Sexual desire can sometimes be a problem among couples, in recent years low libido has been influenced by mainly two things; one being environmental factors such as social activity and psychological behavior and the other being biological factors determined by human physiology and diet.

In this post, we’ll focus on the biological aspect and subsequently explain how Maca can help in your overall sex drive.

What is libido?

Libido is described as sex drive and biologically, hormones regulate it Testosterone and estrogen are the two main sex hormones responsible for sexual behavior; they tell the brain to produce neurotransmitters such as dopamine and a raise in dopamine can lead to a raise in libido but it depends  on sex hormones activity, Hormone activity changes throughout our life; relationship issues and age tend to really influence our behavior, one excellent example is puberty when we experience hypersexuality, a medical term for a sudden increase in libido.

Low sex drive, causes.

As we go through life, its common to experience  brief periods of low libido. specific situations may include depression or low self-esteem [1], also, as we age a decline in sex hormones is noted, so desire for sex is also decreased, nevertheless, all these changes occur gradually and for shorter periods as our body adapts.

On the other hand, a decreased sexual drive for longer periods of time it's not common, and the reasons are plenty, including:

• Chronic illness: such as obesity and diabetes [2] influence proper hormonal production.

• Sleep problems: due to anxiety or bad habits. Poor sleep, less than 5 hours disrupts hormonal signaling [3] due to lack of rest.

• Exercise: too little or too much exercise affects hormonal efficiency, being sedentary lower sex hormones [4] while being overactive leads to failed recovery and also lowers hormonal economy.

• Alcohol and tobacco: abuse of alcohol and nicotine has been linked to a decrease in sex hormones [5].

• Antidepressants: One of the common symptoms when taking antidepressant medication is a diminished sexual drive or libido.

All of the above are causes that we can fix by living a healthier lifestyle and eating a healthier diet, with unique foods with unique properties that enhance our body by nourishing it.

So,  before rushing to the doctor for pharmaceutical treatment, we need to talk once again of the Peruvian Maca root as the best natural treatment for libido problems.

Why Maca

Maca is now backed by research for being effective at improving sexual desire, on the last post we discussed how the Macamides a special fatty acid only found in Maca has profound effects on fertility, the mechanism explained is that Macamides help fertility not by raising sex hormones such as testosterone per se, but by helping specific receptors in our body to be more hormonal efficient by enhancing the quality of follicles growth and development.

A review from 2010 [6] included four randomized clinical studies with a total of 131 participants with evidence that Maca improves sexual desire after ingestion.

When it comes to sexual desire it is important to consider all the different causes that influence this physiological role. At Wholefort we focus on the organic side of things, this means aiding you in the nutritional aspect of your lifestyle, providing a natural alternative to health-related problems that nutrition can fix. 

Our products are made of unique foods with unique nutritional profiles, Macamides are one of a kind fatty acids that play a role by facilitating the activation of specific receptors in specific cells in our body that respond to sex hormones. 

The activation of these receptors should be now looked like the main mechanism of action in which Maca helps after ingestion, not only helping infertility but as an aid in libido, not by a rise in the quantity of sex hormones, but by a rise in quality that leads to all the benefits of this ancient root.

Wholefort’s quinoa cereal with maca has been formulated to give you with each serving the necessary amount of maca to get the health benefits of this marvelous ancient root.

 

References - Written by Antonio Reyes RDN

1. Breyer BN, et al. (2014). Sexual dysfunction in male Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans: Association with posttraumatic stress disorder and other combat‐related mental health disorders.

2. Anawait B, et al. (2018). Decreased libido.

3. Leproult R, et al. (2011). Effect of 1 week of sleep restriction on testosterone levels in young healthy men.

4. Hackney AC, et al. (2017). Endurance exercise training and male sexual libido.

5. Bodenmann G, et al. (2006). Associations among everyday stress, critical life events, and sexual problems.

6. Shin BC. et al (2010) Maca (L. Meyenii) for improving sexual function: a systematic review.