The word ‘aphrodisiac’ is often more trouble than it’s worth. The word conjures up visions of pseudo scientific claims and instantaneous viagra-ready sexual responses.

Established writers often scoff at the suggestion that certain foods improves sexual functioning. Yet, scientific knowledge about the connections of these Sensual & Superyoung to sexual wellness and healthy aging grows expotentially.

These foods, usually fresh and plentiful, come highly recommended in most long-term eating plans.

We explain why these foods will also promote a more receptive sexual mindset, with enhanced libidos in relationships that are generally happy and on solid ground. No food is a magic bullet for a bad relationship or unhappy marriage.

In my experience eating these foods makes me more aware of my sexual self, and I seriously doubt it’s all mucky muck. Anne

Almonds & Nuts

Almonds and Nuts Rich in Testosterone-Activating Vitamin E

Sexual Health Benefits

Almonds, brazil nuts, cashews, pine nuts and pumpkin seeds are all high in magnesium, vitamin E and fiber.
Important for female sexual health and reproduction. Vitamin E is necessary to make both estrogen and testosterone.
The contribution of these nuts to magnesium’s natural vasodilator abilities functions much like exercise stimulating nitric oxide production. L-Arginine is great for improving circulation and enhancing erectile response.
The metabolism of the female hormone estrogen depends on magnesium. A deficiency of magnesium will significantly reduce fertility in women.
Rich with essential fatty acids, required for hormone production.
Almonds in particular are a protein powerhouse.

Asparagus

Asparagus | Eating Your Favorite Phallic Symbol

class=”thumbnail-caption” style=”width: 400px;”>Photo via sexburnersue.comSexual Health Benefits

Beyond their duly-noted phallic-shaft shape, asparagus spears are loaded with potassium, phosphorus, calcium, and vitamin E, all essential for producing energy and maintaining urinary health.
Asparagus helps your body produce hormones like testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone, which circulate in your bloodstream and stimulate sexual responses like clitoral swelling and vaginal lubrication.
Vitamin B6 increases testosterone production.

Avocado

Avocado Churns Out Range of Sex Hormones

Sexual Health Benefits

The vitamin E in these green eats helps your body churn out hormones like testosterone, estrogen, and progesterone, which circulate in your bloodstream and stimulate sexual responses like clitoral swelling and vaginal lubrication.
Avocados are rich in unsaturated fats and low in saturated fat, making them good for your heart and your arteries.
They also contain vitamin B6 (a nutrient that increases testosterone hormone production) and potassium (which helps regulate a woman’s thyroid gland), two elements that help increase libido in both men and women.
Avocados contain the bromelain enzyme, which is believed to increase libido and reverse impotence in men. Additionally, they are good sources of potassium and B vitamins like riboflavin, which increase the body’s overall energy levels.
Plenty of folic acid, which helps the body metabolize protein.

Bananas

Bananas for Intense Orgasms and Contractions

Sexual Health Benefits:

Bananas contain the bromelain enzyme, which is believed (without a scientifically-confirmed study) to positively reduce impotence in men. Bromelain also increases testosterone levels in both men and women. Besides bananas, bromelain is only available in pineapple.
Additionally, they are good sources of potassium and B vitamins like riboflavin, which increase the body’s overall energy levels and muscle strength, and stimulate testosterone and sex hormone production.
B6 in bananas promotes testosterone production.
Potassium is a nutrient key to muscle strength, promoting orgasms in which contractions may well be super intense.

Beets

Beets | Vascular Vitality In and Out of Bed

Sexual Health Benefits

Rich in iron and magnesium, beetroot is known to herbalists as the ‘vitality plant’.
Beet root was so appreciated by the ancients that it was an offering to the Greek god, Apollo. Aphrodite is said to have eaten beets to retain her beauty.
Beets are rich in boron, which plays an important role in the production of human sex hormones.
Drinking a 250ml glass of beetroot juice a day is just as effective as nitrate tablets in reducing blood pressure. High blood pressure has an established link with vascular dysfunction in sex organs.

More Reading:

Beets: A Guide to Finding the Big O Orgasm

Beet Supplement Produces a ‘Striking’ Endurance Boost 8-31-10

Researchers at the University of Exeter say that taking a dietary supplement to boost nitric oxide in the body can significantly boost stamina during high-intensity exercise. It’s believed that athletes taking the supplement experience 20% longer stamina, producing a 1-2% improvement in race times.

