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Taking magic mushrooms, LSD or other psychoactive compounds can improve your enjoyment of sex, feelings of arousal, and sense of attraction to your partner for up to six months after the psychedelic experience, a UK study has found.
“On the surface, this type of research may seem ‘quirky,’” study author Tommaso Barba when the research was published in the journal Scientific Reports, “but the psychological aspects of sexual function — including how we think about our own bodies, our attraction to our partners, and our ability to connect to people intimately — are all important to psychological well-being in sexually active adults.”
Researchers from the Center for Psychedelic Research at Imperial College London asked 261 participants to fill out a questionnaire before their psychedelic experience and four weeks and six months after it.
Two types of volunteers took part in the research — people taking psychedelics for recreational or wellness reasons and those participating in a small clinical trial evaluating psilocybin (the compound found in magic mushrooms) for depression.
The participants taking psychedelics for fun had a “significant” boost in their views of sex as a spiritual or sacred experience, satisfaction with their own appearance, delight in their partner and their experience of pleasure.
Meanwhile, nearly half the participants taking psilocybin reported improvements in sexual arousal, interest and satisfaction with sex.
People taking the antidepressant escitalopram (brand name Lexapro), on the other hand, experienced decreases in sexual function.
“We believe this is the first scientific study to explore the effects of psychedelics on sexual functioning,” Barba said. “Our findings suggest potential implications for conditions that negatively affect sexual health, including clinical depression and anxiety.
“This is particularly significant given that sexual dysfunction, often induced by antidepressants, frequently results in people stopping these medications and subsequently relapsing,” Barba noted.
Barba’s team observed that neither of the dual studies found a significant change in participants’ perceived importance of sex after their psychedelic experience.
However, limitations of the study included the data being based on survey answers and participants being mostly white, well-educated and straight.
Some 28% of Americans have tried at least one of seven psychedelic drugs, including LSD, psilocybin, ketamine and ecstasy, at some point in their lives, according to polling from 2022.
Colorado and Oregon have decriminalized psychedelic mushrooms, but Massachusetts voters rejected a ballot measure on Tuesday that would have legalized five mind-altering drugs, including psilocybin, for adults 21 and older for therapeutic use.
The ballot question failed 57% to 43% with 96% of precincts reporting.
