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Pot smokers most often label marijuana as sex-enhancing. But there are marijuana researchers who report studies that find that marijuana enhances sexual activity, and there are marijuana users who report that use of the drug enhances their sex lives.
Marijuana and beer have very similar effects on male testosterone levels—they both lower them. The hops used to flavor beer even contain natural 17-beta-estradiol, which can cause a condition known in Germany as "beer drinker's droop." Some men also have trouble achieving erections after smoking pot. But other men report that smoking marijuana gives them extra power in the bedroom. How can both sets of stories be true?
 

The simple fact is that people don't always tell sex researchers the truth about their sex lives. However, physiologists also know that a chemical in marijuana called cannabigerol can increase the force of ejaculation and the intensity of orgasm.

Cannabigerol "kicks in" several hours after the tetrahydrocannibinol (THC) in marijuana makes the smoker high and gives them the "munchies." In addition to increasing the intensity of orgasm, this chemical:

  • Reduces the need for sociability. Men are less inclined to indulge in foreplay or conversation.
  • Makes men less likely to act impulsively. They will be more in control of their sexual activities, but they will also be more response to rituals in their lovemaking. They will want to repeat other sexual encounters in the same way.
  • Increases basal metabolic rate. Men become literally "hotter" and more energetic—after the initial effects of the drug wear off.
In a heterosexual couple, marijuana has different effects at different times for the different partners. Women become less inhibited shortly after smoking the drug. This may enable them to enjoy more whole-body stimulation (or it may be unnecessary).

While women are becoming receptive, men are simply getting stoned. Any increased sexual intensity for them occurs after the disinhibitive effects have already worn off for the female partner.

This site is not going to give anyone specific tips on how to use marijuana more effectively for lovemaking. (We don't want the US Drug Enforcement Agency taking a special interest in our work.) And actually, there are no hard and fast scientific rules concerning whose lovemaking might get a bigger boost and when.

The bottom line is that men and women react to marijuana differently. The drug can help them overcome shyness when they are first together, but it can cause them to be out of sync as they get to know each other better. When the habit of smoking marijuana begins to interfere with work, finances, residential upkeep, or personal hygiene, then it tends to be a definite turn-off to good sex.

What about other, legal aphrodisiacs?

The best aphrodisiac for both men and women is exercise. An Italian study of men taking Viagra found that getting 200 minutes of outdoor exercise a week increased erectile strength, sexual confidence, satisfaction with intercourse, and general satisfaction with life.

For women, however, the exercise that most increases interest in sex is foreplay—especially on the days nearest to the midpoint of the menstrual cycle (when a woman is most likely to get pregnant). Creative physical activities that lead to the boudoir are most likely to enhance the female partner's enjoyment of sex.

People don't get arrested for exercise. They don't have to buy it from a shady dealer. Exercise does not ruin promising careers. If marijuana has not enhanced your sex life, try something different. Physical activity can improve your health and improve your lovemaking.

  • Bari M, Battista N, Pirazzi V, Maccarrone M. The manifold actions of endocannabinoids on female and male reproductive events. Front Biosci. 2011 Jan 1, 16:498-516. Review.
  • Photo courtesy of randomix on Flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/randomix/452314690/