Editing Aphrodisiac (section)

==Types==
===Ambergris===
[[File:Ambergris.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|Ambergris]]
[[Ambergris]] is found in the gut of sperm whales. It is commonly used in Arab cultures as relief medication for headaches or as a performance enhancer.  The derived chemical [[ambrein]] increases testosterone concentrations, triggering sexual desire and sexual behavior, but in animal studies only.  Further research is needed to know the effects in humans.<ref name="Sandroni-2001" />

===Bufotenin===
[[Bufotenin]] is found in the skin and glands of toads belonging to the genus [[Bufo|{{em|Bufo}}]]. It is commonly used in the Caribbean and China. In the Caribbean, it is used as an aphrodisiac called 'Love Stone'; in China, it is used as a heart medication called ''Chan su''.<ref name="Sandroni-2001" /> Research shows that the toad skin secretion containing this compound can reduce a toad’s heart rate, but its effect on humans is unknown.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Abdel-Rahman |first=Mohamed A. |last2=Ahmed |first2=Sherifa Hamid |last3=Nabil |first3=Zohour I. |date=2010-03-01 |title=In vitro cardiotoxicity and mechanism of action of the Egyptian green toad Bufo viridis skin secretions |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0887233309002902 |journal=Toxicology in Vitro |volume=24 |issue=2 |pages=480–485 |doi=10.1016/j.tiv.2009.09.021 |issn=0887-2333}}</ref>

===Yohimbine===
[[File:Yohimbine structure.svg|thumb|upright=0.75|Yohimbine chemical structure]]
[[Yohimbine]] is a substance found in the bark of yohim trees in West Africa.<ref name="Bella-2014" /> It was traditionally used in West African cultures, in which the bark would be boiled and the resulting water drunk until it increased sexual desire.<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /> Yohimbine has been approved by the US [[Food and Drug Administration]] and can be prescribed for sexual dysfunction in the USA and Canada.<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /><ref name="Shamloul-2010" /> It is also found in over-the-counter health products.<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /> Yohimbine is an [[indole alkaloid]] and is an adrenoceptor antagonist. It affects the central nervous system, autonomic nervous system, and the penile tissue and vascular smooth muscle cells that are involved in penile erection and it is also used to treat physiologically impaired and psychogenic erectile dysfunction,<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /><ref name="Bella-2014" /> preferably in combination with other treatments.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wibowo |first=DNSA |last2=Soebadi |first2=DM |last3=Soebadi |first3=MA |date=2021 |title=Yohimbine as a treatment for erectile dysfunction: A systematic review and meta-analysis. |journal=Turkish Journal of Urology |volume=47 |issue=6 |pages=482-8 |via=PubMed}}</ref> Known adverse effects include nausea, anxiety, irregular heartbeats, and restlessness.<ref name="Bella-2014" />

===Horny goat weed===
[[Horny goat weed]] (''Epimedii herba'') is used in Chinese folk medicine.<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /> It was thought to be useful for treating medical conditions and improving sexual desire, sexual pleasure, and/or sexual behavior.<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /> Horny goat weed contains [[icariin]], a flavanol glycoside. Its exotic name comes from the tendency of goats in the region to seek out this weed. Once farmers saw its effects on the goat population they began to use it to increase the number of workers on their farms.<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /><ref name="Bella-2014" />

===Alcohol===
[[File:Ethanol-3D-balls.png|upright=0.75|thumb|right|A molecule of alcohol]]
[[Alcohol (drug)|Alcohol]] has traditionally been viewed as possessing aphrodisiac-like qualifies owing to its effect as a central nervous system depressant,<ref name="Shamloul-2010" /> as depressants can increase sexual desire and sexual behavior through disinhibition.<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" /><ref name="Shamloul-2010" /> Alcohol affects people both physiologically and psychologically, and it is therefore difficult to determine exactly how people experience its aphrodisiac effects (aphrodisiac qualities or the expectancy effect).<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" /> Alcohol taken in moderate quantities can elicit a positive increase in sexual desire, whereas larger quantities are associated with difficulties in reaching sexual pleasure.<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" /><ref>{{Cite web|last=Brown|first=Jessica|date=2019-02-14|title=Do aphrodisiacs really work?|url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190211-do-aphrodisiacs-really-work|url-status=live|access-date=2022-01-02|website=www.bbc.com|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519210407/https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190211-do-aphrodisiacs-really-work |archive-date=19 May 2020 }}</ref> As the porter in Shakespeare's ''[[Macbeth]]'' observes, "it provokes the desire, but it takes away the performance". Chronic alcohol consumption is related to sexual dysfunction.<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" />