The focus for Exeter researchers is competitive sports, but our focus is sexual stamina and energy for vigorous lovemaking. What works on the football field surely has some relevance for life between the sheets. via Science Daily.

Berries

Berries | Plump Up Sex Organs in Both Sexes

Sexual Health Benefits:

Strawberries

Fruit nipples have strong visual appeal and are considered icons of fertility and sensuality.
The high amoung of zinc in strawberries makes them a natural viagra and anti-oxident-rich strawberries normalize blood flow to sexual organs.
The low sugar content in strawberries gives maximum energy with minimum calories. No sugar-high, then mood lows. Strawberries have 100 times more folic acid than an apple.

Blueberries

Perhaps these “little blues” were the first Viagras. Blueberries are high in soluble fiber, which helps remove excess cholesterol from the blood before it is deposited in the arterial walls. Because blueberries relax blood vessels and improve blood flow, a man is almost guaranteed stronger erections and a woman more intense blood flow in her vulva.

More Reading:

Blueberries for Good Health and Great Sex

Celery

Celery | Taps Into Women’s Primal Urges

Sexual Health Benefits:

Celery contains androsterone, a powerful male hormone that acts as a pheromone—a scent molecule that taps into the most primitive part of a woman’s brain, attracting her without her even really “knowing” it. The active compound is Phthalide (3-n-butylphtalide) which gives celery its strong aroma and flavour.
The vasodilating action of celery relaxes smooth muscle in artery walls. As a diuretic, celery doesn’t have the side effects of prescribed diuretics.

Chocolate

Chocolate | Daily Dose Libido Booster

Cocoa contains the chemical phenylethylamine, an amino acid that raises the body’s endorphins, our natural antidepressants and induces a sense of euphoria. PEA naturally reach peak levels during orgasm.
Chocolate does not contain serotonin — the “happiness” hormone, but tryptophan, a serotonin precursor, that the brain can transform into serotonin.
Third on the list is anandamide (which means “internal bliss”). Anandamide binds to cannabinoid receptors in the brain, mimicking the effects of cannabinoid drugs, such as heightened sensitivity, euphoria and a sense of well-being. Cacao also contains two N-acyl-ethanolamines (NAEs) which slow the breakdown of anandamide, prolonging it’s effect. Some researchers have decried the small amounts of Andandamine in chocolate as insufficient to cause any effect. However, PEA and Andandamine may interact with each other, and the stimulants caffeine and theobromine found in chocolate. The overall effect may be romantic or sexually stimulating. via NurtureYourOwn
Dark chocolate functions as a vasodilator, delivering cardio-vascular benefits on top ones already in place on cardio-patients.
Many new health benefits are now connected with chocolate, including major circulation-related benefits in brain health and stroke prevention. But our focus today is sexual wellness. It’s true that science hasn’t yet proven that chocolate is an aphrodisiac, a food that jump starts libido.
Speaking for women, any feel-good food like chocolate is generally connected with at least an open-to-receive attitude about sexual activity. In 2009 researchers found that eating 1.4 ounces of chocolate a day is a stress reliever, relieving cortisol levels.

Note: Various studies have found that the beneficial effects of dark chocolate are reduced by sugar, and cancelled out by dairy products. So you need to choose a high-quality dark chocolate which contains no dairy products (look out for “butterfat” in the list of ingredients) and minimal amounts of sugar.

New Science:

Moderate, Dark Chocolate Consumption Lowers Risks of Heart Failure in Large Study AOC Food Science

Garlic and Ginger

Garlic and Ginger Act As Sensual Health Vasodialators

Sexual Health Benefits

Its classification as a natural aphrodisiac comes from ginger’s ability to increase circulation and sensitivity in the erogenous zones.
Ginger and garlic act like asprin in the blood. A study involving Danish women between the ages of 25 to 65 years found that ginger, more clearly than onion, reduced thromboxane production by almost 60 percent. Thromboxane compounds stimulate the clumping of blood platelets and the constricting of blood vessels. By dissolving the clumping quality of blood platelets, ginger reduces blood clots and the risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Ginger relieves menstrual cramps. Chemical compounds in ginger act as anti-spasmodics inhibiting painful contractions of both smooth muscles of the digestive tract and the uterus.
Garlic improves blood flow throughout the body, not just in the coronary arteries. It acts as a vasodilator by causing blood vessels to expand and blood pressure to drop.
Garlic contains allicin, considered the world’s most powerful antioxident. Allicin also increases blood flow, with a purported increase in sexual stamina and energy.

