What is the Blue Pill?

The ‘blue pill’, or ‘little blue pill’ is a nickname given to Viagra, a medication for erectile dysfunction that is globally recognisable as a blue, diamond-shaped, pill. Viagra is the most popular medication for erectile dysfunction, and is perhaps one of the most well-known medications in the world because of its iconic design and use in popular culture (the ‘blue pill’ may also be used in reference to the movie “The Matrix”, and sometimes to ecstasy - MDMA - pills).

However, as “blue pill” or “little blue pill” are not trademarked brand names or a medical terms, these phrases are commonly used to market natural or herbal alternatives to Viagra.

Viagra

Viagra was the first erectile dysfunction medication discovered in 1989 and approved for treatment in the UK in 1998. It’s an effective treatment, helping 74% of men who try it to get and keep erections hard enough for sex.

Since Viagra was first patented by Pfizer, it has been referred to as the ‘blue pill’. This is because the blue diamond shape design of Viagra pills has been part of the branding for this treatment and is often used to distinguish it from other medications.

If you want to buy this treatment, you can buy Viagra online from services like Superdrug Online Doctor - you'll just need to follow a few simple steps.

Sildenafil

Sildenafil is the generic version of Viagra. It has the same active ingredient as Viagra, sildenafil citrate but since sildenafil is not branded, it’s usually cheaper to buy than Viagra. While a lot of manufacturers don’t colour Sildenafil tablets, some may add blue to help reinforce the idea that it’s the same treatment as Viagra.

BlueChew is a blue chewable form of sildenafil (the active ingredient in Viagra) available in the US, which is also sometimes marketed as "the blue pill". Unlike Viagra, BlueChew is not made by Pfizer, but by a company called BlueChew. BlueChew offers an online service similar to online erectile dysfunction services in the UK, but it is not available here yet.

The service is a monthly prescription service that doesn’t offer one-off orders for treatment. They offer 30mg and 45mg sildenafil and 6mg and 9mg doses of tadalafil (the active ingredient in Cialis). These are not standard medication doses offered in the UK.

Similar to many medications, there is a chance that Viagra could give you side effects.

The most commonly reported problems affecting up to 1 in 10 people are:

• headache (affects more than 1 in 10)
• flushing (skin redness or feeling hot)
• stomach ache (dyspepsia)
• blocked nose (nasal congestion)
• dizziness
• nausea
• hot flushes
• changes to sight, including seeing things in blue (cyanopsia) and blurred vision

There’s no way of predicting which side effects you may get, however your medical history, current medical conditions, and your lifestyle may be a contributing factor. You may also not get any side effects.

There are also a few less common side effects that you might experience from taking the blue pill:

Uncommon side effects (affect up to 1 in 100 people):

• Inflammation of the nose (rhinitis)
• Sinus congestion
• Drowsiness
• Reduced feeling of touch (hypoesthesia)
• Infection of the eye (conjunctivitis)
• Hypersensitive immune reactions, like allergies or rashes
• Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
• Heart palpitations (heart pounding in your chest) and fast heart rhythm (tachycardia)
• Chest pain
• Pain in the muscles (myalgia)
• Skin rashes
• Blood in the urine (haematuria)

Rare side effects (affect up to 1 in 1000 people):

• Seizures
• Glaucoma
• Seeing double (diplopia)
• Pupils looking big (mydriasis)
• Deafness
• Heart attack
• Abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmia)
• Throat tightness
• Steven-Johnson syndrome (SJS)
• Serious allergic reaction (anaphylaxis)
• A persistent, painful erection (priapism)
• Irritability

The patient information leaflet for Viagra includes the full list of possible Viagra side effects. If you’re concerned about any of these side effects, please contact your GP.

Some companies sell products meant to be herbal equivalents of Viagra. They usually contain combinations of herbal ingredients and claim to have the same effect as Viagra but these aren't licensed medications with active ingredients, like Viaga. These proucts are not proven to work, and can be dangerous if not properly regulated.

Some brands of herbal Viagra in the UK are:

• Nooky Pills
• Xcitrex

Nooky Pills

Sold by popular vendors like the highstreet shop Poundland and by sellers online, these are herbal pills marketed as a Viagra alternative. These tablets are coloured blue the same as Viagra but contain no medication, just a combination of herbal supplements. Since they don’t have medication in them and aren't proven to work, they’re unlikely to improve erections.

Xcitrex

Xcitrex is the name of a herbal product produced by a company based in Colombia, and sold online as a natural treatment for erectile dysfunction.

It’s marketed as a herbal food supplement for men, made with natural ingredients. Xcitrex comes in 2 different forms – a blue tablet (made to look like Viagra) and a yellow pill (made to look like Cialis, another ED treatment).

Despite the way Xcitrex looks, it doesn’t contain the same active ingredient as Viagra or other licensed erectile dysfunction medications. The website suggests taking it every 3 days, 90 minutes before sexual activity. Again, this is to make it seem more like real Viagra.

Like the ‘blue pill’ there’s a few other names used to refer to different erectile dysfunction treatments. Here are some of the most common nicknames:

Erection pills

Erection pills are a broad term used to describe pills used to help people get and keep erections. This can include legitimate medications like Viagra, but may also refer to herbal products not proven to work.

The orange pill and weekend pill

These are both names for Cialis. Like Viagra, Cialis is a branded medication and the orange colouring is part of the brand. Also like Viagra, some generic and herbal pills may be coloured orange to imitate Cialis.

Cialis is also called the weekend pill because the effects can last up to 36 hours, i.e. the best part of a weekend. This makes Cialis the longest lasting erectile dysfunction treatment.

Generic and over the counter Viagra

As mentioned above, Sildenafil is the generic version of Viagra. It’s often referred to as ‘generic Viagra’ since Viagra was available first and Sildenafil was only made available when Pfizer’s patent on Viagra ran out in 2013.

More recently in 2017, Viagra became available to buy from pharmacies without a prescription. This over the counter version of Viagra is called Viagra Connect and is also manufactured exclusively by Pfizer.