===Cannabis===
{{See also|Cannabis and sex}}
[[Marijuana]] reports are mixed. Half of users claim an increase in sexual desire and sexual pleasure while the other half report no effect.<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" /> Consumption, individual sensitivity, and possibly marijuana strain, are factors that affect outcomes.<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" />

===Food===
Many cultures have turned to foods as sources of increasing sexual desire; however, significant research is lacking in the study of the aphrodisiac qualities of foods. Most claims can be linked to the placebo effect.<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" /> Misconceptions revolve around the visual appearance of these foods in relation to male and female genitalia ([[carrot]]s, [[banana]]s, [[oyster]]s, and the like).<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" /><ref name="Shamloul-2010" /> Other beliefs arise from the thought of consuming animal genitalia and absorbing their properties (e.g. [[cow cod soup]] in [[Jamaica]] and [[Balut (food)|balut]] in the [[Philippines]]).<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /> [[Korean bug]] is a popular aphrodisiac in China, Korea, and Southeast Asia, either eaten alive or in gelatin form.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Lee JK, Tan RB, Chung E | title = Erectile dysfunction treatment and traditional medicine-can East and West medicine coexist? | journal = Translational Andrology and Urology | volume = 6 | issue = 1 | pages = 91–100 | date = February 2017 | pmid = 28217454 | pmc = 5313309 | doi = 10.21037/tau.2016.11.13 | doi-access = free }}</ref> The caterpillar fungus (''[[Ophiocordyceps sinensis]]'') is used as an aphrodisiac in China.<ref name="Lu-2023">{{cite book |author=Lu, D. |title=The Global Circulation of Chinese Materia Medica, 1700-1949: A Microhistory of the Caterpillar Fungus |series=Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in Modern History |year=2023 |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |pages=1–294 |doi=10.1007/978-3-031-24723-1 |isbn=978-3-031-24722-4 |s2cid=256618310 |url=https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-24723-1 |language=en}}</ref> The story of Aphrodite, who was born from the sea, is another reason why individuals believe seafood is another source of aphrodisiacs.<ref name="Shamloul-2010" /> Foods that contain volatile oils have gained little recognition in their ability to improve sexual desire, sexual pleasure, and/or sexual behavior, because they are irritants when released through the urinary tract.<ref name="Sandroni-2001" /> [[Chocolate]] has been reported to increase sexual desire in women who consume it over those who do not.{{Citation needed|date=May 2024}} Cloves and sage have been reported to demonstrate aphrodisiac qualities, but their effects have not been specified.<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /> Tropical fruits, such as [[Alibertia patinoi|Borojó]] and [[Bactris gasipaes|Chontaduro]], are considered to be energizers in general and sexual energizers in particular.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=González-Jaramillo |first1=Nancy |last2=Bailon-Moscoso |first2=Natalia |last3=Duarte-Casar |first3=Rodrigo |last4=Romero-Benavides |first4=Juan Carlos |date=January 2022 |title=Peach Palm (Bactris gasipaes Kunth.): Ancestral Tropical Staple with Future Potential |journal=Plants |language=en |volume=11 |issue=22 |pages=3134 |doi=10.3390/plants11223134 |issn=2223-7747 |pmc=9695847 |pmid=36432863|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=González-Jaramillo |first1=Nancy |last2=Bailon-Moscoso |first2=Natalia |last3=Duarte-Casar |first3=Rodrigo |last4=Romero-Benavides |first4=Juan Carlos |date=2022-12-16 |title=Alibertia patinoi (Cuatrec.) Delprete & C.H.Perss. (Borojó): food safety, phytochemicals, and aphrodisiac potential |journal=SN Applied Sciences |language=en |volume=5 |issue=1 |pages=27 |doi=10.1007/s42452-022-05251-1 |issn=2523-3971|doi-access=free }}</ref>

