Home Ingredients Go-Less® (Pumpkin Seed and Soybean Germ Extract)
Kidney/Urinary TractWomen's Health

Go-Less® (Pumpkin Seed and Soybean Germ Extract)

Cucurbita pepo
Evidence Level
Limited
1 Clinical Trial
3 Documented Benefits
2/5 Evidence Score

Go-Less® is a branded blend of a water-soluble pumpkin seed (Cucurbita pepo) extract and a soy germ (Glycine max) extract, sold to support normal bladder control and urinary comfort. Its evidence is a single 12-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in 120 women, funded by the ingredient's manufacturer; in that trial the placebo group also improved on several of the same measures. The blend has not been tested in men, and it has not been retested by an independent group. Frequent, urgent or leaking urination can have medical causes, so persistent symptoms are worth having checked by a clinician.

Studied Dose 500 mg of the combined extract twice daily, 1,000 mg per day, for 12 weeks, the regimen used in the only trial of the blend.
Active Compound Water-soluble pumpkin seed (Cucurbita pepo) extract combined with soy germ (Glycine max) extract, which supplies soy isoflavones.

Benefits

Bladder control

In a 12-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of this blend in 120 women, the supplemented group improved from its own starting point on urination frequency, urgency, leakage episodes, night-time urination and an overall symptom scale. The placebo group also improved significantly on three of those same measures. The published summary reports each group against its own baseline rather than a head-to-head comparison, the trial was funded by the ingredient's manufacturer, and it has not been repeated independently.

Supported by Trial 1

Urinary comfort

Pumpkin seed has a long history of traditional use for urinary comfort. Note that the branded blend itself has only been trialled in women; there is no trial of this blend in men, and in a one-year placebo-controlled trial in 1,431 men, a different pumpkin seed extract taken at the same 500 mg twice-daily dose was no better than placebo.

Supported by Trial 1

Soy germ isoflavones

The soy germ component supplies isoflavones, plant compounds with weak oestrogen-like activity. A role for them in the tissues involved in bladder control is a proposal rather than a finding: the only trial of this blend measured urinary symptoms and quality of life, not pelvic tissue.

Supported by Trial 1

Mechanism of action

1

Bladder-muscle support

Pumpkin seed contains phytosterols, and these have been proposed as the constituents responsible for its effects on urinary comfort. The mechanism is unresolved: investigators who tested pumpkin seed oil in overactive bladder report that the molecules responsible remain to be identified.

2

Isoflavone support

Soy germ isoflavones bind weakly to oestrogen receptors. An oestrogen-related effect on urinary tissue is a hypothesis for how the soy component might contribute; it has not been demonstrated in people taking this blend.

Clinical trials

1
Pumpkin Seed and Soy Germ Blend in Women, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial
PubMed

Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of the pumpkin seed plus soy germ extract blend, 500 mg twice daily for 12 weeks. (Shim B, Jeong H, Lee S, Hwang S, Moon B, Storni C. Journal of Functional Foods 2014;8:111-117, doi:10.1016/j.jff.2014.03.010. Not indexed in PubMed.) Funded by Frutarom Switzerland Ltd., which sells the ingredient; one of the authors worked for the company.

120 women aged 35 to 70 with overactive bladder-related voiding dysfunction. No men were enrolled.

After 12 weeks the supplemented group improved significantly from baseline on urination frequency, urgency, incontinence frequency, maximum urgency score, night-time urination frequency and an overall symptom scale. The placebo group also improved significantly on urination frequency, incontinence frequency and the symptom scale. No adverse events or abnormal safety laboratory values were reported in either group.

Side effects and drug interactions

Common Potential side effects

Well tolerated in the 12-week trial of the blend, which reported no adverse events and no abnormal safety laboratory values in 120 women. Published human use of this blend does not extend beyond 12 weeks.
Mild digestive upset is occasionally reported.
Discontinue if any unusual reaction occurs.

Important Drug interactions

Soy allergy: this ingredient contains soy germ, so avoid it if allergic. Allergy to pumpkin and other Cucurbitaceae seeds is uncommon but documented, and is also a reason to avoid it.
Hormone-sensitive conditions: the soy germ supplies isoflavones with weak oestrogen-like activity. Anyone with a history of breast, uterine or ovarian cancer, endometriosis or uterine fibroids, and anyone taking tamoxifen or an aromatase inhibitor, should ask a doctor before using it.
Thyroid medicine: soy can reduce absorption of levothyroxine, so separate the doses by at least four hours and have thyroid levels rechecked if you start or stop this supplement. Not recommended in pregnancy or while breastfeeding, where this isoflavone dose has not been studied. Tell your doctor about persistent or new urinary symptoms, blood in the urine, pain, or difficulty passing urine, so that other causes can be ruled out.

