Improved Sexual Function: Unveiling the Advantages of Yoga Practice
Yoga's Impact on Sexual Health: Empirical Evidence Suggests Improved Function for Both Men and Women
The world wide web is abounding with wellness blogs and personal accounts claiming that yoga can enhances sexual experiences - even to an impressive degree. But does science back these assertions? Let's delve into the research.
Recent studies suggest that modern research is beginning to unravel the myriad health advantages of the ancient practice of yoga. Some conditions that appear to be improved by the practice include stress, anxiety, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and thyroid problems.
Delving deeper into the mechanisms behind these benefits, we find that yoga reduces the body's inflammatory response, represses genetic expression linked to stress, decreases cortisol levels, and increases a protein that aids in brain growth and maintenance.
The question remains, can the pleasurable yoga poses also improve our intimate lives? Let's examine the evidence.
Yoga for Women's Sexual Function
A 2017 study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine found that yoga can indeed improve sexual function, particularly among women over the age of 45. The study involved 40 women who self-reported on their sexual function before and after participating in a 12-week yoga program. Upon completion, the women's sexual function had significantly improved across all sections of the Female Sexual Function Index, including desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. As many as 75 percent of the women reported an improvement in their sex lives after undergoing the yoga training. The women were taught 22 poses, or yogasanas, believed to strengthen the pelvic floor, improve mood, and core abdominal muscles.
Yoga for Men's Sexual Function
Yoga is not only beneficial for women; men also stand to gain from the practice. A similar 2018 study led by Dr. Vikas Dhikav, a neurologist at the Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in New Delhi, India, examined the effects of a 12-week yoga program on the sexual satisfaction of men. By the end of the study, the participants reported a significant improvement in their sexual function, as evaluated by the standard Male Sexual Quotient. Researchers found benefits across all aspects of male sexual satisfaction, including desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm. Additionally, a comparative trial carried out by the same team found that yoga is a viable and nonpharmacological alternative to fluoxetine for treating premature ejaculation.
Yoga: Mechanisms of Action
How does yoga improve one's sex life? A review of existing literature led by researchers at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of British Columbia helps elucidate some of its sex-enhancing mechanisms. It appears that yoga regulates attention and breathing, reduces anxiety and stress, and activates the part of the nervous system that triggers relaxation and metabolic processes that further induce relaxation, all of which are associated with improvements in sexual response. Moreover, these psychological mechanisms come into play: "Female practitioners of yoga have been found to be less likely to objectify their bodies and to be more aware of their physical selves, which may be associated with increased sexual responsibility and assertiveness, and perhaps sexual desires."
Moola Bandha: A Potential Secret Weapon
While tales of releasing blocked energy in root chakras and moving "kundalini energy" up and down the spine to produce ejaculation-free male orgasms lack rigorous scientific evidence, other yogic concepts could be more plausible to skeptics. Moola Bandha is one such concept, defined as a perineal contraction that stimulates the pelvic region, promotes parasympathetic activity in the body, directly innervates the gonads and perineal body/cervix, and has been linked to treating premature ejaculation and controlling testosterone secretion in men. Additionally, many sex therapy centers recommend this yoga practice to help women become more aware of their sensations of arousal in the genital area, thereby improving desire and sexual experience.
Our Take
While the potential sexual benefits of yoga may cause a wave of excitement, it is essential to consider the large discrepancy between empirical, or experimental, evidence and non-empirical, or anecdotal, evidence. The Internet is brimming with the latter, but the studies that have actually investigated the benefits of yoga for sexual function remain scarce. However, more recent studies, which have focused on women with sexual dysfunction in addition to other conditions, have yielded stronger evidence. For example, a 2014 randomized controlled trial found significant improvements in arousal and lubrication among women with metabolic syndrome who participated in a 12-week yoga program. Further research will help ascertain whether the mythical "yogasm" is a real, achievable thing. Until then, there appears to be ample evidence to suggest that incorporating yoga into our daily routines may positively impact our sexual health and overall well-being.
Yoga's frontier of influence encompasses not just mental health but also sexual health. Evidence from a 2017 study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine demonstrates improved sexual function in women over 45 who participated in a 12-week yoga program. For men, a 2018 study led by Dr. Vikas Dhikav showed significant improvements in sexual function as well. Additionally, research suggests that yoga's benefits may stem from its ability to regulate attention, reduce anxiety and stress, and activate the nervous system responsible for relaxation, all Key factors associated with improved sexual response. Interestingly, Moola Bandha, a yogic concept involving a perineal contraction, has been linked to treating premature ejaculation and controlling testosterone secretion in men, offering a potentially plausible mechanism for yoga's sexual benefits. Although further research is necessary to fully understand yoga's impact on sexual health, existing evidence suggests it may positively influence our intimate lives and overall well-being.
