By Jillian Rose Lim, Staff Writer
Published: 07/14/2014 03:11 AM EDT on LiveScience
People with so-called "sex addictions" may have patterns of brain activity similar to those of people with drug addictions, a new study finds.
When people in the study who reported compulsive sexual behavior watched pornography, they experienced heightened brain activity in the same regions where activity is heightened during drug use in people with drug addiction.
The study provides evidence in the fierce debate over whether compulsive sexual behavior — also known as hypersexuality — should be considered a true mental-health disorder, and be included in the DSM-5, the American Psychological Association's handbook of mental-health disorders.
"There's a large literature that developed over the past three or four decades of how individuals respond to drug abuse, and we wanted to examine within that framework whether we see similarities and differences [to compulsive sexual behavior]," said Dr. Marc Potenza, a psychiatrist at the Yale School of Medicine who co-authored the new study. Although people with sexual compulsive behavior have shown behaviors similar to those of people with drug addiction, the researchers hoped to find similarities in brain activity as well. [Top 10 Controversial Psychiatric Disorders]
Potenza and his colleagues at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom showed sexually explicit content, such as pornographic videos, to two groups of people — one group of people who reported compulsive sexual behavior and another group who didn't have such compulsions — and took magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images of their brain activity. The goal was to see how their brains responded to sexual and nonsexual cues, Potenza said.
The MRI images revealed that, compared with the people who didn't report compulsive sexual behavior, the participants who reported compulsive sexual behavior experienced increased brain activity in three brain regions linked to drug addiction in other studies: the ventral striatum, the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and the amygdala. These areas have been linked to people's feelings of reward and motivation, and also to drug cravings and the processing of emotions.
Compulsive sexual behavior is defined as an excessive preoccupation with sex, and using sex as a way of coping with difficult experiences or stress, said Rory Reid, a psychologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who researches addictions but was not involved in the new study. The behavior becomes a problem if it interferes with people's relationships or work, he said.
The study is a significant step in associating compulsive sexual behavior with addiction, Reid said. It shows that people who report having sexually compulsive behavior, as well as negative consequences in their lives, "also have their brains confirm high sexual desire in regions we might expect," Reid said. "Their brains say, 'Yes, this is true — we do like sex more.'"
However, "What [the study] doesn't tell us," he added, "is whether sex is addictive, and it doesn't tell us if these people have a sex addiction. More evidence must be gathered about this question, he said.
The Cambridge researchers also said their findings must be replicated, and that more research must done before compulsive sexual behavior can be recognized as a disorder or addiction.
"Studies like [this one] may be seen as another step towards our understanding [of] the similarities between excessive engagement in sex and excessive engagement in drug abuse," Potenza said.
For a condition to be included in the DSM-5, more information is needed from not only brain studies, but also studies of other domains, such as genetics and culture.
For now, people with compulsive sexual behavior should seek clinical help if it starts to cause significant impairment or distress in their everyday lives, Potenza said. An understanding of the neurobiological mechanisms underlying hypersexual behavior could help with treatment and prevention, he added.
Follow Jillian Rose Lim @jillroselim & Google+. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science.
Copyright 2014 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. ]]>
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.