People go to all sorts of lengths for sexual wellness; you try little blue pills and powdered rhino horn, but shouldn’t sexual nutrition be a little bit simpler? The truth is, eating the right nutrients to enhance your overall wellbeing – which everyone should be doing anyway – can also give your sex life a boost, unlike those mostly unproven aphrodisiacs. According to Beverly Whipple, PhD, RN, professor emeritus at Rutgers University and co-author of Science of Orgasm and The Orgasm Answer Guide, ‘One of the best things you can do to ensure a healthy sex life is to eat a well balanced diet.’ In fact, you’re probably eating many of the vitamins and nutrients that support a robust sex life right now—just not in sufficient quantities. Let’s take a look at a few dietary tips for bolstering your bedroom experience:
1. Eat a balanced breakfast: First thing in the morning, grab yourself a meal containing protein and fibre, such as peanut butter on whole wheat toast or yoghurt with fresh berries. Registered dietician Susan Kleiner, PhD, author of Power Eating, explains that as this combination takes your body a long time to digest, it gives you steady energy all morning and stops you making unhealthy food choices throughout the day. Why does this help your sex life? If you have more energy, you won’t be on a sugar-low, moody or grumpy, when you get home in the evening; you’ll be ready for action.
2. Avoid carbo-loading: While it may make sense to apply marathon logic to a lengthy bedroom session – e.g. eat carbohydrate-rich meals, like a bagel with cream cheese, before attempting to go the distance – loading up on carbs is actually disastrous for your sex life. Too many carbs will cause your blood sugar to spike and then plummet, leaving you sluggish and in the mood for nothing except a nap.
3. Hydrate: Kleiner points out, ‘If you’re low on fluids, you will be low on those important sexual fluids too. Drink a couple of cups of water when you rise in the morning after your overnight fast; this is the most dehydrated time of the day.’ Throughout the day, sip on low-calorie beverages and snack on high-water content foods to stay mentally and physically alert.
4. Don’t overdo the lattes: Yes, drinking plenty of water and other low-calorie beverages is key to having a healthy sex life, but downing caffeine like it’s going out of style will give you the jitters, meaning you’ll be in no mood for sex. Leslie Bonci, a registered dietician and director of sports medicine nutrition at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Centre, warns, ‘Too much caffeine is a central nervous stimulant. You may end up chasing each other around the bed and be too wound up to get down to business!’
5. Eat chicken, fish, and lean protein: Without enough protein in your diet, your brain doesn’t emit enough dopamine—the neurotransmitter associated with feelings of happiness and romance. Kleiner recommends, ‘An active woman should have at least 0.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight daily. Divide your body weight in half, and that is the least amount of protein that you should have in a day.’
6. Lay off the red meat and processed baked goods: Lean protein is a big “yes” in the sexual wellness stakes, but the unhealthy saturated and trans fats found in red meat and processed baked goods, on the other hand, contribute to clogged arteries and lowered blood flow. Whipple comments, ‘When the blood supply is blocked, there is less blood flowing to the genitals. Women won’t feel as lubricated and will have less feelings of arousal.’
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