===Ginseng===
[[File:Insam (ginseng).jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|Ginseng]]
[[Ginseng]] is the root of any member of the genus ''Panax''.<ref name="Melnyk-2011" /><ref name="Bella-2014" /> Ginseng's active ingredients are ginsenosides and saponin glycosides.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lü |first1=Jian-Ming |last2=Yao |first2=Qizhi |last3=Chen |first3=Changyi |date=25 August 2010 |title=Ginseng Compounds: An Update on Their Molecular Mechanisms and Medical Applications |journal=Current Vascular Pharmacology |volume=7 |issue=3 |pages=293–302 |doi=10.2174/157016109788340767 |pmid=19601854 |pmc=2928028 }}</ref> There are three different ways of processing ginseng. Fresh ginseng is cut at four years of growth, white ginseng is cut at four to six years of growth, and red ginseng is cut, dried, and steamed at six years of growth.  Red ginseng has been reported to be the most effective aphrodisiac of the three.<ref name="Bella-2014" /> Known adverse effects include mild gastrointestinal upsets.<ref name="Shamloul-2010" />

[[Lepidium meyenii|Maca]] is a Peruvian plant sometimes called "Peruvian ginseng", although it is not related to ''Panax''. It has been used as a tonic to improve sexual performance.

===Synthetic aphrodisiacs===
{{See also|Sex and drugs}}
[[File:MDMA (simple).svg|upright=0.75|thumb|right|[[MDMA]] molecule, the compound found in Ecstasy]] 
Popular party substances have been reported by users to consist of aphrodisiac properties because of their enhancing effects with sexual pleasure. [[Ecstasy (drug)|Ecstasy]] users have reported an increase in sexual desire and sexual pleasure; however, there have been reports of delayed orgasm in both sexes and erectile difficulties in men. [[Poppers]], containing drugs for inhalation, have been linked to increased sexual pleasure. Known adverse effects are headaches, nausea, and temporary erectile difficulties.<ref name="Lehmiller-2017" />

====Phenethylamines====
[[Amphetamine]], [[methylphenidate]], and [[methamphetamine]] are [[substituted phenethylamine|phenethylamine derivatives]], which increase libido and cause frequent or prolonged erections as potential adverse effects, particularly in [[wikt:supratherapeutic|supratherapeutic]] doses, when sexual hyperexcitability and hypersexuality can occur;<ref name="Gunne-2013">{{cite book | author=Gunne LM | title=Drug Addiction II: Amphetamine, Psychotogen, and Marihuana Dependence | date=2013 | publisher=Springer | location=Berlin, Germany; Heidelberg, Germany | isbn=9783642667091 | pages=247–260 | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gb_uCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA247 | access-date=4 December 2015 | chapter=Effects of Amphetamines in Humans }}</ref><ref name="USFDA-2013b">{{cite web | title = Adderall XR Prescribing Information | url = http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2013/021303s026lbl.pdf | pages = 4&ndash;8 | work = United States Food and Drug Administration |date=December 2013 | access-date = 30 December 2013 }}</ref><ref name="Montgomery-2008">{{cite journal | author = Montgomery KA | title = Sexual desire disorders | journal = Psychiatry (Edgmont) | volume = 5 | issue = 6 | pages = 50&ndash;55 |date=June 2008 | pmid = 19727285 | pmc = 2695750 }}</ref><ref name="USFDA-2013a">{{cite web| title=Desoxyn Prescribing Information| url=http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2013/005378s028lbl.pdf|date=December 2013 |work=United States Food and Drug Administration| access-date=6 January 2014 | quote = ADVERSE REACTIONS&nbsp;... '''changes in libido'''; frequent or prolonged erections. [emphasis added]}}</ref> however, in some individuals who use these drugs, libido is reduced.<ref name="USFDA-2013b" /><ref name="USFDA-2013a" />

