Adaptogens and 'hormone balance' for low libido: what TikTok gets wrong

What did @misskaylasimone actually say?

Kayla says she's been taking adaptogenic herbs for six months to address PMS and low sex drive, and frames low libido in women as a hormone problem, specifically pointing to estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, cortisol, and insulin. Her core message: "it's not you, it's your hormones." She isn't selling a specific product in this clip, but she describes taking "an all natural holistic hormone balancing pack" targeting all five of those hormones simultaneously. That's a lot of ground to cover with herbs.

The emotional framing is genuinely relatable. Women's sexual health concerns are routinely dismissed in clinical settings, and Kayla is right that the conversation is underdiscussed. But sympathy for the messenger doesn't mean the mechanism she's describing is accurate. Attributing low libido to nonspecific "hormone imbalance" that a supplement can fix is a significant leap from what the research actually shows.

Does the science back this up?

Partially. Hormones do influence libido, and some adaptogens have real (if modest) evidence behind them. But the claim that one supplement pack can balance estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, cortisol, and insulin simultaneously? That's not how endocrinology works, and the studies don't support it.

The best-studied adaptogen for female sexual function is Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera). A randomized, double-blind trial by Dongre et al. (2015, BioMed Research International) found 300mg twice daily improved self-reported sexual function scores in healthy women over 8 weeks, including arousal and satisfaction. That's a real finding, but it's one herb, one dose, one outcome, measured with a self-report scale. Maca (Lepidium meyenii) has some evidence for libido improvement in postmenopausal women (Brooks et al., 2008, Menopause), but effect sizes are small and findings aren't consistent across trials. For cortisol specifically, Ashwagandha does show cortisol-lowering effects in stressed adults (Chandrasekhar et al., 2012, Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine). What no study has demonstrated is that an herbal blend reliably "rebalances" all reproductive hormones in tandem.

What did they get wrong (or right)?

She got the emotional core right. Low libido in reproductive-age women is real, underreported, and often dismissed as stress or relationship problems. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists acknowledges hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD) as a legitimate clinical condition. Kayla's instinct that this deserves a conversation is correct.

What she got wrong is conflating symptom relief with hormonal correction. Feeling better after taking adaptogens doesn't mean your estrogen or progesterone levels have normalized. It may mean stress is lower, sleep improved, or there's a placebo effect, all of which can improve libido without touching reproductive hormone levels. She also uses "testosterone" casually as one item on a list, when testosterone therapy in women is a regulated clinical intervention with its own evidence base (Davis et al., 2019, The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology) and real safety considerations. Framing it alongside herbs minimizes that complexity.

• Right: Hormones affect libido. True.
• Right: Low libido in young women is underaddressed. Also true.
• Wrong: A supplement pack can balance five hormone systems simultaneously.
• Wrong: Feeling better equals hormones being "balanced." It doesn't.

What should you actually know?

If you're experiencing persistent low libido, the starting point is a real clinical evaluation, not a supplement. A provider should check TSH (thyroid), prolactin, total and free testosterone, and consider whether medications like SSRIs or hormonal contraceptives are contributing. These are known, documented causes of low desire that adaptogens will not fix.

If you want to try adaptogens anyway, the risk profile for most is low at standard doses, and Ashwagandha has the most consistent data for stress and modest sexual function improvements. But you should know what you're actually buying: modest effects in specific populations, not a hormonal reset. Telehealth platforms like FormBlends that operate under prescriber oversight can evaluate whether something like testosterone therapy is clinically appropriate for you. That's a different conversation from herbs, and it starts with labs, not a TikTok recommendation.

One more thing: "it's not you, it's your hormones" is a comforting frame, but low libido is multifactorial. Relationship dynamics, sleep deprivation, depression, and yes, hormones all contribute. Writing it all off as a biochemical problem you can supplement your way out of may delay someone from getting care that would actually help.