NOW Foods Tribulus 1000mg 90 Tablets

What it is

NOW Sports Tribulus 1000 mg is a single-herb dietary supplement sold as a bottle of 90 tablets, each one supplying 1,000 mg of standardized Tribulus terrestris extract. The front of the bottle carries three callouts — 1000 MG, STANDARDIZED EXTRACT and DOUBLE STRENGTH — and the back panel spells out what the last of those refers to: this tablet holds 1,000 mg of tribulus, where NOW's regular-strength version holds 500 mg per capsule. The bottle itself is amber with a white ribbed cap, and the tablets are taken once a day with food.

It is made by NOW Foods of Bloomingdale, Illinois, and sold under the company's NOW Sports line. You will find it alongside the rest of our Sports Nutrition range.

What "standardized to min. 45% saponins" actually means

A standardized extract is one that has been concentrated and then tested so that each batch carries a stated level of a chosen marker compound. On this label the marker is saponins and the stated level is 45%, written as min. 45% — a floor rather than a target. The label commits to at least that much, not to an exact figure, which is a meaningfully different promise from a plain percentage printed on its own.

Two things the figure does not mean are worth spelling out, because they are easy to read backwards. The 45% describes the extract, not the tablet — it is 45% of the 1,000 mg of extract, not 45% of the tablet's total weight. And the 1,000 mg is the weight of the finished extract itself, not the weight of raw plant that was concentrated down to produce it. An extract figure and a raw-herb figure are not comparable numbers, which is why two tribulus products showing the same milligram amount can be built quite differently.

The panel also records which parts of the plant went in: Fruit and Aerial Parts. "Aerial parts" is the botanist's term for everything growing above the soil line — stems, leaves and flowers — so the extract draws on the fruit plus the above-ground growth, and not the root. Tribulus terrestris itself is a low, sprawling flowering plant of warm dry ground that spreads flat rather than upward and sets hard, spiked seed cases, which is how it earned the English names puncturevine and caltrop. It has a long history of use in traditional preparations around the Mediterranean, South Asia and Africa. The NIH's general background on botanical dietary supplements explains how extracts and standardization work across this category, and the NIH Dietary Supplement Label Database is where labels like this one can be compared side by side.

Why a tribulus tablet also lists calcium

The first row of the Supplement Facts panel is not the herb — it is Calcium (from Calcium Carbonate), 130 mg, 10% of the Daily Value. The label prints it as a nutrient row, set above the tribulus row with a percentage attached, rather than naming it down in the Other Ingredients line. The label does not say why calcium carbonate is in the formula, so neither do we.

What is worth knowing is the arithmetic. At the labeled one tablet a day this contributes 130 mg of calcium, about a tenth of the Daily Value, on top of everything else in your day — which matters if you already take a calcium supplement or a multivitamin that includes it. The NIH Office of Dietary Supplements keeps a consumer fact sheet on calcium with the current intake figures if you want to total yours up.

Supplement Facts

Serving Size 1 Tablet.

† Daily Value not established.

Other ingredients: Microcrystalline Cellulose, Stearic Acid (vegetable source), Vegetarian Coating and Silicon Dioxide.

How to use it

The label's directions are one tablet daily, taken with a meal. That is the whole of the suggested usage printed on the bottle. Storage guidance is equally short: keep it in a cool, dry, dark place after opening.

At one tablet a day, a 90-tablet bottle works out to a 90-day supply. Worth noting that this is arithmetic from the count rather than a figure the label states — the panel on this bottle prints a serving size but no servings line at all, so we have derived it rather than transcribed it.

Who it's for

This is a dietary supplement for adults 18 and over, and the label restricts it no further than that. It suits someone who has already decided they want tribulus specifically, at a stated extract strength, in a form they can take once a day without measuring anything. The 90-count bottle and the tablet format point at steady daily use across a few months rather than occasional use.

If you would rather swallow a capsule than a tablet, or want a smaller amount per serving, a different format of the same herb may suit you better than this one. More botanicals and daily-use formats sit in our wider Health & Wellness section.

Good to know

The caution printed on the bottle reads: for adults only; consult a physician if pregnant or nursing, taking medication, or if you have a medical condition; keep out of reach of children. The label also notes that natural color variation may occur in this product, which is normal for a botanical extract pressed into a tablet.

On allergens, the label states that the product is not manufactured with wheat, gluten, soy, milk, egg, fish, shellfish or tree nut ingredients, and that it is produced in a GMP facility that processes other ingredients containing these allergens. Both halves of that sentence are the manufacturer's, and the second half matters as much as the first if you react severely.

The pack carries a Vegan mark, a "K" kosher mark and a Non-GMO icon, and a GMP Quality Assured seal sits beside the barcode. The back panel names NOW Foods, 395 S. Glen Ellyn Rd., Bloomingdale, IL 60108, USA as having manufactured and quality tested it. If you take prescription medication or manage an ongoing condition, the sensible step is a conversation with your own clinician before adding anything new — the NCCIH keeps a plain-language page on dietary and herbal supplements that is a reasonable place to read up first.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much tribulus is in each tablet, and what does the 45% refer to?

Each tablet supplies 1,000 mg of standardized Tribulus terrestris extract. The 45% is a minimum saponin content measured within that extract — so it describes the concentration of the marker compound in the 1,000 mg of extract, not a share of the tablet's total weight. The extract is drawn from the fruit and the aerial parts of the plant.

How many tablets are in the bottle?

Ninety. At the label's direction of one tablet daily with a meal, that works out to a 90-day supply, derived from the count rather than printed on the panel.

Does it contain gluten or common allergens?

The label states it is not manufactured with wheat, gluten, soy, milk, egg, fish, shellfish or tree nut ingredients. It also states that production happens in a GMP facility that processes other ingredients containing those allergens, so anyone with a severe allergy should weigh that second statement too.

Is it suitable for vegans, and does it carry a kosher mark?

The bottle carries both a Vegan mark and a "K" kosher mark, printed alongside a Non-GMO icon. The Other Ingredients line is Microcrystalline Cellulose, Stearic Acid from a vegetable source, Vegetarian Coating and Silicon Dioxide.

How is my order packaged?

Orders ship in plain, unbranded outer packaging. It will not show the Gear Isle name.

Product information compiled and reviewed by the Gear Isle product team. We transcribe supplement facts directly from manufacturer packaging. Found an error? Tell us.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Dietary supplement for adults 18 and over. Consult a licensed healthcare professional before use, especially if you have a medical condition, heart concerns, or take prescription medication (including nitrates). Keep out of reach of children.