmetto), tongkat ali (LiverTox, Tongkat ali) (Leisegang 2022, Tongkat ali meta-analysis), boron (Boron study, 8 men) (NIH ODS, Boron), nettle (LiverTox, Stinging nettle), horny goat weed (LiverTox, Horny goat weed), sarsaparilla (EBSCO, Sarsaparilla), wild yam (MSKCC, Wild yam). A studied dose is not proof that a dose works. Never take more than the label's 2 capsules a day.
The trials weighed extract, not raw root: 100 to 600 mg a day (Leisegang 2022, Tongkat ali meta-analysis). The largest trial used 100 or 200 mg (LiverTox, Tongkat ali). Measured the same way, Vapofil's 10 mg is about 10% of the lowest trial dose.
Research
What did tongkat ali trials find?
| Study | Men and length | Extract dose | Finding |
|---|---|---|---|
| Largest trial | 105 men aged 50-70 with low testosterone, 12 weeks | 100 or 200 mg a day | Testosterone up about 9% to 12.5%, vs a 3% fall on placebo |
| Meta-analysis, 2022 | 5 trials, 232 men, 3 days to 6 months | 100-600 mg a day | A significant rise in men with low levels; not significant in healthy men |
The review's authors flagged small samples and signs of publication bias (Leisegang 2022, Tongkat ali meta-analysis). No trial has tested 10 mg, or Vapofil itself. The sales page makes hormone claims for tongkat ali that we do not repeat; see the sales claims page.
Product quality
Why does tongkat ali quality vary so much?
In one check of 41 Malaysian products, only 24 contained eurycomanone, a marker compound, and just 11 met the recommended level (Leisegang 2022, Tongkat ali meta-analysis).
- Two analyses of 100 products each found mercury above Malaysia's limit in 26% and 36% of samples (Science.gov, Tongkat ali mercury).
- The Vapofil label states no eurycomanone level and names no testing lab.
See batch verify for where to find the lot number.
Safety
Is tongkat ali safe?
Side effects in studies were uncommon: nausea, stomach discomfort, diarrhea, headache and rash (LiverTox, Tongkat ali). LiverTox rates tongkat ali a possible rare cause of liver injury and says its long-term safety is not well documented. Europe's food safety agency said in 2021 that its safety has not been established (LiverTox, Tongkat ali).
Ask a doctor first. Low testosterone is diagnosed with two morning blood tests plus symptoms (AUA, Testosterone deficiency guideline), and erection problems can be an early sign of heart disease (AUA, ED guideline).
Keep exploring
Which Vapofil ingredient should you read next?
Next stop: horny goat weed, the other extract with a ratio.
FAQ
Tongkat ali FAQ
Is tongkat ali safe?
Questions remain. Side effects were uncommon, yet LiverTox lists it as a possible rare cause of liver injury, and its long-term safety in humans is not well documented (LiverTox, Tongkat ali). Some products tested high in mercury (Science.gov, Tongkat ali mercury).
How much tongkat ali does a Vapofil serving contain?
Two capsules hold 10 mg of a 100:1 tongkat ali extract. The label's 1,000 mg figure describes the raw root used to make it.
What dose of tongkat ali did studies use?
Trials gave 100 to 600 mg of extract a day, most often 100 to 200 mg (Leisegang 2022, Tongkat ali meta-analysis) (LiverTox, Tongkat ali).
Does tongkat ali do anything in men with normal testosterone?
Not clearly. A 2022 meta-analysis found the rise in testosterone was significant in men with low levels but not statistically significant in healthy men (Leisegang 2022, Tongkat ali meta-analysis).
Can tongkat ali products contain mercury?
Some have. Two Malaysian analyses found mercury above the legal limit in 26% and 36% of tongkat ali products tested (Science.gov, Tongkat ali mercury).
What is eurycomanone in tongkat ali?
It is a marker compound used to judge tongkat ali quality. Of 41 products checked, only 11 met the recommended level (Leisegang 2022, Tongkat ali meta-analysis). The Vapofil label does not state its eurycomanone content.
Who wrote this
Written and reviewed by
Plain-language pages built from the label, the sales page and linked public health sources.
Last updated . Our editorial standards explain how we check reviews. This website is run by Vapofildaily, a U.S. stocking partner for Vapofil, not by the manufacturer or the distributor named on the label. Purchases through our order links earn us a commission.
Keep reading
More about Vapofil
Tongkat ali: what studies show
The tongkat ali trials, who saw an effect, the doses used and why product quality matters.
Read moreExtract ratios explained
How to read 100:1, 10:1 and "equivalent to" lines, with Vapofil's tongkat ali and horny goat weed as examples.
Read more
Horny goat weed
8 mg of a 10:1 extract, the smallest line on the label, backed mostly by lab and animal work on icariin.
Read moreU.S. stocking partner for Vapofil
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