The pill that ushered in the sexual revolution may have also thrown cold water on women's libido. Fifty years ago, on May 9th, 1960, the FDA announced the approval of oral contraception. The birth control pill allowed women to control their reproductive cycle, delay childbearing, and develop careers. But it also may have the potential to disrupt sexuality by blocking normal hormonal surges that occur in a woman's cycle. Here's how.
The pill works by tricking the body into thinking it's already pregnant. The usual ovulation that occurs around mid-cycle is suppressed, along with hormonal changes that can contribute to a woman's sexual drive. Gynecologist Dr. Rebecca Booth, author of The Venus Week, described to me the period just before ovulation: "The Venus Week is the 5-7 days in the female cycle when everything is aligned to help women look and feel their best. Our hair shines, our skin glows and we feel more attractive, focused and receptive to others. It is the window each month after the menstrual period when estrogen (the feel-good hormone) and testosterone (the hormone of desire) are at their peak. It is one of Mother Nature's gifts to us as women. When we are most likely to conceive, we look and feel our best, and our brains are primed for romance."
Oral contraceptives disrupt the normal mid-cycle surge of both estrogen and testosterone, a hormone that occurs in women as well as in men. Testosterone is made in the ovaries and adrenal glands and helps fuel female libido. As Dr. Booth adds, "It would be surprising for something designed intentionally to mute fertility hormonally (i.e., the pill) not to have a muting effect on desire -- knowing what we know about the surge of testosterone and estrogen in the pre-ovulatory week (a.k.a. The Venus Week)."
Studies are mixed about whether oral contraceptives actually decrease libido in women. But a recent study of more than a thousand female medical students in Germany found that women using hormonal contraception were more likely to have sexual dysfunction than those using either no or non-hormonal contraception. Features of sexual dysfunction included problems with orgasm, desire, satisfaction, lubrication, pain, and arousal. The study was the largest of its kind but there were limitations in how it was conducted. More research is definitely needed.
What about the effect of oral contraception on the way women act and the way they are perceived by men? There is actually a serious study out of New Mexico reporting that tips given by men to lap dancers were significantly higher during the so-called "Venus Week" described by Dr. Booth -- when women are most fertile -- than at other times in the cycle. The authors postulate that the mechanism might include changes in body scent, facial attractiveness, body shape, and even language. But the mid-cycle boost in earnings only occurred in women not taking oral contraceptives. The implication is that by suppressing normal mid-cycle hormonal surges, birth control pills interrupted the normal mating dance.
Of course, nothing in medicine is simple -- especially when it comes to sexuality. There are many possible reasons for a decrease in libido and sexual function, including fatigue, depression, anxiety, physical pain during intercourse, certain medications (such as beta blockers and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor anti-depressants), medical problems like diabetes or low thyroid, and - of course -- relationship problems. My sense is that given the large number of potential causes for sexual dysfunction, oral contraceptives play a relatively small role. But the possibility is worth knowing about. And if you're a well-rested, happy woman with no medical problems and a wonderful relationship whose love life took a dive after you started the pill, you and your doctor might consider alternatives.
For this week's CBS Doc Dot Com, I discussed the effect of the pill on female sexuality with sex therapist and sex educator Miriam Baker.
Watch CBS News Videos Online
Christopher Ryan: Why There Might Never Be Viagra for Women
Spencer Walker: A Case For Cooking: 5 Reasons Guys Should 'Cook To Bang' (PHOTOS)
http://www.stopanxietyhq.com
http://www.5htpdepression.com
http://www.deepmeditationmusic.com
in your list of causes of 'decrease of libido and sexual function' ?
Also, with regards to the large study, I wonder how much of an effect they found with the BC pills, with enough people any little difference appears statistically significant. What was the clinical relevance? Did they go from 103x having sex a year to 100? if so, big deal.
....so then why write the post?
Why write the post? Because even if the pill plays a relatively small role, it may be helping to lower libido in some people. And the problem is that many people don't realize there's a possible link (see the comment by jmengr).
It's very hard to separate out all the different possible variables here (the pill might increase libido in some women by decreasing anxiety related to the risk of pregnancy or by lowering menstrual discomfort).
Jon
Thanks
Still, there is a well-known and well understood way of increasing female libido - testosterone injection. Of course, most of the westerm male medical establishment only suggests it to post-menopausal women, but then, in their defence, the maternalist US medical profession have little to suggest to men who wish to *lower* their libido (the morning woody can be a real problem unless you are in a stable relationship with someone whose response is to:
1) Grab it.
2) Understand that it doesn't last more than a few minutes.
3) Realize there are no hard and fast rules with a man at 8:30AM.)
My personal opinion is that there are too many options and that chemicals always mess things up. I've certainly seen more problems from the pill than I've seen solutions in my life, though heavy bleeding is a real issue where it can help.
My husband will be happy to read this & see that there's an explanation for his uber-attraction to me that "Venus" week, other than pheromones. :)
Progesterone makes a woman (maybe men too, I'm not taking it to find out) crank out:"Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG),a glycoprotein that binds to sex hormones, specifically testosterone and estradiol."
Testosterone is pretty well implicated in your sex drive. When you're younger, you may be able to take the pill with no ill effects. As you age & make less testosterone, you may pass under the threshold that powers your libido.
Barring not taking the pill, the best antidotes are zinc & exercise. A quick note for anyone thinking of stopping taking it - SHBG takes MONTHS to go away. Don't expect instant results, and don't' get discouraged when your skin breaks out, because it probably will - but it'll pass.