Does Ginkgo Biloba Boost Female Libido? Science vs. Placebo Effect
Can a tree leaf fix your sex life? Only if you teach your mind to pay attention.
We treat our bodies like machines that just need the right fuel to run, especially when it comes to sex. If the drive is gone, we assume the engine is broken, so we go looking for a mechanic or a magic additive to pour into the tank. And if you are a woman navigating the murky waters of low libido, Ginkgo Biloba often comes up as a low-stakes, high-reward gamble worth taking. It’s cheap, it’s generally safe, and—here is the real draw—it promises to sharpen your memory while it wakes up your bedroom life.
But biology is rarely that simple. A fascinating study out of the University of Texas decided to test this exact premise. They wanted to know if Ginkgo could actually jumpstart sexual arousal in women, or if it was just another bottle of expensive placebo gathering dust in the medicine cabinet.
The results were messy, human, and incredibly revealing about how female desire actually works.
“Ginkgo turned the lights on physically, but nobody was home psychologically. The body was ready, but the brain hadn’t received the memo.”
What’s the Big Idea?
The researchers, led by Cindy Meston, took a group of women struggling with sexual arousal (some of whom were dealing with antidepressant-induced dysfunction) and ran them through a gauntlet of tests involving Ginkgo Biloba extract (GBE), placebos, and erotica.
They looked at two things: the short game and the long game.
First, they gave women a single 300 mg dose of Ginkgo and sat them in front of erotic films 90 minutes later. The physiological data was fascinating. The Ginkgo actually worked on the plumbing. Vaginal pulse amplitude (a measure of blood flow) increased significantly compared to the placebo group. The body responded.
But here is the catch: the women didn’t feel any more aroused.
They also ran an eight-week trial dividing women into four groups: Placebo, Ginkgo only, Sex Therapy, and a “Combo” group (Sex Therapy + Ginkgo).
This is where my obsession with “multitasking” supplements usually kicks in. I love finding substances that do double duty—like Tribulus Terrestris for athleticism and libido, or Ginkgo for cognitive focus and sex. It feels efficient. We want a compound that hits multiple targets at once so we can get on with our lives.
However, the study found that taking Ginkgo alone for eight weeks was statistically a flop. It didn’t outperform the sugar pill. But, when the researchers combined Ginkgo with sex therapy (which focused simply on noticing physical sensations), the results changed. The Combo group showed significant increases in sexual desire and contentment that the other groups didn’t match.
The data suggests a disconnect. Ginkgo increases blood flow and relaxes smooth muscle tissue (crucial for physical arousal), but unless your brain is trained to notice and appreciate those physical signals, the arousal doesn’t register as “desire.”
💡 In Plain English
Think of Ginkgo Biloba like a delivery driver who successfully drops a package on your front porch—it brings the blood flow exactly where it needs to go. However, without the mental awareness taught in therapy, you never actually open the door to claim it. The supplement handles the logistics, but your brain still has to sign for the delivery.
Why It Matters and What You Can Do
Most people fail with supplements because they treat them like light switches rather than volume knobs. This research implies that sexual dysfunction in women is often a glorious mess of vascular blood flow (the hardware) and cognitive attention (the software).
Ginkgo helps the hardware. It keeps the blood moving. But without the software update—learning to get out of your head and into your body—that extra blood flow is just physiological noise.
If you are struggling with low arousal or desire, you can try replicating the “Combo” success from the study:
Source the Right Extract: The study used 300 mg of a standardized extract (look for 24% flavone glycosides). They took it about an hour before sexual activity (or daily in the long-term trial).
Don’t Skip the “Therapy”: You don’t necessarily need a clinician for this. The therapy in the study focused on sensate focus. This means training yourself to notice physical sensations (warmth, tingling, pressure) without judging them or worrying about the end goal (orgasm).
Bridge the Gap: When you take the Ginkgo, consciously try to connect the mental to the physical. If the supplement increases blood flow, use your mind to look for that signal. If you ignore the physical cue, the arousal stays stuck in the mechanics.
Patience is Key: The synergistic effects on desire and contentment took weeks to manifest.
What’s Next on the Horizon
The scientific community is still figuring out the specific mechanisms here. We know Ginkgo scavenges nitric oxide (a fancy way of saying it aids relaxation of blood vessels), similar to how male ED drugs work, though much milder.
Future research needs to look at “priming.” It is possible that Ginkgo works best as a primer for the vascular system, effectively warming up the car engine, but you still need a driver (your focus) to put the car in gear. We also need to see if higher doses or different standardized extracts might bridge the gap between physical blood flow and the subjective feeling of “being turned on” without requiring weeks of therapy.
Safety, Ethics, and Caveats
Before you run to the health food store, let’s pump the brakes for a second. Ginkgo is technically an herbal supplement, but “herbal” doesn’t mean “inert.”
Blood Thinning: Ginkgo increases blood flow by thinning the blood. If you are on anticoagulants (like aspirin or warfarin), have a bleeding disorder, or have surgery coming up, Ginkgo is a hard no. You could bleed out.
The Placebo Powerhouse: This study showed a massive placebo effect. A huge chunk of the women improved just by taking a sugar pill and talking about their sex lives. Never underestimate the power of simply deciding you want to fix the problem.
Antidepressants: While Ginkgo is often touted as a cure for SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction, the data here was mixed. It might help, but it’s not a magic bullet that completely neutralizes the side effects of Prozac or Zoloft.
One Last Thing
We often look for a pill to fix us, but sometimes the pill just opens a door. You still have to walk through it. Ginkgo might get the blood flowing, but you need to be present enough to enjoy the rush.
Explore the Full Study
Short- and Long-term Effects of Ginkgo Biloba Extract on Sexual Dysfunction in Women