Tabs Chocolate is a unique food product formulated to improve sex drive. The brand describes their product as “composed of aphrodisiac ingredients” and as a “sexually enhancing dark chocolate.”
But does Tabs Chocolate actually contain ingredients proven in clinical studies to increase sex drive or are these just marketing claims? Is the product safe? Is it healthy or unhealthy? And how do real users rate and describe the effects of Tabs Chocolate?
In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more as we review the ingredients in Tabs Chocolate based on medical studies to give our take on whether the product is likely to be effective for increasing sex drive.
We’ll explain our thoughts on whether the chocolate brand is healthy, document a strange ingredient labeling discrepancy, and share real, unsponsored user reviews of Tabs Chocolate.
Will Tabs Chocolate Increase Sex Drive?
Tabs Chocolate does contain ingredients proven in clinical studies to increase sex drive.
Tabs is a dark chocolate, because it contains 60% cocoa, and dark chocolate contains between 50% and 90% according to Harvard research.
Dark chocolate was described in a 2019 medical review as an aphrodisiac, or a compound proven to increase sexual desire.
The active ingredients in this product are a proprietary blend of Epimedium (horny goat weed) extract, maca root extract and DHEA with a total dose of 630 milligrams (mg), or an average ingredient dose of 210 mg.
Epimedium extract was described as an aphrodisiac in a medical review published in the Sexual Medicine Reviews journal, and the plant may also help to improve erectile function in men.
Maca root extract is one of the most well-studied libido enhancers. As we documented in our review of another sexual enhancement product called VigorNow, maca was shown to have a “significant positive effect” on sexual desire in both men and women.
DHEA is a hormone that was shown in a medical review to improve libido in women, however we cannot identify any clinical research suggesting it’s effective for men.
Overall, we think that Tabs Chocolate is a pretty well-formulated product, and we do consider it likely to improve sex drive in both men and women given that all of its active ingredients are backed by clinical research.
The effective dosing ranges of some of these botanical compounds aren’t very well-understood, but given that the product contains four effective active ingredients, we figure it’s likely to cause an effect on the average consumer.
Real, Unsponsored Tabs User Review
A TikTok user named “The Geriatric Millennial” shared her experience using Tabs for libido enhancement:
@geriatricmillennial2 Reply to @kaish_715 what products have worked so far? #vyleesi #libido #tabschocolate ♬ original sound - The Geriatric Millennial
Is Tabs Chocolate Healthy?
The good thing about Tabs Chocolate is that it’s free of unhealthy additive ingredients like artificial flavoring agents or artificial colors.
We have two concerns about the brand’s ingredient labeling.
Tabs lists caffeine as an active ingredient but the total caffeine dose doesn’t appear to be listed anywhere on their site at the time of publishing this article. Cocoa naturally contains caffeine as well.
The FAQ page on Tabs’ website states that “Those sensitive to caffeine should take caution before consuming Tabs,” and it’s extremely important that the brand publishes the caffeine dose for consumer safety.
The Nutrition Facts label shown in the previous section lists 0 grams (g) of added sugar, but sugar is listed as an ingredient. Tabs lists 4 g total sugar but 0 g added sugar.
Incase Tabs’ formulators aren’t aware, adding sugar to your chocolate product does count as added sugar.
We typically recommend avoiding added sugar as much as possible, given that it’s associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes when consumed in excess according to medical research.
That being said, all dark chocolate contains some added sugar, and we believe the health benefits of cocoa outweigh the downsides of added sugar. A meta-review on cocoa found that it has cardioprotective effects, protects nerve function, and protects skin from oxidative damage.
Overall we consider Tabs Chocolate to be somewhat healthy. One square contains 8 g of added sugar which is a relatively low amount especially given that this product isn’t meant for daily use, and the cocoa will benefit the health of consumers. It’s certainly not unhealthy or a health risk in our opinion.
Will Tabs Chocolate Cause Side Effects?
Tabs Chocolate does not appear to have been studied in any clinical trials, so we can’t definitively say whether or not it causes side effects. However, we can make an educated guess based on its ingredients.
Caffeine is our main ingredient of concern given that we can’t determine how much is in this product. Caffeine can increase blood pressure and increase anxiety at high doses, so if the dose of caffeine in this product is relatively high (>200 mg or so), we would warn consumers of those potential effects.
Dark chocolate can also have a mild stimulant effect due to a chemical compound called theobromine, but the dose is low enough in this product for it not likely to be a concern.
We do not consider Tabs Chocolate likely to cause side effects, but we hope that the brand publishes the total caffeine dose so consumers can make a more informed decision.
Can Ginseng Naturally Improve Sex Drive?
Panax ginseng, which is a plant native to Asia, has been studied in various clinical trials for its ability to improve sex drive in men and women, and to improve erections in men.
A 2013 medical review on ginseng and male reproductive function found that with daily use, the supplement increased sex drive.
A clinical trial published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine found that panax ginseng supplementation increased sex drive by 13% in menopausal women.
A clinical trial published in The Journal of Urology found that after eight weeks of treatment, erectile function scores were "significantly higher" in the ginseng group than the group taking placebo pills.
Illuminate Labs sells a panax ginseng extract supplement which is third-party tested to ensure label accuracy, potency and purity, and which contains no questionable additive ingredients.
Interested consumers can check out Illuminate Labs Panax Ginseng Extract at this link to the product page on our website, where the supplement can be purchased for only $15 on a subscription basis.
Tabs Chocolate costs $5 per serving, while Illuminate Labs Panax ginseng Extract costs $0.25 per serving.
