Aphrodisiacs: deception or panacea?

Alex Volgin, Be Healthy magazine

Everyone wanted to become a sexual giant at least once in their life. It is desirable, of course, that nothing else should be done for this. I ate something – and now all the actors and actresses of the porn industry are envying you in chorus. The most interesting thing is that such products "for eating" are advertised and sold with might and main. Naturally, sellers refer to the experience of millennia, to the effect proven by many generations. And the name is appropriate – aphrodisiacs, on behalf of the ancient goddess of love and beauty Aphrodite.

Let's try to figure it out: how it works. Or why it doesn't work. And what to do to make it work.

What is it?Aphrodisiacs are foods or beverages that can cause or increase sexual desire (libido).

 The list of alleged sexual stimulants includes anchovies and celery, licorice and lard, scallops and Spanish fly, as well as many other interesting things. We emphasize that aphrodisiacs are considered to be "traditional" foods that are more or less regularly present in the national cuisines of various peoples. Dietary supplements (dietary supplements) are not such.

Dozens of books and articles have been written about aphrodisiacs, hundreds of topics have been created on Internet forums, thousands of comments have been left in Internet diaries. It helps someone, it doesn't help someone, only a certain product works on someone, nothing works at all on someone.

The American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) believes that aphrodisiacs are more a part of human history, folklore, than a medical phenomenon. In 1989, the FDA stated that there was no scientific evidence that any of the aphrodisiacs sold could be used to boost libido.

Despite this warning, as well as the information that some aphrodisiacs are not only ineffective, but sometimes dangerous, people continue to look for a magic drug that will make them sexually irresistible.

According to the gimlet principleThere is no clear and generally accepted classification of aphrodisiacs, they can be divided into groups only very approximately.

The first group has a legendary reputation. Everyone knows, for example, the sexual records of rabbits. It is believed that rabbit breeding products, as well as extracts from the genitals of rabbits, should have appropriate properties. The same applies, for example, to goats. And bovine testicles are still an indispensable attribute of Mexican cuisine, they are even added to cocktails.

The second group is similar in physiological action. Chili, curry and other spices increase the heart rate, increase sweating. The same thing happens during sexual arousal. If the final manifestations are similar, then the other effects must be similar!

The third group is mysterious and mystical. A classic example is chocolate. Until it became publicly available, what properties were not attributed to it. Including aphrodisiac.

The fourth group is "in the image and likeness". Many peoples believe that an object resembling the genitals in appearance should also enhance sexual function. Rhino horn is a classic "male" version, oysters are a classic "female" version. But the most famous aphrodisiac of this group is ginseng root. In its shape, it is very similar to the human body, so there are almost more myths about ginseng than about all the other aphrodisiacs combined.

Death for Love"Spanish fly" (cantharidin) is perhaps the most legendary aphrodisiac.
And the most dangerous. Cantharidin is the strongest irritating poison. Basically, irritation spreads to the genitourinary system and is expressed in a rush of blood to the relevant organs and a feeling of arousal. However, the liver, the gastrointestinal tract, and the central nervous system suffer. Various complications are possible, the easiest of which is scarring of the urethra (narrowing of the urethra). But a fatal outcome is also possible.

How to make a person feel good? First make it bad, and then return it as it was. Approximately the same principle applies to all aphrodisiacs. They partially restore the lost functions, but do not enhance the normal ones.

Let's look at examples. Rhino horn "works" only in its geographical area. The fact is that it contains a large amount of calcium and phosphorus. With a shortage of these trace elements (which is typical for those areas of Africa where rhinos live), the horn can really significantly improve overall physical well-being. Well, sexual functions, as a consequence. So the rhinoceros horn will help Africans to increase libido, but for residents of developed countries, the effect of it will be zero.

The same goes for oysters. Aphrodite, who gave the name to aphrodisiacs, came from the sea. Oysters, like seafood, should be a very powerful tool. And they can really help with zinc deficiency in the body. The mechanism is still the same: the restoration of normal working capacity and, as a result, normal sexual activity. If there is a zinc deficiency in the body, oysters will increase libido, if there is enough of it, nothing will change.

Ginseng, chocolate, lemongrass – these products have a mild stimulating effect. They act as restorative, helping to restore the strength lost for one reason or another. The principle of operation is preserved: the normal functioning of the whole organism is restored – libido is also restored.

We should not forget about such a powerful effect as a placebo. If a person sincerely believes that the peppered testicles of a mountain goat, fried in mustard oil on a full moon, will make a sexual giant out of him, there is a high probability that this will happen. Strictly speaking, even polyurethane soles can be fried with a similar effect in engine oil, if you convince a person that it will definitely work.

It is clear that in advanced cases, for example, extreme exhaustion or the presence of any diseases directly or indirectly affecting the reproductive system, no aphrodisiacs will help.

Shakespeare knows bestAt all times, alcohol was considered a "love drink".

It does not directly enhance sexual functions, but it can improve mood. No wonder it is sometimes called "social lubricant".

