We all know Viagra has helped many men who have had trouble to rise to the occasion. Its success has been referenced in popular culture, and countless teen movies have joked about the effectiveness of the drug.

But it can only take you so far. Research from the University of Maryland has shown that erectile dysfunction has physical, psychological and lifestyle causes. Viagra focuses on the physical and doesn’t help much when psychological and lifestyle issues are involved.

An old hormone

Fortunately a group of British scientists are working on so-called “mental Viagra”, and have discovered that addressing a psychological (mental) cause can have a physiological (physical) spillover – in this case boosting sexual desire.

Researchers from the Imperial College in London have found that the hormone kisspeptin, that starts the process of puberty, can be a “mental Viagra” for men suffering from erectile dysfunction.

Normal erectile dysfunction drugs focus on the physiology, usually restoring blood flow to the penis, but it is not effective in raising sexual desires. Kisspeptin is a naturally occurring hormone that stimulates the release of other reproductive hormones inside the body.

According to a statement from the researchers, the study involved a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in which 29 healthy heterosexual young men were given either an injection of kisspeptin or a placebo. In an MRI scanner the men were shown a variety of images, including sexual and non-sexual romantic pictures of couples, whilst researchers scanned their brains to see how kisspeptin affected the brain’s responses.ED, mental viagra

The researchers found that after the injection of kisspeptin, when the volunteers were shown sexual or romantic images of couples, there was enhanced activity in structures in the brain typically activated by sexual arousal and romance.ED, mental viagra

Orange highlights illustrate the enhanced activity in the brain when the subjects had the kisspeptin injection and looked at sexual images. These areas of the brain have often been associated with processing of sexual, emotional and rewarding stimuli.

Promising results

The lead researcher, Professor Waljit Dhillo, told the Telegraph that this medication will go a long way to solving underlying psychological causes.

“Most of the research and treatment methods for infertility to date have focused on the biological factors that may make it difficult for a couple to conceive naturally.

“These of course play a huge part in reproduction, but the role that the brain and emotional processing play in this process is also very important, and only partially understood.”

Mental Viagra

Now, research scientists at Imperial College London in the United Kingdom have found that a hormone called kisspeptin works on the brain in much the same way that Viagra does on the vascular system, thus earning it the nickname of “mental Viagra.”

Kisspeptin is a naturally occurring hormone that is believed to trigger the sexual urges associated with the onset of puberty. However, it is now believed that it could rekindle sexual desire in older men who’ve somehow lost their desire for sex. And without that underlying desire, sexual arousal becomes difficult, if not

In an interview for an article posted at the website of The Telegraph, Waljit Dhillo, lead author of the ICL study, said that kisspeptin triggers the release of reproductive hormones in the body. Until recently, studies involving kisspeptin “have focused primarily on the biological factors that may make it difficult for a couple to conceive naturally.”

Brain’s Role Not Fully Understood

While biological factors obviously play a major role in reproduction, said Dhillo, “the role that the brain and emotional processing play in this process is also very important, and only partially understood.” This led researchers to take a closer look at kisspeptin, which stimulates the release of other reproductive hormones and essentially kick-starts puberty, which is accompanied by a sharp increase in sexual interest and desire.

Interested in learning more about kisspeptin’s potential as a treatment for male sexual dysfunction of psychological origin, Dhillo and his colleagues recruited a study group of 29 healthy young men, all of whom identified as heterosexual. The men were injected either with kisspeptin or a placebo and then shown a variety of images, including both sexual and nonsexual images.

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Evaluating Brain Activity

To evaluate the impact of kisspeptin vs. placebo on brain activity in response to the images, researchers used MRI neuroimaging, as well as hormonal and psychometric analyses. The results of the ICL study was published in a January 2017 issue of “The Journal of Clinical Investigation.”

Researchers found that study participants injected with kisspeptin exhibited an increased activity in the portions of the brain that are typically activated by sexual arousal and romance when shown images of a sexual nature. These areas of the brain showing increased activity are known collectively as the limbic system, which is associated with emotional and sexual responses and behaviors.

Antidepressant Properties

No significant change was noted in emotional brain activity when test subjects injected with kisspeptin were shown nonsexual images, which included images characterized as neutral, as well as images of happy and fearful faces. However, researchers noted enhanced activity in brain structures associated with the regulation of negative moods. Based on this finding, they urged additional studies to evaluate kisspeptin’s potential as a treatment for depression.

Erectile dysfunction

The artist’s rendering above depicts the molecular structure of kisspeptin, a hormone that some have dubbed “mental Viagra.”

Of the study’s overall findings, senior author Alexander Comninos said that they demonstrate that kisspeptin not only increases sexual and romantic brain activity but also helps to decrease negative mood. “This raises the interesting possibility that kisspeptin may have uses in treating psychosexual disorders and depression” — major health problems that often occur together.

Findings ‘Novel and Exciting’

Describing the study’s findings as “novel and exciting,” lead author Dhillo suggested that the next step in the exploration of kisspeptin’s potential might be a larger-scale study that included not just men but women as well. The most common form of female sexual dysfunction is hypoactive sexual desire disorder, or HSDD. The only FDA-approved treatment for HSDD is a medication called Addyi, which has a number of adverse side effects and cannot be taken by women who consume alcohol.

If this article has piqued your interest and you would like to read more about sexual health and function, as well as other topics of interest to health consumers, check out our blog.