QUESTION: My sex life was fine until I reached the menopause and found my libido declining.
It has since felt like a chore to make love and my husband feels rejected as a result. My GP suggested hormone replacement therapy, but I don’t want to take artificial hormones and pills. Is there any form of natural Viagra for women?
ANSWER: I am sorry to say there’s no one drug that’s been proven to have the widespread efficacy for flagging female libido that Viagra has had for men.
Hardly surprising, since the mechanics of female desire tend to operate on an entirely different basis. Viagra works for chaps because it augments blood flow to the genitals, helping to achieve an erection. Women, however, feel no corresponding surge in sexual function when given Viagra, even though they also experience greater blood flow to key erogenous zones.
This is because a complex cocktail of factors tend to influence the degree to which women experience desire. Hormone levels certainly play a key part, which is why libido can decline with the menopause, but so do emotions, stress, lack of foreplay and sexual boredom.
It’s highly likely you need to address several areas of your life, rather than pop a pill and expect miracles. Perhaps this is a good time to re-think the way you make love with your husband.
Sensual massage and greater emphasis on seduction might help put you in the mood. Decreasing alcohol and caffeine intake while increasing exercise levels can help with the general sensitivity to sexual stimuli.
There’s also a form of HRT, bio-identical hormone treatment, that uses hormones derived from yams or soya, rather than ones extracted from the urine of pregnant mares.
Some menopausal women have found benefit from red clover supplements, which users claim ease hot flushes. Similarly, there’s a string of testimonials around Lady Prelox, which improves circulation and thus - according to its European makers - female desire.
Daily Mail