Enhancing Sexual Function through Yoga: Insights into its Positive Impact
Yo, let's talk about the lowdown on yoga and its potential to spice up your love life, shall we?
Yoga, the ancient practice known for promoting physical and mental wellbeing, is being touted as a secret weapon for enhancing sexual experiences. But is there any truth to these claims? Let's dig in!
Modern research is scratching the surface of the myriad benefits of yoga, which includes alleviating conditions like depression, anxiety, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and thyroid problems. Yoga's magic lies in its ability to lower the body's inflammatory response, reduce stress, and boost feelings of wellness.
There's a buzz surrounding the idea that yoga can boost your sex life, but is it all hype, or is there some science to back it up? Let's explore.
Yoga gets it going for the ladies
Remember that study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine? It found that elongated yoga sessions could indeed put the pep back in women's step, particularly those aged 45 or above.
The study asked 40 women to self-report on their sexual function before and after undergoing 12 weeks of yoga practice. After the 12-week trial, the women's sexual function improved in all areas, including desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. A whopping 75% reported an improvement in their bedroom escapades after yoga training!
The study taught the women 22 poses, or yogasanas, believed to boost core abdominal muscles, improve digestion, strengthen the pelvic floor, and boost mood. Poses like trikonasana (the triangle pose), bhujangasana (the snake), and ardha matsyendra mudra (half spinal twist) were on the list.
Yoga takes the edge off for the gents
But it's not just the ladies who can benefit from yoga's love-boosting prowess! A study led by neurologist Dr. Vikas Dhikav found that a 12-week yoga program significantly improved the sexual satisfaction of men.
After the study's completion, participants reported improvements in all aspects of their sexual satisfaction: desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
Dr. Dhikav's team even conducted a comparative trial and found that yoga is a viable, non-pharmacological alternative to fluoxetine (Prozac) in treating premature ejaculation!
Yoga's behind-the-scenes mechanics
Ever wondered how yoga could possibly enhance your love life? A review of literature by researchers at the University of British Columbia helps us understand.
Dr. Lori Brotto, a professor in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at UBC, led the review. She explains that yoga regulates attention, breathing, and reduces stress and anxiety, all of which can lead to improved sexual response.
Psychological factors also play a role in yoga's love-enhancing powers. Female yoga practitioners are less likely to objectify their bodies and more aware of their physical selves, which can lead to increased sexual responsibility and assertiveness—even desires!
Moola bandha: The superpower up
While talk of awakening blocked energy and producing "kundalini" orgasms might sound far-fetched, the concept of moola bandha might appeal more to skeptics.
Moola bandha is a pelvic contraction that stimulates the nervous system in the pelvic region. It's believed to directly affect the gonads and perineal body/cervix. Studies suggest that practicing moola bandha can relieve period pain, childbirth pain, and sexual difficulties in women, as well as help treat premature ejaculation in men and control testosterone secretion.
Moola bandha is like the modern, medically recommended Kegel exercises, thought to prevent urinary incontinence in both men and women and help prolong sexual encounters.
In fact, many sex therapy centers recommend this yoga practice to help women become more aware of sensations of arousal in their genital area, thus boosting desire and sexual pleasure.
The evidence: Hit or miss?
While it's easy to get carried away with the possibility of yoga-induced orgasms (yogasms, if you will), it's worth noting that there's a substantial gap between amounts of so-called "empirical," or experimental, evidence, and anecdotal evidence.
The internet is overflowing with anecdotal evidence, but studies examining the benefits of yoga for sexual function remain scarce. Most studies have small sample sizes and don't include control groups.
However, more recent studies—focusing on women with sexual dysfunction in addition to other conditions—have produced stronger evidence.
For instance, a randomized controlled trial studied the effects of yoga on women with metabolic syndrome, a population with a higher risk of sexual dysfunction. For these women, a 12-week yoga program led to "significant improvement" in arousal and lubrication, whereas such improvements were not seen in the women who did not practice yoga.
Improvements were also found in blood pressure, prompting researchers to conclude that "yoga may be an effective treatment for sexual dysfunction in women with metabolic syndrome as well as for metabolic risk factors."
Another randomized controlled trial examined the sexual benefits of yoga for women living with multiple sclerosis (MS). The participants underwent 3 months of yoga training consisting of eight weekly sessions.
Crucially, women in the yoga group "showed improvement in physical ability" and sexual function, while women in the control group "manifested exacerbated symptoms."
"Yoga techniques," the study paper concluded, "may improve physical activities and sexual satisfaction function of women with MS."
So, while we're still waiting for more scientific evidence to confirm yoga's effects on sexual health, the early results are promising. Until more definitive research can determine whether yogasms are a real thing, it seems it's worth giving yoga a shot!
Hop on your mat and kiss those pelvic muscles goodbye because your libido is about to thank you!
- The ancient practice of yoga, known for promoting health and wellness, is being explored as a potential means to enhance sexual experiences, particularly among women aged 45 and above.
- A study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine found that elongated yoga sessions could improve various aspects of sexual function in women, including desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain.
- For men, a study led by neurologist Dr. Vikas Dhikav discovered that a 12-week yoga program significantly improved their sexual satisfaction in aspects such as desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
- A review of literature by researchers at the University of British Columbia suggests that yoga's love-enhancing powers stem from its ability to regulate attention, breathing, and reduce stress and anxiety, which can lead to improved sexual response.
- Moola bandha, a pelvic contraction practiced during yoga, stimulates the nervous system in the pelvic region and can directly affect the gonads and perineal body/cervix in both men and women, potentially aiding in the treatment of premature ejaculation and sexual difficulties.
- Despite a lack of extensive scientific evidence, recent studies focusing on women with sexual dysfunction have produced strong evidence supporting the benefits of yoga on sexual health and function, particularly among women with metabolic syndrome and multiple sclerosis.
