Testosterone boosters in Canada

How boosters are regulated in Canada

• They are natural health products. A licensed product carries an eight-digit Natural Product Number (NPN) on the label. Health Canada says a product with an NPN "has been assessed for quality, safety and efficacy". Licences can be looked up in the Licensed Natural Health Products Database.
• An NPN covers the claim on the label, not every claim made online. The evidence Health Canada requires depends on the claim, and a traditional-use claim rests on the traditional healing system rather than on modern trials. An NPN does not mean the product raises testosterone unless that is the licensed claim.
• No testosterone, by law. The Natural Health Products Regulations exclude every substance on the controlled substance schedules, and anything sold on prescription, so testosterone cannot be a natural health product.

What the evidence shows, ingredient by ingredient

Looking at products rather than ingredients: a study of 50 products found by a search for "testosterone booster" counted 109 ingredients. Only 24.8% had data showing a rise in testosterone, 10.1% had data showing a fall, and 61.5% had no data at all; some products exceeded the upper intake level for zinc, vitamin B3 or magnesium. A 2024 systematic review of 52 studies covering 27 proposed boosters concluded that "most fail to increase total testosterone".

Ashwagandha carries a safety note of its own: Denmark banned it in April 2023, saying a safe dose could not be set from the available data, as the McGill Office for Science and Society reported.

What Health Canada has found in unlicensed products

• A product labelled "testosterone booster" containing sildenafil, the active ingredient of a prescription erectile dysfunction drug, seized from retail stores in 2023 (Health Canada advisory first posted 21 March 2023).
• A sexual enhancement product containing testosterone propionate, an anabolic steroid, together with sildenafil and tadalafil, seized in Toronto on 21 October 2020.
• Workout supplements containing SARMs, drugs not authorized in Canada for any use, which Health Canada says can cause heart attack, stroke and liver damage (advisory last updated 9 July 2025).

The Canadian Urological Association also notes case reports of "severe adverse events from T-boosters that contain banned/illicit substances, including steroids". A licensed NPN on the label is the first thing to check.

What does change testosterone

• Weight loss. A 2013 meta-analysis of 24 studies found total testosterone rose by about 2.9 nmol/L with a low-calorie diet and 8.7 nmol/L after bariatric surgery, more with greater weight loss. The European Academy of Andrology puts lifestyle change and weight reduction first in overweight and obese men.
• Sleep. One week of five-hour nights lowered daytime testosterone by 10 to 15% in young men.
• Exercise. The Canadian Urological Association says exercise, including resistance training, brings "relatively modest increases".
• Treatment of confirmed deficiency. Where testosterone is low and the deficiency is confirmed, treatment is prescribed; how that is assessed is on the assessment page, and what the levels mean is on the testosterone levels page.

Common questions

Do testosterone boosters work?

Mostly not. A 2024 systematic review of 52 studies covering 27 proposed boosters found that most fail to increase total testosterone, and a study of 50 booster products found that only 24.8% of their 109 ingredients had data showing a rise, while 10.1% had data showing a fall. The Canadian Urological Association states that boosters "cannot be recommended by health practitioners".

Can you buy testosterone supplements over the counter in Canada?

Not testosterone itself. Testosterone is a controlled drug available only on a prescription. What is sold over the counter as a testosterone booster is a natural health product, and the Natural Health Products Regulations exclude any substance on the controlled substance schedules, so a legally sold booster cannot contain testosterone.

Are testosterone boosters safe?

Licensed products carry an eight-digit Natural Product Number (NPN), which means Health Canada assessed them for the claim on the label. Unlicensed products are a different matter: Health Canada has seized products sold as testosterone boosters or sexual enhancers that contained undeclared sildenafil, tadalafil or testosterone propionate, and workout supplements containing unapproved SARMs.

What raises testosterone naturally?

Weight loss has the best evidence: a 2013 meta-analysis found total testosterone rose by about 2.9 nmol/L with a low-calorie diet and 8.7 nmol/L after bariatric surgery. Sleep loss lowers it; one week of five-hour nights lowered daytime testosterone by 10 to 15% in young men. The Canadian Urological Association says exercise brings relatively modest increases.