Viagra Not the Solution for Low Female Libido

By Linda Ryan

When I founded The Sense of Smell Lab, a global leader in developing innovative products for health and well being, one area of my research that is getting considerable attention is sexual health, especially low female libido.

There are over 40 million women in the US and Canada-primarily the Baby Boomer demographic-that are now facing the menopause years, o this attention is not surprising. Boomers are continuing to change the way our culture sees sexuality.

All women know that a desire for sex and intimacy starts with her emotions. Even the makers of Viagra have acknowledged that that female sexual function is much more intricate than first imagined.

In 2004, Pfizer Inc, announced that they would be abandoning eight years of previous research conducted in an attempt to develop a drug similar to Viagra to improve female libido and sexual health. According to their announcement:

"Viagra works by blocking an enzyme that acts as an inhibitor of blood flow. In men, this can cause penile tissue to swell. The same enzyme inhibitor affecting male sexual dysfunction can influence pelvic blood flow in women.

"The Viagra research team attempted to find a link between arousal in women and pelvic blood flow in the early stages of trials. However, this failed and the researchers even suggested that genital arousal in women does not necessarily produce sexual desire in women as it typically does in men. Women define sexual arousal based on mental and emotional, as well as biological factors.

"According to the researchers working on the Viagra team, in cases where sexual desire is inhibited due to emotional or psychological factors, a female Viagra solution may not be applicable."

Even though Viagra was developed to assist men with erectile dysfunction, it has become a recreational drug for many men. In spite of the side effects - and the unknown long term consequences - sales of Viagra and similar drugs continue to soar.

Our culture has become addicted to drugs and we look to drugs for quick solutions. Perhaps the intricate nature of a woman's sexuality is a hint that women are quite capable of managing their intimate nature if they give their attention to it. It is a smarter and safer way to health and wellness.

Discuss your feelings, needs, desires, fears, embarrassments and expectations in and out of the bedroom in regard to all aspects of the relationship. Constant and open communication within your relationship will increase the intimacy and greater intimacy will lead to better sex.

Express your love and appreciation on a regular basis in and outside of the bedroom. Passion stays alive by verbalizing your desires, appreciation and love.

Why not try this today?

Find a good erotic book or poetry that you and your partner are both interested in reading. Read from it each night while you are in bed and take turns reading it out loud. This is a great alternative to television and provides personalized entertainment that always has an appreciative audience.