[[2C-B]] was sold commercially in 5&nbsp;mg pills as a purported aphrodisiac under the trade name "Erox", which was manufactured by the German pharmaceutical company Drittewelle.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Erowid Chemicals Vaults : Images : 2cb pack|url=https://www.erowid.org/chemicals/show_image.php?i=2cb/2cb_pack2.jpg|access-date=2021-10-03|website=www.erowid.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Nolan|first=James|date=2019-03-05|title=This Is What 2-CB Does to You|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/what-is-2cb-and-its-effects/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-10-03|website=Vice.com|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111222938/https://www.vice.com/en/article/d3mwgx/what-is-2cb-and-its-effects |archive-date=11 November 2020 }}</ref>

====Testosterone====
[[Libido]] in males is linked to concentrations of sex hormones, particularly [[testosterone]].<ref name="Drugs-2016"/><ref>{{cite journal |title=The effects of testosterone on the cavernous tissue and erectile function |author=R. Shabsigh| year=1997|journal=World J. Urol.| pmid=9066090 | volume = 15 | pages = 21–6 | doi = 10.1007/BF01275152 |issue=1|s2cid=23591806}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Fisher|first1=Helen E.|last2=Aron|first2=Arthur|last3=Brown|first3=Lucy L.|date=2006-12-29|title=Romantic love: a mammalian brain system for mate choice|journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences|volume=361|issue=1476|pages=2173–2186|doi=10.1098/rstb.2006.1938|issn=0962-8436|pmid=17118931|pmc=1764845}}</ref> When there is reduced sex drive in individuals with relatively low concentrations of testosterone, particularly in [[postmenopausal]] women or men over the age of 60,<ref name="Snyder-2016">{{cite journal|pmc=5209754|year=2016|last1=Snyder|first1=P. J|title=Effects of Testosterone Treatment in Older Men|journal=New England Journal of Medicine|volume=374|issue=7|pages=611–624|last2=Bhasin|first2=S|last3=Cunningham|first3=G. R|last4=Matsumoto|first4=A. M|last5=Stephens-Shields|first5=A. J.|author5-link=Alisa Stephens-Shields|last6=Cauley|first6=J. A|last7=Gill|first7=T. M|last8=Barrett-Connor|first8=E|last9=Swerdloff|first9=R. S|last10=Wang|first10=C|last11=Ensrud|first11=K. E|last12=Lewis|first12=C. E|last13=Farrar|first13=J. T|last14=Cella|first14=D|last15=Rosen|first15=R. C|last16=Pahor|first16=M|last17=Crandall|first17=J. P|last18=Molitch|first18=M. E|last19=Cifelli|first19=D|last20=Dougar|first20=D|last21=Fluharty|first21=L|last22=Resnick|first22=S. M|last23=Storer|first23=T. W|last24=Anton|first24=S|last25=Basaria|first25=S|last26=Diem|first26=S. J|last27=Hou|first27=X|last28=Mohler Er|first28=I. I. I|last29=Parsons|first29=J. K|last30=Wenger|first30=N. K|display-authors=29|doi=10.1056/NEJMoa1506119|pmid=26886521}}</ref> [[dietary supplement]]s that are purported to increase [[blood serum|serum]] testosterone concentrations have been used, with the intention of increasing libido, although with limited benefits.<ref name="Drugs-2016"/><ref name="Snyder-2016"/> Long-term therapy with synthetic oral testosterone is associated with increased risks of [[cardiovascular diseases]].<ref>{{cite journal|pmc=4245724|year=2014|last1=Borst|first1=S. E|title=Cardiovascular risks and elevation of serum DHT vary by route of testosterone administration: A systematic review and meta-analysis|journal=BMC Medicine|volume=12|pages=211|last2=Shuster|first2=J. J|last3=Zou|first3=B|last4=Ye|first4=F|last5=Jia|first5=H|last6=Wokhlu|first6=A|last7=Yarrow|first7=J. F|doi=10.1186/s12916-014-0211-5|pmid=25428524 |doi-access=free }}</ref>