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Frequently asked questions about Go-Less® (Pumpkin Seed and Soybean Germ Extract)

What is Go-Less?

Go-Less® is a branded blend of a water-soluble pumpkin seed (Cucurbita pepo) extract and a soy germ (Glycine max) extract, sold to support normal bladder control and urinary comfort.

What is Go-Less used for?

Go-Less is researched primarily for Kidney/Urinary Tract and Women's Health. In a 12-week randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of this blend in 120 women, the supplemented group improved from its own starting point on urination frequency, urgency, leakage episodes, night-time urination and an overall s…

What is the recommended dosage of Go-Less?

The clinically studied dose is 500 mg of the combined extract twice daily, 1,000 mg per day, for 12 weeks, the regimen used in the only trial of the blend. Always follow the product label and check with a healthcare provider for personal advice.

Is Go-Less safe, and does it have side effects?

For most healthy adults, Go-Less is well tolerated at studied doses. Reported effects can include: Well tolerated in the 12-week trial of the blend, which reported no adverse events and no abnormal safety laboratory values in 120 women. Published human use of this blend does not extend beyond 12 weeks. Mild digestive upset is occasionally reported. It may also interact with some medications. Go-Less is not right for everyone, so check with a healthcare provider first if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, have a medical condition, or take prescription medication.

Does Go-Less interact with any medications?

Possible interactions include: Soy allergy: this ingredient contains soy germ, so avoid it if allergic. Allergy to pumpkin and other Cucurbitaceae seeds is uncommon but documented, and is also a reason to avoid it. If you take prescription medication, check with a pharmacist or doctor before using it.

How strong is the scientific evidence for Go-Less?

NutraSmarts rates the evidence for Go-Less as Limited (2 out of 5). It is backed by 1 clinical trial and 3 cited references summarized on this page. A higher rating reflects more, larger, and better-designed human studies.

References(3 citations)

Evidence ratings on NutraSmarts are based on the totality of human clinical research, with emphasis on randomized controlled trials, meta-analyses, and systematic reviews. The references below directly support claims made throughout this page.

  1. Nishimura M, Ohkawara T, Sato H, et al. Pumpkin Seed Oil Extracted From Cucurbita maxima Improves Urinary Disorder in Human Overactive Bladder. J Tradit Complement Med. 2014;4(1):72-4..PubMedUsed to support: Open-label, uncontrolled study in 45 Japanese volunteers (25 men, 20 women, aged 41 to 80) who took 10 g per day of pumpkin seed oil from Cucurbita maxima for 12 weeks; Overactive Bladder Symptom Score fell significantly from baseline at 6 and 12 weeks. Important differences from the product described here: the material was a whole pressed seed oil rather than a water-soluble extract, from a different pumpkin species (C. maxima, not C. pepo), at roughly ten times the daily amount, and it contained no soy germ. There was no placebo group and no randomization, results were not reported separately for men and women, and the investigators describe their findings as preliminary.
  2. Vahlensieck W, Theurer C, Pfitzer E, Patz B, Banik N, Engelmann U. Effects of pumpkin seed in men with lower urinary tract symptoms due to benign prostatic hyperplasia in the one-year, randomized, placebo-controlled GRANU study. Urol Int. 2015;94(3):286-95. doi:10.1159/000362903..PubMedUsed to support: The largest randomized, partially blinded, placebo-controlled trial of pumpkin seed for urinary symptoms in men: 1,431 men aged 50 to 80 received ground pumpkin seed 5 g twice daily, a pumpkin seed extract 500 mg twice daily, or placebo for 12 months. The extract, a different preparation from the one in this blend and without any soy component, did not differ from placebo in response rate; the whole ground seed produced a modest difference (58.5% versus 47.3% responders). The authors conclude the findings still need to be substantiated in a confirmatory study or systematic review.
  3. Shim B, Jeong H, Lee S, Hwang S, Moon B, Storni C. A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial of a product containing pumpkin seed extract and soy germ extract to improve overactive bladder-related voiding dysfunction and quality of life. Journal of Functional Foods. 2014;8:111-117. doi: 10.1016/j.jff.2014.03.010.SourceUsed to support: The only randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of this pumpkin seed and soy germ blend: 120 women aged 35 to 70 with overactive bladder took 500 mg twice daily for 12 weeks. The supplemented group improved significantly from baseline on urination frequency, urgency, incontinence frequency, maximum urgency score, night-time urination frequency and an overall symptom scale; the placebo group also improved significantly on urination frequency, incontinence frequency and the symptom scale. No adverse events or abnormal safety values occurred. The study was funded by Frutarom Switzerland Ltd., which sells the ingredient, and one of the authors worked for the company.