People drink for various reasons, for example, in order to overcome shyness, shyness and self-doubt. And since sexual problems can be directly related to these problems, alcohol, liberating a person, becomes an aphrodisiac. In fact, alcohol only removes some internal prohibitions. However, this is not always a blessing. For some women, even small doses of alcohol "blows the roof" completely, and the morning passes in vain attempts to remember what happened, with whom and how many times.

Alcohol does not bring anything good to men either. According to its pharmacological effect, ethyl alcohol belongs to depressants. It is clear that its "overwhelming" effect extends to the sexual sphere. At the same time, the "Shakespeare effect" is often observed. No, not in the sense that a man begins to write brilliant plays in English. The term is associated with a scene from the immortal tragedy Macbeth:

The gatekeeper: Yes, sir, we partied until the second roosters. And wine, sir, is the great evoker of three things.
McDuff: What are these three things wine particularly evokes?
Gatekeeper: Which ones, sir? Nose coloring, sleep and urine. Lust, sir, it causes and recalls. Causes desire, but eliminates fulfillment. Therefore, a strong hop can be said to be duplicitous with lust: it will create and destroy it; inflame and extinguish it; provoke and discourage it; give it fortitude and take away fortitude; in the end, with its duplicity, it puts it to sleep and, calling it a liar, puts it to bed and leaves.

The dose when there is a state of "wants, but can't" is strictly individual. Even for the same man, it can fluctuate depending on a lot of factors. Therefore, it is at least frivolous to consider alcohol an aphrodisiac.

You can't believe it.There are no studies proving that well–known aphrodisiacs - the notorious rhino horn, ginseng root or oysters - are able to enhance human sexual functions.

Moreover, most likely, it will never be possible to obtain evidence. The already mentioned placebo effect interferes, which is the most difficult stumbling block in this case.

"The mind is the most powerful aphrodisiac in existence," says John Renner, founder of the Consumer Health Information Research Institute. "It is very difficult to assess the real properties of a substance if a person has heard about it and believes that this substance is an aphrodisiac."

The same reason, apparently, will prevent the evaluation of substances that have shown some effects on animals. For example, yohimbine, obtained from the bark of an African tree, has been used for centuries in Africa and Western India precisely as an aphrodisiac. Yes, in animal experiments, he stimulated the nerve centers in the spinal cord responsible for erection. Yes, the FDA called the results of the preliminary studies "encouraging." But how to separate the real physiological effect from the psychological effect on people? And it is at least incorrect to introduce the drug into circulation just because it acted on animals…

Evidence of the effectiveness of aphrodisiacs in humans is isolated and subjective. In order for them to be scientific, it is necessary to use placebo control, a double–blind method – when neither the researchers themselves nor the subjects do not know what exactly they are being given - the test drug or a pacifier. There are practically no such studies.

Is there any research on aphrodisiacs at all? On the one hand, this term is found in more than 300 articles in PubMed. On the other hand, these are mainly studies of dietary supplements, as well as the results of animal experiments. For example, in the herbs on the basis of which some dietary supplements are made, natural analogues of sildenafil are found. Can this product be considered an aphrodisiac? Strictly speaking, no. Firstly, the herbs mentioned are not traditional food products. Secondly, sildenafil and its analogues act exclusively at the physiological level, providing only an erection, such substances do not affect libido. So it is quite possible to find yourself in a situation of "What are we worth? Who are we waiting for?".

Any whim for your moneyDespite the lack of scientific evidence of effectiveness and, most importantly, safety, "love drinks" in the widest range are sold by various scammers.

The same tactics are used as for "remedies-for-all-diseases": the main distribution is trade by mail and through online stores. The approximate income of sellers of aphrodisiacs is estimated at hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

In the west, the FDA sends warnings to such companies stating that if they do not stop "vparivanie", more effective measures will be taken against them. "Near-medical fraudsters, having received such a warning, prefer to immediately collect the proceeds and hide," says Joel Aronson, director of the FDA division dealing with non-traditional medicines. "They prefer not to engage in a legal battle with the Administration, as they understand the futility of a long and expensive litigation."

In our country, the distributors of aphrodisiacs do not get their hands on. It would be better to deal with dietary supplements here. Although, in fairness, it can be noted that many aphrodisiac substances in dietary supplements formulations are either prohibited for use at all, or one-component supplements cannot be made from them.

***

The famous sexologist Dr. Ruth Westheimer once said: "The most important sexual organ is located between the ears." Indeed, attraction originates in the head, and commands to various target organs also come from the brain. And you can also think with your head. And to understand that sexual problems are too diverse to try to solve them in any one universal way, for example, using aphrodisiacs.

However, there is one fairly universal way that allows you to avoid the appearance of these very problems. It is enough to observe the "principle of three fullness": full nutrition, full physical activity, full rest. In this scenario, no aphrodisiacs will be required.

Portal "Eternal youth" www.vechnayamolodost.ru19.12.2008