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3 Natural, Evidence-Based Aphrodisiacs For Women

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3 Natural, Evidence-Based Aphrodisiacs For Women

According to the ancient Greeks, the apple represented abundance and fertility.  In some quarters, it was customary for a bride to eat an apple on her wedding night.  This was believed to ensure sexual desire, as well as fertility leading to babies.

You might think that’s all a silly superstition.  But Italian researchers just discovered women who eat an apple a day may in fact enjoy better sexual function.

Doctors in Trento, Italy, recruited 731 healthy sexually active Italian women, not complaining of any sexual disorders.  The women were aged 18 to 43.  Each woman completed the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) questionnaire.  The FSFI is designed to assess certain aspects of sexual functioning (e.g. sexual arousal, orgasm, satisfaction, pain) in clinical trials.

The participants also reported their daily apple consumption and their eating habits.  Based on their apple eating, the women were split into two groups.  One group ate at least an apple every day.  The other group did not eat apples regularly.

According to the researchers, the women who ate a daily apple scored significantly higher on the FSFI sexual function index.

How could an apple improve a woman’s sexual function?

The authors acknowledged studies showing a link between phytoestrogens, polyphenols, antioxidants and women’s sexual health.  Apples have an abundance of all three.

Phytoestrogens are weak plant compounds that have an estrogenic effect on the body.  Polyphenols and antioxidants have a positive effect on reducing inflammation and increasing circulation of the blood.

But it’s not just a daily apple that has this beneficial effect on women.

Previously Italian researchers found a daily glass or two of red wine also works.

They recruited 798 healthy women living in the Chianti area of Tuscany.  The women, aged 18 to 50, were divided into three groups.  The groups consisted of teetotalers; daily moderate drinkers of one to two glasses of red wine; or occasional drinkers or those taking more than 2 glasses of red wine or other alcohol per day.

They found that moderate red wine drinkers had significantly better sexual function.  They scored higher on the FSFI questionnaire for sexual desire, lubrication, and overall sexual function than the other two groups.

Like apples, red wine is rich in polyphenols and antioxidants.  In addition, it contains a high concentration of resveratrol which is actually a form of estrogen.

But the Italian researchers didn’t stop there.  Yet another team recruited 153 women around Milan in Northern Italy to report on sex and chocolate.  They found women who reported daily chocolate intake had significantly higher total FSFI scores as well as higher scores on sexual desire.

Like apples and red wine, chocolate is high in phytoestrogens, polyphenols and antioxidants.  Chocolate is also rich in magnesium which soothes nerves and relaxes muscles.  It also contains a compound called phenylethylamine which releases the same endorphins that flood the body during sex.

Apples, red wine and chocolate make a great recipe for better sex.  Maybe even better than sex?

Here’s how the way you’re born could affect your brain development

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C-section or natural?

Whether babies are born naturally or via caesarean section could have a lasting effect on how their brains develop, early findings from a study in the US have suggested. By analysing the growth of baby mice, scientists have identified different types of cell development based on how they were born.

When a baby is born, the brain naturally produces more cells than it needs before killing some off. Neuroscientists from Georgia State University looked at how brain cells developed in mice immediately after birth, and found increased rates of cell death in mice born via caesarean section compared to mice born vaginally. “We were struck by this peak of cell death right at birth,” Nancy Forger told Brain Decoder.

The research is still at the preliminary stage, but it collaborates to what we already know about the way the nervous system grows in the first few years of life. But why exactly would the two methods of birth have such different effects? It’s too early to say, but one possibility is that it’s connected to the way that our bacteria-based microbiomes are passed on to us by our mothers.

Depending on the birth method, these can come from vaginal microbiota or from skin-dwelling species, such as Lactobacillus and Staphylococcus, previous research has shown. Scientists think that this has a lasting effect on our immune system, and the researchers from Georgia State want to add brain development to that list as well.

They also found that the c-section mice were on average larger than their counterparts – which backs up earlier research into links between obesity and type of birth method – and quieter. If these same connections can be found in human babies, we might have to rethink our approach to caesarean sections: the next step is to try and confirm a link between the immune cells of the brain – called the microglia – and the rate at which cells die off.

During a normal labour process, babies are exposed to certain biological processes, such as a rush of hormones, that never kick in if labour doesn’t start. Scientists are now busy trying to work out exactly what the long-term effects of a c-section are and how we might be able to compensate for it using drugs administered after birth.

The researchers say a close look at the consequences of caesarean birth is necessary, with some 30 percent of babies born in the US delivered this way (in other countries, the rate is even higher). As the delivery method is both a personal and a medical decision for the mother, having the full facts available before a choice is made is important.