'Herbal' coffee meant to boost sex drive recalled after consumer death

Caffeine's ability to speed up the central nervous system makes it a powerful metabolism booster. "In addition, coffee beans provide antioxidants and real health value," says Amy Goodson, a registered dietitian for Texas Health Ben Hogan Sports Medicine. "Provided your cup is not laden with cream and syrup, coffee can be a great way to give you energy as well as some antioxidants." Coffee has been shown to improve energy levels during exercise, especially endurance activity, and help people work harder longer, which therefore burns more calories. Drinking coffee after a workout can also be beneficial. Consuming caffeine after exercise increased muscle glycogen by 66 percent in endurance athletes, enabling them to more quickly replenish energy stores used through exercise, according to a study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology. READ: How Gross is Your Coffee Maker?

Does a supposedly natural coffee that will improve your libido and sexual stamina using just herbs sound too good to be true? Well, it was. CaverFlo Natural Herbal Coffee, which promised to do just that, is being recalled after a consumer died after drinking it—and subsequent Food and Drug Administration tests found that the so-called "natural" coffee actually contained sildenafil and tadalafil, the same active ingredients that Viagra and Cialis, prescription drugs for erectile dysfunction, contain.

It's not clear what led to the consumer's death, the Consumerist reports. CaverFlo's website (which has apparently since been taken offline) marketed the coffee as "an absolutely all herbal beverage containing instant coffee and three herbs," all of which grow wild in Malaysia and have supposedly been used for centuries to boost sexual health.

The website didn't disclose the two active ingredients in the coffee, which is a big deal because those ingredients can dangerously interact with nitrates, which are found in some prescription drugs taken by men with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and heart disease.

The FDA says the coffee also may contain undeclared milk, which could cause an allergic reaction. Food Safety News has a picture of the coffee packet and instructions for what to do if you bought any.

(A deadly combination of legal beverages killed this teen.)

This article originally appeared on Newser: 'Herbal' Coffee to Boost Sex Drive Recalled After User's Death