Tongkat Ali

Eurycoma longifolia, commonly called tongkat ali, Malaysian ginseng or long jack, is a slender shrub in the family Simaroubaceae, native to Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Borneo and Sumatra. The root has been used in the traditional medicine of Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam for centuries, boiled in water and drunk as a tonic; the flower and fruit are used for dysentery, and the root for malaria and fever. The names tongkat ali and pasak bumi are also used for Polyalthia bullata, a similar species with darker bark and root. It is sold as a bodybuilding supplement, though no clinical evidence shows it works. Harvesting uproots the whole plant, which has raised concern over sustainability.