Sex and drugs
Encyclopedia
Many drug
s, both legal and illegal, have side effects
which impact on the user's sexual functions. For example, the side effect of many legal antidepressant
s and antipsychotic
drugs is the reduction of sexual desire.
Some drugs, such as marijuana
and MDMA, increase sensual and erotic sensations, though MDMA may inhibit sexual intercourse itself by causing temporary erectile dysfunction
s.
Other drugs, such as alcohol, are notorious for being used to render unknowing victims unconscious or severely sedated and thus easy targets for sexual predators.
Perhaps the most common drug used is alcohol
. At low concentrations of blood alcohol, social inhibition
s are reduced, though in higher concentrations it can also inhibit performance. Many other drugs also inhibit sexual performance.
Because drug and alcohol use is commonly presented as an excuse for unacceptable behaviour, it is however necessary to treat the idea of a direct causal relation between drug use and unsafe sex with caution. Drugs may provide a socially acceptable excuse for engaging in sexual behaviours in which people may want to engage but perhaps know that they should not.
Tobacco use (e.g., cigarette smoking), also reduces sexual function, with the incidence of impotence being approximately 85 percent higher in male smokers compared to non-smokers.
Hormone therapies
can also change sexual arousal
levels, and levels of sexual aggression.
Since the partial cause of the refractory period
is the inhibition of dopamine
by an orgasm-induced secretion
of prolactin
, such potent dopamine receptor
agonist
s as cabergoline
may help achieve multiple orgasms as well as the retention of sexual arousal for longer periods. In theory, it can also help to preserve erection after orgasm.
A few drugs can actually increase sexual performance when used to treat erectile dysfunction
. These include sildenafil
(marketed as Viagra) and tadalafil
. Bremelanotide
appears to affect sexual desire
directly, making it the first scientifically recognized aphrodisiac
. This is also true of Melanotan II
which bremelanotide is based upon. Additionally, the alkyl nitrites (poppers
) have a long history of use as a sexual enhancement aid, going back about fifty years. According to the text "ISOBUTYL NITRITE and Related Compounds", many researchers agree that the alkyl nitrites may be a true aphrodisiac in the sense of promoting and enhancing sexual response.
Drug
A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...
s, both legal and illegal, have side effects
Adverse effect (medicine)
In medicine, an adverse effect is a harmful and undesired effect resulting from a medication or other intervention such as surgery.An adverse effect may be termed a "side effect", when judged to be secondary to a main or therapeutic effect. If it results from an unsuitable or incorrect dosage or...
which impact on the user's sexual functions. For example, the side effect of many legal antidepressant
Antidepressant
An antidepressant is a psychiatric medication used to alleviate mood disorders, such as major depression and dysthymia and anxiety disorders such as social anxiety disorder. According to Gelder, Mayou &*Geddes people with a depressive illness will experience a therapeutic effect to their mood;...
s and antipsychotic
Antipsychotic
An antipsychotic is a tranquilizing psychiatric medication primarily used to manage psychosis , particularly in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. A first generation of antipsychotics, known as typical antipsychotics, was discovered in the 1950s...
drugs is the reduction of sexual desire.
Some drugs, such as marijuana
Cannabis
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...
and MDMA, increase sensual and erotic sensations, though MDMA may inhibit sexual intercourse itself by causing temporary erectile dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction is sexual dysfunction characterized by the inability to develop or maintain an erection of the penis during sexual performance....
s.
Other drugs, such as alcohol, are notorious for being used to render unknowing victims unconscious or severely sedated and thus easy targets for sexual predators.
Perhaps the most common drug used is alcohol
Alcohol and sex
Alcohol consumption has a number of effects on sexual intercourse and sexual behavior. The effects of alcohol are a balance between its suppressive effects on sexual physiology, which will decrease sexual activity, and its suppression of psychological inhibitions, which will increase the desire for...
. At low concentrations of blood alcohol, social inhibition
Social inhibition
Social inhibition is a conscious or subconscious constraint by a person of behaviour of a social nature. The constraint may be in relation to behavior, appearance, or a subject matter for discussion, besides other matters. There are a number of reasons for social inhibitions, including that the...
s are reduced, though in higher concentrations it can also inhibit performance. Many other drugs also inhibit sexual performance.
Because drug and alcohol use is commonly presented as an excuse for unacceptable behaviour, it is however necessary to treat the idea of a direct causal relation between drug use and unsafe sex with caution. Drugs may provide a socially acceptable excuse for engaging in sexual behaviours in which people may want to engage but perhaps know that they should not.
Tobacco use (e.g., cigarette smoking), also reduces sexual function, with the incidence of impotence being approximately 85 percent higher in male smokers compared to non-smokers.
Hormone therapies
Hormone therapy
Hormone therapy, or hormonal therapy is the use of hormones in medical treatment. Treatment with hormone antagonists may also referred to as hormonal therapy...
can also change sexual arousal
Sexual arousal
Sexual arousal, or sexual excitement, is the arousal of sexual desire, during or in anticipation of sexual activity. Things that precipitate human sexual arousal are called erotic stimuli, or colloquially known as turn-ons. There are many potential stimuli, both physical or mental, which can cause...
levels, and levels of sexual aggression.
