EnoSTIM™ Grape & Apple Polyphenols with Saffron (600 mg/day, Male Sexual Health)

EnoSTIM™ is a proprietary botanical ingredient developed and manufactured in France by Nexira, a family-owned specialist in natural extracts and acacia gum. It combines polyphenols from grape and apple with an extract of saffron (Crocus sativus) stigmas in a fixed, synergistic ratio, and is supplied to finished-product brands as a male sexual health and healthy-ageing active. ACC Biotech lists it as a patented raw material for food supplements.

The rationale behind the blend is vascular rather than hormonal. Erectile quality depends on the ability of penile vascular tissue to relax and fill with blood, a process governed by nitric oxide. Grape and apple polyphenols are well characterised for their effects on endothelial function, while saffron has a long history of traditional use as an aphrodisiac and has been studied for male sexual function. EnoSTIM™ brings the two together in a single 600 mg daily dose.

EnoSTIM™ acts at two points on the same pathway. First, it activates endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), the enzyme that produces nitric oxide (NO) in the vascular endothelium. NO diffuses into the surrounding smooth muscle, triggers relaxation and allows the corpora cavernosa to fill with blood — the physiological basis of an erection. In the supplier ex vivo work, the formulation increased blood flow by up to 50%.

Second, it protects the nitric oxide that has already been produced. NO is short-lived and is rapidly inactivated by superoxide and other reactive oxygen species, which is one reason erectile function declines with age and with cardiometabolic risk factors. The polyphenol fraction scavenges free radicals; in the supplier in vivo testing, oxidative stress fell by 74%. Producing more NO while degrading less of it is the combined mechanism claimed for the ingredient.

The published human work on EnoSTIM™ is an observational study by Allaert, Guillemet, Schueller and Herpin, "Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Polyphenols from Grape and Apple Combined with Saffron on Erectile Function", Archives in Biomedical Engineering and Biotechnology, 2021.

103 men were enrolled and 94 completed the study (91.3%). Mean age was 53.4 years within a 45–65 range: 42.6% aged 45–50, 34.0% aged 50–60 and 23.4% over 60. Inclusion required declining erectile function with an Erection Hardness Score (EHS) of 2 to 3 over the previous month. Participants took 600 mg of EnoSTIM™ per day, as two 300 mg intakes, for 28 days.

After 28 days the EHS rose from 2.7 ± 0.5 to 3.3 ± 0.6, an increase of 22% (p<0.0001), and 73.8% of participants improved their score. The proportion of erections hard enough for penetration rose from 68.0% to 87.7%, and fully rigid erections from 9.9% to 44.8%. The IIEF-5 score improved from 15.6 ± 3.9 to 17.7 ± 4.5 (p<0.0001), and 66.0% of participants reported better erection quality by day 28. No significant adverse effects were reported.

Buyers should note the design. This is an open-label observational study with no placebo arm, so part of the measured effect may be non-specific. It nonetheless remains the primary clinical dossier for the ingredient and the basis of the supplier communication. ACC Biotech can request the full study report and the supporting pre-clinical data from Nexira.

The recommended use level is 600 mg per day — the dose used in the clinical study — split into two 300 mg intakes and taken for a minimum of four weeks. Some supplier communications cite a 300–600 mg/day range. The ingredient is manufactured in France.

Typical applications are food supplements for men: male vitality, sexual health, healthy ageing and energy positioning, usually in capsules, tablets or stick packs where the 600 mg daily dose is divided across two units. Full specifications, certificate of analysis, allergen and shelf-life documentation, and minimum order quantities are available on request through ACC Biotech.

EnoSTIM™ was named Ingredient of the Year in the Healthy Ageing category at the NutraIngredients Awards 2019. The judging panel cited the innovative approach to the issue, the strength of the scientific evidence supplied and the clear demonstrated mechanism of action.

Nexira refers to a pending European claim covering improved erection and muscle relaxation; there is no approved EFSA health claim for this ingredient at present. Claim wording must be validated market by market, because sexual-performance claims are tightly restricted in the EU, mainland China and Hong Kong. Ingredients of this type are normally communicated on a blood-flow, antioxidant or general male-vitality basis rather than as a treatment for erectile dysfunction. Nothing on this page is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.