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Common scents??
By The Love Doc | June 10, 2007
Here is my response to a question directed to the moderator of Lovecraft’s webstore (click here for a summary of the main points at the bottom of the page):
Why don’t you carry Spanish Fly, pheromones, Viagra and other aphrodisiacs?
First, let’s cut to the chase: There are no known true aphrodisiacs for humans (substances or agents that are supposed to make you horny). Simple.
Now let’s get to each type of substance mentioned by the writer.
SPANISH FLY: Any sex store that sells this product is either ripping you off by KNOWINGLY selling something that is proven to have NO EFFECT (e.g., Spanish Fliege); or is selling the real thing, which can actually KILL YOU (or at least make you really sick) if ingested as you are told to do.
PHEROMONES: Although pheromones clearly play a role in animals’ sex lives, and they do seem to have some kind of effect in humans, we still have no idea what role pheromones play in human sexuality. And although some researchers claim to show effects of pheromones on human sexual behaviour,
McCoy, N. L., & Pitino, L. (2002). Pheromonal influences on sociosexual behaviour in young women.Physiology & Behavior, 75, 367–75.
Levin, R. J. (2004). Smells and tastes—their putative influence on sexual activity in humans. Sexual and Relationship Therapy, 19, 1468-1479.
Winman, A. (2004). Do perfume additives termed human pheromones warrant being termed pheromones? Physiology & Behavior, 82, 697– 701.
For instance, the researcher making the most claims about pheromones (Winnifred Cutler) just happens to be the president of a company that manufactures and sells pheromones! Other researchers making similar claims also work with Cutler. Ya think there might be just a teeny bit of bias in their research??
Even the famous finding that women who live together or are in close contact for extended periods of time end up with their periods synchronizing–supposedly due to pheromones–1has been attacked by many credible sources regarding its methodology and assumptions.
So, anyone selling pheromones or colognes/perfumes which supposedly contain pheromones is intentionally or unwittingly ripping you off.
BTW, AXE and TAG have pulled off such a marketing coup by fooling so many men into thinking that somehow these colognes attract women and act as an aphrodisiac, without even claiming that they contain pheromones! I’m embarrassed to be a man sometimes…
VIAGRA: This medication will NOT make you horny. It’s a vasodilator, which means it expands the man’s blood vessels to allow blood to flow to the genitals. But he still needs to become horny by himself (and some form of mental and/or physical stimulation) for Viagra to work.
OTHER FOODS AND DRUGS THAT ARE SUPPOSEDLY APHRODISIACS: Some foods and drugs do affect your physiology, but none of them meets the actual criteria of an aphrodisiac. In all cases, any supposed aphrodisiac effect reflects your interpretation of the physiological effects you are experiencing, the context, and your willingness to experience/act on the physiological effects in a sexual manner.
Even the world’s first “urban legend,” that oysters are an aphrodisiac, has no merit. Wikipedia recently linked an article from 2005 claiming that oysters have been proven to be an aphrodisiac and proclaimed this to be true (wikipedia has subsequently been edited). A review of academic literature search engines revealed that this study has never been published. Moreover, as reported on MSNBC, “the research merely confirmed the presence of the two chemicals [that help release testosterone and estrogen], not what they might do; it remains unclear how much of either would be needed to raise hormonal levels in humans. In part, that’s because most research tying the two compounds to arousal was based on lab rats.” Also, “We did not make any proof or correlation with the libido,†says George Fisher, who published the paper [who also said] “We did not evaluate any oysters.†(Instead, they studied 3 types of mussels.)
Again, people who mistakenly believe that oysters (or chocolate or nutmeg or any other food) are making them horny are merely misinterpreting any bodily reaction they may be having to that food. This is called the PLACEBO EFFECT, which is when we react to a food, drug, or anything else in a way that we think we should, even though it really has no chemical effect. This is the same when we “heal” a hurt child by kissing it. Or, the next time someone has a headache, give them 2 vitamins and tell them they’re aspirin, and they will most likely find the pain disappear or decrease significantly.
TESTOSTERONE: This hormone is necessary for us to have a sex drive, but it is NOT an aphrodisiac.
So, bottom line: The only thing we we might consider a true aphrodisiac is the one thing we all have: our MIND/BRAIN.
Also, if you want to increase your sex drive or horniness naturally, make sure to stay healthy and to exercise regularly, even if it just means walking a lot each day. This is because our sexual response boils down to blood flow. So, the healthier you are and the more your heart is pumping blood, the sexier and hornier you feel and your sexual response is enhanced.
Here is a summary of the main points:
- There are no known true aphrodisiacs for humans
- Anyone selling Spanish Fly (or similar product) is either ripping you off by KNOWINGLY selling something that is proven to have NO EFFECT; or is selling the real thing, which can actually KILL YOU
- We have no idea what role pheromones play in human sexuality
- The main researcher of human pheromones is the president of a company that makes/sells this product and has published some pretty sketchy studies with other supposed researchers
- Viagra won’t make you horny
- The only thing we might be able to consider an “aphrodisiac” is the mind/brain
- Staying healthy and exercising regularly will enhance your sex on all levels.
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Please send your questions to lovecraft72@gmail.com
1 McClintock, M. K. (1971). Menstrual synchrony and suppression. Nature, 229, 244-245.
Topics: Sex Advice |
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