Do Aphrodisiac Foods Really Work?

“Foods as aphrodisiacs is totally fantasy. But with sex, sometimes fantasy works, says Stephen Snyder, M.D., associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Mt. Sinai Hospital.

Sorry if we are completely busting the fantasy here, but it’s the get-it-up reputation of certain foods—like oysters, chocolate, and phallic-shaped bananas—that causes you and your lady friend to get turned on when you eat them, he says. These and other foods have been eaten for centuries in an effort to get it up. The Aztecs even named avocadoes after testicles, notes board-certified sexologist Tammy Nelson, Ph.D., author of Getting the Sex You Want.

After so many generations of sex-having men and women have said certain foods will turn you on, you just believe it. And, by believing it, you make it a reality, says Darius A. Paduch, M.D., Ph.D., director of sexual health at Weill Cornell Medical College. When men merely anticipate scoring with a lady—like you probably do every time you feed each other chocolate-covered strawberries—you get a boost in libido- and erection-revving testosterone, he says, noting that even 30% of Viagra’s boner-producing powers come from that very same placebo effect. Long live the placebo effect!

“If you take your partner out for oysters, it’s understood as a signal for sex. She’ll look at those glistening vulva-like things on her plate, and if she’s into the idea to begin with then this may help her get even more in the mood, Paduch says.

Still, even if the nutrients in your foods won’t take you (and her) from 0 to naked in 2 seconds flat, over the long haul, what you eat does have some affect on your libido.

“I’m not yet convinced that there are magic sexual foods, but we can’t deny that nutrition and food do in fact play a role in sexual desire and activity, says nutritionist Jaime Mass, MS, RD, LD/N.

Here are some foods you should eat on the regular to max out your sex drive—and performance.

Chocolate, Oysters, Poultry, and Shellfish

These all pack L-arginine, an essential amino acid (meaning you depend on food for it) that’s linked with stronger erections and better orgasms. “Nitric oxide is produced as a result of arginine consumption, and nitric oxide can help to relax the blood vessels, therefore supporting healthy blood flow, Mass says. Nothing happens south of the border without blood getting there.

In one Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy study of 40 men with erectile dysfunction, treatment with combination of L-arginine and Pycnogenol (a pine bark extract) for just 1 month helped 80% of them get it up. After three months of treatment, 92.5% of men were able to achieve a normal erection—all thanks to nitric oxide.

One thing that brings credibility to the oyster myth is the fact that these slippery critters are full of zinc. Zinc controls progesterone levels, which have a positive effect on the libido. Zinc deficiency can cause impotence in men, so any food rich in zinc is considered an aphrodisiac in that respect, and oysters happen to be loaded with the mineral.

Steak and Eggs

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

If you haven’t yet made friends with fat and cholesterol (did you know the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee just dropped its recommendation that you should limit dietary cholesterol?) now’s the time. “Cholesterol is at the top of the hormone pathway, and it’s needed for hormone production. If we drive our cholesterol down into the ground because we refuse to eat any fat, guess what just might go with it? Yeah, your libido, says Mass.

Meanwhile, both steak and eggs contain zinc, which is also needed for testosterone production. “I don’t want guys who have low sex drives to be vegans, says Paduch, who prescribes his patients high-protein diets. “Diets high in carbohydrates spur excess insulin release that is linked with fatigue and low sex drive.

Red Wine, Blueberries, Artichokes, and Pomegranates

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Over time, free radicals can do a number on your blood vessels, upping your risk of atherosclerosis and preventing blood from going where you want it, Mass says. Antioxidants can help keep your blood vessel walls healthy, flexible, and ready to get blood where it needs to go.

Hence why, in a 2009 Journal of Sexual Medicine study, women who drank a glass of red wine (which is rich in antioxidants called polyphenols) each day reported greater sexual desire and vaginal lubrication compared to those who didn’t. You have a new reason to go on that wine-tasting trip with your girlfriend.

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Nuts

Many different nuts have alleged aphrodisiac properties, many of which have been used in love potions and serums for thousands of years. Walnuts have been used in Roman times for fertility and pine nuts have been adopted for similar purposes for 2000 years through the Mediterranean and the East.

Some believe the smell of certain nuts excite women. Almonds, for instance, are widely used in beauty products for their supposed aromatic properties. Some nuts are also rich in zinc, so like oysters, they can treat zinc deficiency impotence.

Ginkgo nuts are widely used in Chinese herbal medicine even to this day to stimulate, among other things, erotic desires. One of the few true aphrodisiacs, ginkgo nuts are a powerful antioxidant; this makes them an excellent source of nutrition for stimulating blood circulation and invigorating stagnating bodies.

Celery

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For a long time, people believed that celery's aphrodisiac properties were a myth. Today we know that it contains androsterone, a hormone naturally produced in males that stimulates sexual arousal in females. Whether or not this hormone found in celery actually affects the body is still unclear. But hey, the vegetable has it so it's a plus, and further studies are being conducted in the matter.

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Coffee And Chocolate

Coffee is considered an aphrodisiac in many traditions but there is very little proof that it actually has any effect on the libido. Coffee — like any caffeine-rich food — stimulates the body, which is why it's usually mistaken for sexual arousal.

That might be why chocolate is considered an aphrodisiac.Two doctors once discovered that chocolate contains phenylethylamine, a chemical that releases "feel good" endorphins. But later studies have proven that even though chocolate has this ability, it does not significantly affect the brain in any way. Luckily for the myth, chocolate also contains caffeine, so it can give you the impression that you are aroused by waking you up a bit.

Simon McNeil contributed to this article.

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