10% of women and 8% of men would be concerned… Libido at half mast, decline in sexual desire: does the solution lie in a hormone? Called “kisspeptin”, the latter is known to boost sexual appetite, according to scientists.
Over the years, long-term couples face several challenges. With the many changes that occur in their lives, the romantic relationship evolves, and the relationship to sex too… “In time everything goes away”and the libido also, in the heap; could we caricature. Indeed, many of these relationships, whose partners have been together for some time, thus show a decline in their sexual desire.
When this drop is significant and long-lasting, it turns into health disorder and has a very special name: the Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder (HSDD). Affected individuals then have a low libido, to the point of experiencing a chronic or lasting lack of interest in sexual intercourse. But for this disinterest to be considered serious, the symptoms must last more than 6 months.
If some live it very well, others accept it a little less… Indeed, in the minds of many people, sex is essential to personal happiness and to the fulfillment of the couple. To remedy this, several solutions are then considered. Among them is theuse of the kisspeptin. She was already talking about her a few years ago, but her effects had only been studied on male patients. Today, kisspeptin is back in scientific conversations and demonstrates that its effectiveness goes far beyond men!
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Kisspeptin: how does this hormone stimulate sexual desire?
Kisspeptin is a natural hormone secreted by the hypothalamus, which notably plays a crucial role in puberty. What is its link with the libido? Specifically, kisspeptin regulates and/or stimulates the secretion of other reproductive sex hormones – among which we find the GnRHthere F H or the LSH. Result : brain activity related to attraction and sexual arousal is stimulated when this kisspeptin is activated.
Moreover, this postulate is again confirmed by a double English study* published in February 2023. During the latter, 32 men and 32 women, affected by libido disorders, were injected with doses of kisspeptin. This study thus demonstrated that kisspeptin had considerably increased brain activity in key areas linked to sexual desire, for individuals of both sexes. In parallel, it also decreased the activity of brain regions that feed HSDD (Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder). And this improvement is more obvious and consistent in those who suffer the most from this libido at half mast.
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Men and women see their libido improved by this hormone
On the men’s side, if we know that it fuels their sexual desire, kisspeptin also has a visible impact on the appearance of their erections…Following the injection of said hormone, the rigidity of their penis has thus increased by 56% !
In addition, at the end of the study, the men observed declared that they felt that their “happiness about sex” was improved. Psychologically speaking, kisspeptin therefore also has an effect.
On the women’s side, those who were initially the most affected by HSDD are also those who noted themost important improvement in their sexual desire. They also said they felt “sexiest” after administration of doses of kisspeptin.
Kisspeptin: considered for a (hormonal) treatment against a decrease in libido?
In addition to being effective, kisspeptin does not cause side effects unpleasant either. The researchers of the study are more than enthusiastic about the contribution of this hormone in the fight against Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder. They even plan to make it a treatment in the future: “the results suggest that kisspeptin may offer a safe and much-needed treatment for HSDD which affects millions of people worldwide,” said Dr. Alexander Comninos, one of the main authors of the said study.
Certainly, many avenues considered to treat HSDD, in the form of hormonal treatments, have been highlighted in the past: we find in particular systemic estrogen therapy or even testosterone therapy. Nevertheless, given the more than encouraging results of kisspeptin, it may well be that a treatment is emerging and that doctors will have less and less recourse to the old alternatives. However, before this becomes a reality, it will be necessary to carry out more studies on this subject, and on a larger sample.
Open-minded and in love with life, Emilie likes to decipher the new phenomena that shape society and relationships today. Her passion for the human being motivates her to write…