Enhanced sexual function through Yoga practices: Insights on the positive impacts of this ancient discipline
A growing body of scientific research suggests that the ancient practice of yoga may have significant benefits for sexual health, both for men and women. The holistic approach of yoga, which integrates physical postures, breathing techniques, and mindfulness, is thought to promote overall well-being, reducing stress and improving mood – factors that can positively affect sexual function and satisfaction.
In a study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, researchers found that a 12-week yoga program improved sexual function, particularly in women over the age of 45. The women self-reported improvements across all sections of the Female Sexual Function Index, including desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. As many as 75 percent of the women reported an improvement in their sex life after practicing yoga.
The study participants were trained on 22 poses, or yogasanas, which are believed to strengthen the pelvic floor, improve digestion, and boost mood. Some of the poses included the triangle pose, the snake, and the half spinal twist.
Similarly, a study led by Dr. Vikas Dhikav, a neurologist in New Delhi, India, found that a 12-week yoga program improved sexual satisfaction in men. The researchers found significant improvements across all aspects of male sexual satisfaction, including desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
Yoga is thought to have sex-enhancing mechanisms that regulate attention and breathing, lower anxiety and stress, and activate the part of the nervous system that triggers relaxation. Additionally, moola bandha, a concept from yoga, is believed to directly innervate the gonads and perineal body/cervix, potentially relieving period pain, childbirth pain, and sexual difficulties in women, as well as treating premature ejaculation in men.
While the amount of empirical evidence supporting the sexual benefits of yoga remains limited, more recent studies have shown promising results. For example, a randomized controlled trial found significant improvements in arousal and lubrication in women with metabolic syndrome, a population with a higher risk of sexual dysfunction, after a 12-week yoga program. Another study, which focused on women living with multiple sclerosis, found that yoga techniques improved physical ability and sexual function.
While more research is needed to establish yoga as an evidence-based treatment for sexual dysfunction, the existing evidence suggests that incorporating yoga into daily routines could have positive effects on sexual well-being. By addressing the pelvic floor in conjunction with broader body movements and alignment, yoga may offer benefits that are more extensive and sustainable than isolated exercises like Kegels. Additionally, yoga’s holistic approach may address some of the psychological, emotional, and physical barriers that prevent people from enjoying healthy sexual function.
- The study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine demonstrated that a 12-week yoga program, which includes poses like the triangle pose, the snake, and the half spinal twist, could significantly improve sexual function, particularly in women over 45, by enhancing desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and alleviating pain.
- A study led by Dr. Vikas Dhikav found that a 12-week yoga program improves sexual satisfaction in men by boosting desire, intercourse satisfaction, performance, confidence, partner synchronization, erection, ejaculatory control, and orgasm.
- Yoga's sex-enhancing mechanisms, such as regulating attention and breathing, lowering anxiety and stress, and activating the relaxation-triggering part of the nervous system, along with its holistic approach addressing psychological, emotional, and physical barriers, may make it an effective addition to daily routines for improving sexual well-being.
