People between the ages of 18 to 30 who use cannabis and alcohol may have better sexual functions and orgasms than those who abstain from the substances, according to research published last month in the journal Healthcare. The researchers suggest that “sexual function is improved in young people who are high-risk cannabis consumers with a moderate risk of alcohol use, resulting in increased desire, arousal, and orgasm.”
“This improvement is usually associated with a reduction in anxiety and shame, which facilitates sexual relationships. However, according to the literature, this increase in sexual function is generally accompanied by unsafe sexual behaviors, given that the use of drugs, notably alcohol and cannabis, in recreational nightlife settings is highly normalized and ingested in large quantities.” — “The Influence of Cannabis and Alcohol Use on Sexuality: An Observational Study in Young People (18–30 Years),” Dec. 31, 2021, Healthcare
The study included 274 participants, including 185 who identified as female and 89 who identified as male. The researchers note that 46% of the participants were not at risk for alcohol problems, while 41.6% were likely to have a moderate level of alcohol problems. And while 63.9% of the participants reported no problems with cannabis use, they found a probability that 23.7% of the participants could develop an addiction to cannabis. In terms of sexual function, only 4% of the participants indicated sexual dysfunction; the remaining 96% did not report any sexual dysfunction.
The authors suggest that this population of people aged 18-30 could rely less on cannabis and alcohol for sexual encounters if sexual education for younger people were to “incorporate strategies and education to lessen anxiety and shame during sexual encounters.”
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