Hormone can enhance brain activity associated with love and sex

Imperial College: The hormone kisspeptin can enhance activity in brain regions associated with sexual arousal and romantic love, according to new research. The scientists behind the early-stage study, from Imperial College London, are now keen to explore whether kisspeptin could play a part in treating some psychosexual disorders - sexual problems which are psychological in origin, and commonly occur in patients with infertility. The work was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council.

Why sex gets better in older age

TheConversation: Aging is generally associated with improvements in our quality of life: We become more proficient in our work, learn how to manage our finances better and our bonds with loved ones deepen. With time and practice, most of the core domains of our lives improve as we develop skills and strategies to manage our lives with more mastery. An exception to this pattern is the quality of our sex lives, which has consistently been reported to deteriorate with age.

Why over 45s are at risk of sexually transmitted infections – new findings

TheConversation: One consequence of our ageing population is that people are now sexually active later in life. Combined with a high rate of older adults divorcing and changing partners, this has created a conducive environment for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among those in middle age and beyond. While the under 25s and gay men remain most at risk from STIs, heterosexual adults over 45 have recently seen increases in HIV, gonorrhoea, herpes, syphilis, chlamydia and genital warts. In England, rates for chlamydia, the commonest STI, rose 63% among 45-64s between 2011 and 2015 while falling for 15-24s. Yet this is an area of public health that has so far been ignored.

Surgery for Back Pain Reduces Problems with Sex Life-Related Pain

Spine: For patients with degenerative spinal disease, surgery is more effective in reducing pain that interferes with sexual activity, compared to nonsurgical treatment, reports a study in the November 15 issue of Spine, published by Wolters Kluwer. "Sex life is a relevant consideration for the majority of patients with degenerative spondylolisthesis and spinal stenosis," write Dr. Shane Burch of University of California-San Francisco and colleagues. "Operative treatment leads to improved sex life-related pain," in addition to reducing pain and disability from degenerative spinal conditions.

Unlike men, women have a remarkable variety of orgasmic experiences

Concordia: The nature of a woman’s orgasm has been a source of debate for over a century. Since the Victorian era, the pendulum has swung from the vagina to the clitoris, and to some extent back again. Today, the debate is stuck over whether an orgasm can be produced through vaginal stimulation alone, or if arousal of the external clitoris is always necessary. A new review by Concordia researchers, published in Socioaffective Neuroscience & Psychology, details the vast potential women have to experience orgasms from one or more sources of sensory input.

Study reveals key to a happy sex life

Toronto: The secret to a happy sex life in long-term relationships is the belief that it takes hard work and effort, instead of expecting sexual satisfaction to simply happen if you are true soulmates, says a study led by a University of Toronto social psychology researcher. These “sexpectations” — the need to work on sexual growth or rely on sexual destiny – are so powerful they can either sustain otherwise healthy relationships or undermine them, says Jessica Maxwell, a PhD candidate in the department of psychology in the Faculty of Arts & Science.

Kids who watch porn won’t necessarily turn into sex offenders

TheConversation: Recent media campaigns have linked children watching online pornography to an increase in the number of school children committing sexual assault. One article linked school students sexually assaulting each other to the rise in online porn. But is there evidence children watching online porn is linked to an increase in sexual offending? We know the public is concerned about the potential harm to young people watching online pornography, with a Senate inquiry on the matter due to report towards the end of November 2016. We also know how easy it is for children to watch online porn, not only on the computers in their bedrooms but on their smartphones.

Women Experience Marked Decline in Sexual Function in Months Immediately Before and After Onset of Menopause

Wake Forest: Women experience a notable decline in sexual function approximately 20 months before and one year after their last menstrual period, and that decrease continues, though at a somewhat slower rate, over the following five years, according to a study led by a researcher at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. The study, published ahead of print in the current online issue of Menopause: The Journal of the North American Menopause Society, also found that various factors that frequently co-occur with menopause have less direct influence on declining sexual function than menopause itself.

Women’s faces get redder at ovulation, but human eyes can’t pick up on it

Cambridge: Past research shows men find female faces more attractive at peak fertility. A new study shows an increased redness of women’s face skin at the most fertile point of ovulatory cycle, but just under the threshold for detectability, ruling out skin colouration as a driver of the attractiveness effect. Previous studies have shown that men find female faces more attractive when the women are ovulating, but the visual clues that allow this are unclear. Now, new research investigating whether it might be to do with subtle changes in skin colour has shown that women’s faces do increase in redness during ovulation, but the levels of change are just under the detectable range of the human eye.

A battle of the sexes is waged in the genes

Nature: New DNA sequencing data reinforce the notion that the X and Y chromosomes, which determine biological sex in mammals, are locked in an evolutionary battle for supremacy. David Page, a biologist who directs the Whitehead Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and his colleagues explored the Y chromosomes carried by males of several species, mapping stretches of mysterious, repetitive DNA in unprecedented detail. These stretches may signal a longstanding clash of the chromosomes.

