Forskolin

Coleus forskohlii · Plectranthus barbatus

Snapshot

Indications	Contraindications
Weight management^{1, 2} Adjunct IOP lowering in glaucoma^{3, 4}	Polycystic kidney disease⁵ Pregnancy or nursing⁶

Forskolin is a root extract of Coleus forskohlii (also Plectranthus barbatus), used for centuries in Ayurvedic medicine, though Memorial Sloan Kettering notes that clinical studies of its safety and effectiveness are lacking⁵. It activates adenylate cyclase and raises intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), which underlies the interest in weight management, glaucoma, and asthma⁵. Typical users are overweight adults seeking body composition changes and glaucoma patients already on topical therapy.

In overweight women, a 2005 placebo-controlled trial found no weight loss, though the extract tended to mitigate weight gain. Oral forskolin did not improve lung function in adults with mild to moderate asthma in a single-blind trial against inhaled beclomethasone⁷. There are 574 products listing forskolin, sampled as capsule extracts; see Form comparison.

The reason behind the most consequential caution: Memorial Sloan Kettering reports forskolin may contribute to cyst enlargement in polycystic kidney disease⁵. For antihypertensives and anticoagulants, it lists additive effects in laboratory work with clinical relevance not yet determined, and US product labels ask anticoagulant users to proceed cautiously⁶.

Last updated October 17, 2026. Read how we make monographs.

In the full monograph

38 sources, 22 studies

When to useThe situations practitioners use it for, each with the reason and the study behind it.
SafetyWho should avoid it, who needs extra care, and the side effects reported in studies.
InteractionsThe medicines and supplements it interacts with, the effect of each, and what labeling says to watch.
Protocol notesThe doses used in studies, how and when they were taken, and how the forms on the market compare.
How it worksWhat it is and how it works in the body, in plain terms.
Published studiesThe studies behind each use, popular claims checked against them, and trials still under way.
Word of mouthWhat patients and practitioners report online, kept separate from the clinical evidence.
Clinical perspectiveA closing read of where the evidence is solid, where it is thin, and what has not been studied.

Snapshot

In the full monograph

Sources