Since the partial cause of the refractory period
Refractory period (sex)
In sexuality, the refractory period is the recovery phase after orgasm during which it is physiologically impossible for an individual to have additional orgasms. Most men are unable to maintain or achieve an erection during this time, and many perceive a psychological feeling of "satiation" and...
is the inhibition of dopamine
Dopamine
Dopamine is a catecholamine neurotransmitter present in a wide variety of animals, including both vertebrates and invertebrates. In the brain, this substituted phenethylamine functions as a neurotransmitter, activating the five known types of dopamine receptors—D1, D2, D3, D4, and D5—and their...
by an orgasm-induced secretion
Secretion
Secretion is the process of elaborating, releasing, and oozing chemicals, or a secreted chemical substance from a cell or gland. In contrast to excretion, the substance may have a certain function, rather than being a waste product...
of prolactin
Prolactin
Prolactin also known as luteotropic hormone is a protein that in humans is encoded by the PRL gene.Prolactin is a peptide hormone discovered by Henry Friesen...
, such potent dopamine receptor
Dopamine receptor
Dopamine receptors are a class of metabotropic G protein-coupled receptors that are prominent in the vertebrate central nervous system . The neurotransmitter dopamine is the primary endogenous ligand for dopamine receptors....
agonist
Agonist
An agonist is a chemical that binds to a receptor of a cell and triggers a response by that cell. Agonists often mimic the action of a naturally occurring substance...
s as cabergoline
Cabergoline
Cabergoline , an ergot derivative, is a potent dopamine receptor agonist on D2 receptors. In vitro, rat studies show cabergoline has a direct inhibitory effect on pituitary lactotroph cells...
may help achieve multiple orgasms as well as the retention of sexual arousal for longer periods. In theory, it can also help to preserve erection after orgasm.
A few drugs can actually increase sexual performance when used to treat erectile dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction is sexual dysfunction characterized by the inability to develop or maintain an erection of the penis during sexual performance....
. These include sildenafil
Sildenafil
Sildenafil citrate, sold as Viagra, Revatio and under various other trade names, is a drug used to treat erectile dysfunction and pulmonary arterial hypertension . It was originally developed by British scientists and then brought to market by the US-based pharmaceutical company Pfizer...
(marketed as Viagra) and tadalafil
Tadalafil
Tadalafil is a PDE5 inhibitor, currently marketed in pill form for treating erectile dysfunction under the name Cialis; and under the name Adcirca for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension...
. Bremelanotide
Bremelanotide
Bremelanotide is a compound under drug development by Palatin Technologies as a treatment for hemorrhagic shock and reperfusion injury...
appears to affect sexual desire
Libido
Libido refers to a person's sex drive or desire for sexual activity. The desire for sex is an aspect of a person's sexuality, but varies enormously from one person to another, and it also varies depending on circumstances at a particular time. A person who has extremely frequent or a suddenly...
directly, making it the first scientifically recognized aphrodisiac
Aphrodisiac
An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire. The name comes from Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of sexuality and love. Throughout history, many foods, drinks, and behaviors have had a reputation for making sex more attainable and/or pleasurable...
. This is also true of Melanotan II
Melanotan II
Melanotan II developed at the University of Arizona is a synthetic analog of the naturally occurring melanocortin peptide hormone alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone that in usage has been shown to have melanogenesis and aphrodisiac effects in preliminary studies and clinical trials...
which bremelanotide is based upon. Additionally, the alkyl nitrites (poppers
Poppers
Poppers is a slang term for various alkyl nitrites inhaled for recreational purposes, particularly isopropyl nitrite and isobutyl nitrite , and now more rarely, butyl nitrite and amyl nitrite...
) have a long history of use as a sexual enhancement aid, going back about fifty years. According to the text "ISOBUTYL NITRITE and Related Compounds", many researchers agree that the alkyl nitrites may be a true aphrodisiac in the sense of promoting and enhancing sexual response.
See also
- Love potionLove potionLove potion may refer to:* In folklore, mythology, or works of fiction, a love potion may refer to a type of potion designed to create feelings of love towards a person* Lappish Hag's Love Potion, an alcoholic drink* The Love Potion, a painting...
s and aphrodisiacAphrodisiacAn aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire. The name comes from Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of sexuality and love. Throughout history, many foods, drinks, and behaviors have had a reputation for making sex more attainable and/or pleasurable...
s have been claimed to exist in many cultures at many different periods in history; there is little evidence that any of them actually worked. - There is a subculture of sexual activity involving methamphetamineMethamphetamineMethamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
users: see Methamphetamine and sex, Party and playParty and playParty and play , also known as a chemical session, chem session, or simply as partying, is a phenomenon and subculture of recreational drug users who play together sexually, either one-on-one or in groups....
. - Nitrite inhalants ("Poppers") are sometimes used as an adjunct to sex acts
- Drugs and prostitution often occur together, with some drug users becoming prostitutes to pay for their habit, and some prostitutes becoming drug users
- Alcohol and sexAlcohol and sexAlcohol consumption has a number of effects on sexual intercourse and sexual behavior. The effects of alcohol are a balance between its suppressive effects on sexual physiology, which will decrease sexual activity, and its suppression of psychological inhibitions, which will increase the desire for...
- Wine, women and songWine, women and songThe cliché "wine, women, and song" is a rhetorical figure of a triad or hendiatris. It describes a lifestyle or set of behaviors which are indulgent or pleasure-seeking...
- Post-SSRI sexual dysfunction
- Health effects of tobacco
- Viagra
External links
- "Sex Under the Influence" on antidepressants, alcohol, marijuana, and ecstasy from the University of California at Santa Barbara
- Marijuana and Sex: A Classic Combination