Hot Chilies

Hot Chilies for Pumping Up Circulation

Sexual Health Benefits

Capsaicin, a chemical found in fiery peppers, increases circulation to get blood pumping and one’s skin to flush. Hot chilies stimulates nerve endings by dilating blood vessels so you’ll feel more turned on and vitally open to receive sexual pleasure.
The natural endorphins in hot chilies are painkillers. Elevated serotonin levels also improve mood.
Australian researchers say that people who regularly consume peppery hot foods fall asleep more easily, sleep more deeply, and have more energy the next day. Interrupted sleep is a major libido-killer in women.

Oysters

Oyster Succulence Promotes Testosterone

Sexual Health Benefits:

Zinc is known to be one of the key nutrients involved in enhancing libido & the production of sperm. Low levels of zinc have been linked both with poor libido in women and poor prostate health in men.
The zinc in oysters and shellfish increases testosterone production for both men and women.

Bridgeman Art LibraryIf you share our woeful ignorance about these tasty culinary oyster creatures, read on.

Salmon

Salmon and Omega-3s for Peak Sex Hormones

Sexual Health Benefits:

• Wild fish like wild salmon and herring are packed with omega-3 fatty acids, which keep sex-hormone production at its peak.

• B6 increases testosterone production.

More reading:

How Omega-3 Works on White Cells to Reduce Inflammation Anne of Carversville

Alaskan Salmon Roe: Perfect Smart Sensuality Food Anne of Carversville

Tomatos

Tomatos | Lycopene-Rich Superfood for Strong Sperm

Sexual Health Benefits:

The tomato’s high beta-carotene content — which converts to vitamin A - is issential for maintaining sexual health. Vitamin A aids the normal functioning of reproductive organs, and plays a vital role in testosterone production. Vitamin A is important in keeping ‘mucous membranes’ moist.
The beta carotene in tomatoes is associated with stress relief, a critical factor in female sexual desire, but applicable to both sexes.
Tomatoes improve blood flow. Most of the article references focus on tomatoes promoting robust erections in men. Because blood flow to the genitals in women also promote arousal and sensations of pleasure, I think we ladies can also enjoy this positive benefit from eating tomatoes.
When it comes to sperm counts, females must sit in the bleechers and just cheer on some of the very interesting science around tomatoes and male fertility.

Vanilla

Vanilla Seduction | Intoxicating, Innocent Arousal

Sexual Health Benefits:

The soothing aroma of vanilla initiates a response from both sexes. Studies at the Univesity of Central Lancashire found that vanilla has a similar chemical structure to dopamine, the same chemical that triggers feelings of pleasure.

More Reading:

Sinfully Delicious ‘Food Seduction’ Vanilla-Infused Treats

Sinfully Delicious: Delicious Vanilla’s Not So Boring After All

Watermelon

Watermelom’s Natural Viagra Effect

Watermelon Mimosas via laylita.comSexual Health Benefits:

Watermelon relaxes blood vessels, much like Viagra does, allowing blood to pulsate and flow into our bodies’ organs, including a man’s penis. Extra nitric oxide does the trick, just as Viagra does.
In women any rush of sensation, especially blood pulsating into our outer sex organs is usually considered pleasurable and a source of female arousal.
When we eat watermelon, citruline is converted to arginine, an amino acid with health benefits for heart and circulation systems, as well as aiding our immune systems. Speaking of sexuality, we focus on sex organs but increased circulation throughout the body are critical for a healthy sexuality and enhanced libido.
Watermelon promotes strong, healthy, vigorous sperm. The lycopene in watermelon enhances male fertility by improving both sperm concentration and motility. Typically speaking with sperm, more is better.

More Reading:

Watermelon for Libido Health and Sexual Performance

Watermelon Brings Big Sexual Benefits for Both Sexes