New chlamydia vaccine shows promise after being tested on mice

NHS: “Researchers in the United States say they have developed a vaccine that can protect against chlamydia,” The Independent reports. Initial results in mice have shown promise in protecting against this common sexually transmitted infection (STI). Chlamydia is one of the most common STIs in the UK, and can lead to female infertility. It can also cause blindness in babies if their mother has a chlamydia infection and babies are exposed to the bacteria when they are born.

When it comes to older people and sex, doctors put their heads in the sand

TheConversation: The sex lives of older people have received a lot of attention recently. From the Netflix sitcom Grace and Frankie, which stars Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin (both in their 70s) and does not shy away from the issue of sex, to the Channel 4 series that focused on “love and sex when we’re over 60”, it seems there is no escaping the message that older adults have and enjoy sex.

Could a memory test reveal promiscuous teens?

Scimex: Teens with a weaker working memory - which allows us to draw on and use information to plan and make decisions - are more likely to have early and unprotected sex, because they're more impulsive, say US scientists. Memory tests could allow early intervention to help improve working memory, reducing the risks associated with promiscuous teenage years, they say. Teenagers vary substantially in their ability to control impulses and regulate their behavior. Adolescents who have difficulty with impulse control may be more prone to risky sexual behavior, with serious consequences such as sexually transmitted diseases and unintended pregnancies. A new study has found that individual differences in working memory can predict both early sexual activity and unprotected sexual involvement during adolescence.

How big is the average penis?

Science: “I was in the pool!” George Costanza’s distress at the “shrinkage” of his penis after exiting a cold pool was hilarious in the 1994 Seinfeld episode, but for many men concern over the length and girth of their reproductive organ is no laughing matter. Now, a new study could assuage such worries with what may be the most accurate penis-size measurements to date. Many earlier studies relied on self-reporting, which doesn’t always yield reliable results. “People tend to overestimate themselves,” says David Veale, a psychiatrist at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. So when Veale and his team set out to settle the score on penile proportions, they decided to compile data from clinicians who followed a standardized measuring procedure.

Is flibanserin a sexually satisfying event for women, or just a new identity for an old antidepressant?

TheConversation: An advisory committee to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recommended the approval of the drug, flibanserin, for premenopausal women who are distressed by a lack of sexual desire. The little pink pill has been hailed as “Viagra for women”. But it’s not like Viagra. Viagra targets the hydraulics of erectile dysfunction. The mechanism of flibanserin is to increase low sexual desire by acting on dopamine and serotonin receptors in the brain, much like an antidepressant. In fact, flibanserin has been unsuccessfully trialled as an antidepressant.

The health effects of homophobia

Yale: Gay and bisexual men living in European countries with strong attitudes and policies against homosexuality are far less likely to use HIV-prevention services, test for HIV, and discuss their sexuality with health providers, according to research led by Yale School of Public Health (YSPH). The study is published online in the journal AIDS.

Why criminalising homosexuality is a public health hazard

TheConversation: Homosexuality remains illegal in 38 of 55 African nations. Such a stance against homosexuality is concerning from ethical and human rights perspectives. It also poses serious risks from a public health perspective, not least of all because of the significant rates of HIV across Africa. Men who have sex with men account for a substantial minority of those affected by HIV, with their risk of infection more than double that of the general population. Many African countries also harbour homophobic cultures and attitudes. Together, this creates an environment where homosexuality is highly stigmatised, with homosexual people socially isolated and marginalised.

In families with same-sex parents, the kids are all right

TheConversation: A central argument made against same-sex marriage is that children born into these marriages will be disadvantaged: they will grow up with inappropriate gender role modelling, be bullied at school and suffer poorer emotional well-being than their peers. Same-sex attracted people may come to parenthood in many ways – though former heterosexual relationships, as a foster parent or a step parent.

Study shows sexual dysfunction after gynecologic cancer treatment

Colorado: A University of Colorado Cancer Center study presented at the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting 2015 shows decreased sexual activity in women following treatment for gynecologic cancers, down from 6.1-6.8 times per month before treatment to 2.6-4.9 times per month after treatment. “It is a topic that not many people want to talk about because it is uncomfortable,” says Saketh Guntupalli, MD, investigator at the University of Colorado Cancer Center and assistant professor in the Division of Gynecologic Oncology at the CU School of Medicine. “However for us it is about maintaining the quality of life after treatment for couples that have gone through it.”

We trust children to know what gender they are – until they go against the norm

TheConversation: I will start by asking two questions: at what age did you know your gender, and do you think someone else had to tell you what it was? I’m director of mental health at a leading gender clinic in the US. Our clinic is a half-decade old – and in that short period the number of families coming to us with questions about their child’s gender has grown astronomically every month. We’re not alone. The BBC recently reported that the number of children aged ten and under who were referred to the NHS in the UK to help deal with transgender feelings had more than quadrupled in six years.