In traditional Chinese medicine, a tiger penis is said to have important therapeutic properties. However, there is no scientific proof that tiger penis can be used to treat any medical disorder. Furthermore, the demand for tiger parts exacerbates the endangered status of the tiger by providing a market for poachers. While tiger penis is consumed in parts of China and Southeast Asia, the consumption of tiger penis is often condemned by most countries and various environmental groups.
Health
The penis of a tiger when consumed is said to be a potent aphrodisiac and an effective treatment for erectile dysfunction. However, there is no scientific evidence to support the usage of tiger penis in the treatment of any disorder. This persistent folk belief has contributed to the poaching of tigers for their presumed benefits, the penis being just one of the tigers many medicinal assets. A very large underground market in China and other parts of Asia exists to keep up with constant demand for tiger parts. Medical studies conducted by scholars at the University of New South Wales and the University of Alaska claim that as the Chinese people are rapidly modernizing, more and more men are using sildenafil instead of folk remedies to treat erectile dysfunction. The researchers surveyed 256 Chinese men, aged 50 to 76, who sought treatment at a large TCM clinic in Hong Kong over their methods to treat impotence. Although the studies indicated that older men in China are finding sildenafil, a more effective treatment, they also indicated that they still resort to alternative treatments of ailments such as arthritis, indigestion and gout.
Cuisine
Tiger penis, deer penis, turtle penis, or bull penis is consumed in restaurants in parts of China and southeast Asia and is commonly offered as a soup delicacy. People have been known to spend up to $5700 on a particularly rare tiger penis dish, something that needed to be ordered months in advance. In the 1990s, dried tiger penis had been reported to have been sold at around $2500 in Singapore and Taiwan. The penis can be taken in soup, ground in wine, or soaked in rice. One method of preparation, particularly in the Mekong River Delta, is to place a dried tiger penis, with testicles still attached, into a bottle of French cognac or Chinese wine and let it soak for many weeks. Then, as it matures, the liquor is taken in sips every night.
