Get spicy for a healthy love life

Monday, 28 March 2011 11:31 AM

Many foods are essential for a healthy love life, and ginseng and saffron in particular can give your sex life a boost, say researchers. Both can improve 'performance' and are more effective that wine, chocolate and other endorphin boosters.

A scientific review of natural aphrodisiacs was carried out by a team from University of Guelph. They advise that you stay away from the more obscure Spanish fly and Bufo toad, which can be toxic and lead to headache, muscle pain and blurred vision, and go for blood-flow boosting foods instead.

They found that panax ginseng, saffron and yohimbine, a natural chemical from yohimbe trees in West Africa, improved human sexual function.

The results will appear in the journal Food Research International.

"Aphrodisiacs have been used for thousands of years all around the world, but the science behind the claims has never been well understood or clearly reported," Massimo Marcone, a professor in Guelph's Department of Food Science.

"Currently, there is not enough evidence to support the widespread use of these substances as effective aphrodisiacs," Prof Marcone said. "More clinical studies are needed to better understand the effects on humans."

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