User:Amilon3/sandbox

Background Information
An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire, sexual pleasure, and/or sexual behavior. Substances range from a variety of plants, spices, foods, and synthetic chemicals. Therefore, they can be classified by their chemical properties (i.e., substances that are natural and unnatural). Natural aphrodisiacs like alcohol are further classified into plant-based and non-plant-based substances. Unnatural aphrodisiacs like Ecstasy are classified as those that are manufactured to imitate a natural substance. Aphrodisiacs can also be classified by their type of effects (i.e., psychological or physiological). Aphrodisiacs that contain hallucinogenic properties like Bufo Toad have psychological effects on a person that can increase sexual desire and sexual pleasure. Aphrodisiacs that contain smooth muscle relaxing properties like Yohimbine have physiological effects on a person that can affect hormone levels and increase blood flow.

It is important to note that substances which only affect a person's behavior are susceptible to falling victim to the placebo effect. Placebo effects are defined as strong beliefs that manifest themselves and therefore are misconstrued to confirm a false positive. It is commonplace to see the presence of the placebo effect in the debate on aphrodisiacs since individuals want to believe in the effectiveness of a substance. Other substances that impede on areas that aphrodisiacs aim to enhance are classified as anaphrodisiacs.

Both males and females can benefit from the use of aphrodisiacs, but they are more focused on males as their properties aim to increase testosterone levels rather than estrogen levels. This is in part due to the historical context of aphrodisiacs, which focused solely on males and is why only recent discoveries are being made on the part of female sexual dysfunction. In addition, cultural influence in appropriate sexual behavior from male and females also play a part in the research gap.

History of Aphrodisiacs Cross-Culturally
Ancient civilizations like Chinese, Indian, Egyptian, Roman, and Greek cultures believed that certain substances could provide the key to improving sexual desire, sexual pleasure, and/or sexual behavior. This was important because some men suffered from erectile dysfunction and could not reproduce.

Men who were unable to have large families or who were unable to impregnate their wives were seen as a failure, whereas men who were able to conceive and therefore have large families were respected causing a great need for a solution. Others who did not suffer from this desired performance enhancers. Regardless of their usage, these substances gained popularity and began to be documented with information being passed down generations. Hindu cultures wrote poems dated back around 2000 to 1000 BC that spoke of performance enhancers, ingredients, and usage tips.

Chinese cultures wrote text dated back to 2697 to 2595 BC. Roman and Chinese cultures documented their belief in aphrodisiac qualities in animal genitalia while Egyptian wrote tips for treating erectile dysfunction. Ambrien, Bufo toad, Yohimbine, horny goat weed, ginseng, alcohol, and food are recorded throughout these texts as containing aphrodisiac qualities.

Ambrien
The substance 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 chemical structure of Ambrien has shown to increase testosterone levels triggering sexual desire and sexual behavior in animal studies only. Further research is needed to know the effects on humans.

Bufo Toad
The substance is found in the skin and glands of Bufo Toads. It is commonly used in West Indian and Chinese cultures. West Indian cultures use it as an aphrodisiac called ‘Love Stone’. Chinese cultures use Bufo Toad as heart medication called Chan su. The chemical structure of Bufo Toad consists of bufotenine and 5-MeO-DMT, a psychoactive chemical that has hallucinogenic effects which can be reasoned to stimulate sexual behavior. Research shows that it can have a negative effect on heart rate.

Yohimbine
The substance is found in bark from yohim trees in West Africa. It was traditionally used in West African cultures where they boiled the bark and drank the water until its effects showed proven benefits in increasing sexual desire. It is now approved by the Food and Drug Administration and can be prescribed for sexual dysfunction in the United States and Canada. It is also found in over-the-counter health products. The chemical structure of Yohimbine is an indole alkaloid that contains an adrenergic receptor blocker. This blocker effects the central nervous system, autonomic nervous system, and penile tissue and vascular smooth muscle cells that help men with physiological issues and treats psychogenic erectile dysfunction. Known side effects include nausea, anxiety, irregular heartbeats, and restlessness just to name a few.

Horny goat weed (epimedii herba)
The substance is found in a group of flowering plants used in Chinese folk medicine. Its intended use was to treat medical conditions and improve sexual desire, sexual pleasure, and/or sexual behavior. The chemical structure of horny goat weed consists of icariin, a flavanol glycoside. Icariin has been shown to improve hormone regulation amongst other benefits. Animal studies show a positive correlation to aphrodisiac qualities, but further research is needed to know the effects on humans.

Ginseng
The substance is found in Korea and is grouped in the Panaz family, known as Chinese ginseng. The chemical structure of ginseng consists of ginsenosides and saponin glycosides. There are three different ways to process 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 improve sexual behavior more than the others. Known side effects are mild gastrointestinal upset.

Alcohol
Alcohol has been associated as an aphrodisiac due to its chemical structure as a central nervous system depressant. This can increase sexual desire and sexual behavior through disinhibition. Since it affects people physiologically and psychologically, it is hard to know exactly what people are experiencing especially with different levels of consumption (i.e., aphrodisiac qualities or the expectancy effect). Alcohol taken in moderate quantities can elicit a positive increase in sexual desire whereas larger quantities are associated with difficulties reaching sexual pleasure. Chronic alcohol consumption is related to sexual dysfunction.

Food
Many cultures have turned to food as a source of increasing sexual desire; however, significant research is lacking in the study of aphrodisiac qualities in food. Most claims can be linked to the placebo effect aforementioned. Misconceptions revolve around the visual appearance of these foods in relation to male and female genitalia (i.e., carrots, bananas, oysters, and the like). Other beliefs arise from the thought of consuming animal genitals and absorbing their properties (i.e., cow cod soup in Jamaica or Ballut in the Philippines). The story of Aphrodite, who was born from the sea, is another reason why individuals believe seafood is another source of aphrodisiacs. Foods that contain volatile oils have gained little recognition in its ability to improve sexual desire, sexual pleasure, and/or sexual behavior because of its irritant when released through the urinary tract. Chocolate has been reported to increase sexual desire for women who consume chocolate over those who do not. Cloves and sage has been reported to demonstrate aphrodisiac qualities but its effects are  not yet specified.

Unnatural aphrodisiacs
Popular party substances have been reported by users to consist of aphrodisiac properties because of their enhancing effects with sexual pleasure. Ecstasy users have reported an increase in sexual desire and sexual pleasure; however, there has been reports in delays in orgasm in both sexes and erectile difficulties in men. Poppers, an inhalant, have been linked to increased sexual pleasure. Known side effects are headaches, nausea, and temporary erectile difficulties. Marijuana reports are mixed with half of users claiming an increase in sexual desire and sexual pleasure while the other half reports no effect. Marijuana strain, consumption, and individual sensitivity  are known factors that affect results.

Risks
Solid evidence is hard to obtain as these substances come from many different environments cross-culturally and therefore affect results due to variations in its growth and extraction. The same is also true for unnatural substances as variations in consumption and individual sensitivity can affect results. Folk medicine and self-prescribed methods can be potentially harmful as side effects are not fully known and therefore are not made aware to the people searching this topic on the internet.