Yohimbine, or Yohimbe, an Aphrodisiac

Yohimbine is also known under the outdated names quebrachin, aphrodin, corynine, yohimvetol and hydroergotocin. It is the principal alkaloid of the bark of the West-African tree Pausinystalia yohimbe Pierre (formerly Corynanthe yohimbe), family Rubiaceae (Madder family), an evergreen forest tree native to southwestern Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon and the Congo. There are 31 other yohimbine alkaloids found in Yohimbe.

Yohimbine is a selective competitive alpha2-adrenergic receptor antagonist and is used for dilating the pupil of the eye, and has been used to treat erectile dysfunction. It is claimed to be an aphrodisiac, and is also used as a weight loss supplement as it increases noradrenaline (norepinephrine) levels.

It is a monoamine oxidase inhibitor. It is a true aphrodisiac since it increases arousal in sexually inexperienced male rats, facilitates copulation in sexually naïve males and increases sexual activity in males that were previously sexually inactive. It has been used as a possible treatment for organic, psychogenic and substance induced erectile impotence and other male sexual dysfunctions. Its effect on male sexual performance is possibly related to its peripheral autonomic nervous system effects. It increases blood flow to erectile tissues and may increase testosterone levels. Currently, it is assumed that Yohimbine exerts its erectogenic effect through a central action.

Current researches show it is a vasodilator, which means that it increases blood flow to the extremities and appendages. It does this via an indirect mechanism of increasing the release of noradrenaline.

A word of caution before using it though, its side effects include elevated blood pressure and heart rate, irritability, headache and dizziness. Many in the medical profession regard yohimbine to be a potential health risk and advise people not to take it.

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Nettle an Aphrodisisiac

Nettle is the common name for any of between 30-45 species of flowering plants of the genus Urtica in the family Urticaceae, with a cosmopolitan though mainly temperate distribution. They are mostly herbaceous perennial plants, but some are annual and a few are shrubby.

A tasty green food your body recognizes, the “stinging nettle” (Urtica dioica or urens) is a weed native to Europe, Asia, as well as North America. (Various unrelated plants are sometimes also called nettles -- the Old World nettle trees of the elm family, and the prickly horse nettle of the nightshade family) The shoots grow from two to three feet, to as high as 10', and flourish in soils that are high in nitrogen. All nettles sting, but thankfully their stinging properties disappear once they've been dried or cooked. As they are used throughout Europe, nettles make a valuable tonic after the long winter months because they provide a potent natural source of a number of vitamins and minerals. Formic acid ("fire ants" use this to sting you) in nettle leaves is what makes them sting, along with histamine. (Ironically, though, they're useful in combating allergies).

Nettles enjoy a rich folkloric history both general (as a spring tonic) and specific. Among the more esoteric uses: as a cure for baldness, bedwetting (eaten in cakes), an aphrodisiac (seeds mixed into jam), and as a cure for fear (when held in the hand, along with a sprig of yarrow). Urtication-the process of flailing yourself with nettles -- originally introduced to England by Roman soldiers who thought they'd need to do it to keep warm -- is a folk practice still used today by people suffering from arthritis and even M.S. By deliberately applying stinging nettles to their skin, it provokes inflammation. Through this process, the pain of the sufferers is relieved temporarily.

For many, consuming nettles raw, cooked in soup, as tea, salad or in capsule form, has become a springtime tradition, hence nettles association with spring time. It is a form of cleansing which for some consumes the phlegmatic superfluities which winter has left behind.

Nettles are fantastically high in vitamins A and C, and rich in nutrients, including calcium, choline, magnesium, boron, iron, iodine, silica, sulfur, potassium, chlorophyll, histamine, serotonin, glucoquinones, bioflavonoids, tannins and amino acids. They're unusually high in protein (40%) for a plant. And because they're so nutrient-dense, they make a good overall tonic for strengthening the body and an effective traditional treatment for scurvy.

It is also believed to be a “galactagogue” (an agent that promotes the secretion and flow of milk), and a clinical trial has shown that its juice is diuretic in patients with congestive heart failure. Nettle extract is also useful in treating anemia, their high vitamin C content helps ensure that the iron is properly absorbed by the body. Besides anemia, the extracts can also be used to treat hay fever and kidney problems.

Fresh nettle, specifically Urtica Dioica, is used in folk remedies to stop all types of bleeding, due to its high Vitamin K content. Meanwhile, in dry Urtica Dioica, the Vitamin K is practically non-existent, and so is used as a blood thinner.

Nettle is used in hair shampoos to control dandruff, and is said to make hair more glossy, which is why some farmers include a handful of nettles with cattle feed. Stories during the 1800s about fraudulent practices of some horse peddlers in Europe include using 1-2 handfuls of nettle seed a day mixed to their horses’ feeds for two weeks which would explain its unexplainably shiny pelts and youthful appearance when they take it to the market. Of course, this gave them the reason to sell it in a handsome price and it did get sold. The youthfulness of course disappeared once the animals got to their new homes - no nettle seed.

Amongst its many properties, the nettle’s extract has lately been shown to influence prostate health and prevention of prostate conditions, especially prostatitis, which is an inflammation of the prostate gland. Nettle root extracts have been extensively studied in human clinical trials as a treatment for symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). These extracts have been shown to help relieve symptoms compared to placebo both by themselves and when combined with other herbal medicines.

A highly concentrated extract from the nettle root provides a unique mechanism for increasing levels of free testosterone. Recent European research has identified constituents of nettle root that bind to SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin) in place of testosterone, thus reducing SHBG's binding of free testosterone. As the authors of one study state, these constituents of nettle root "may influence the blood level of free, i.e. active, steroid hormones by displacing them from the SHBG binding site." Due to this, body builders have been using certain extracts of nettle in an effort to increase free testosterone by occupying sex-hormone binding globulin.

Nettle’s aphrodisiac effect was perhaps due to its ability to increase free testosterone. Free testosterone stimulates sex cell receptor sites in the brain hence an increase of sexual response and functions for both men and women. Furthermore, its richness in nutrients and other essential vitamins and minerals enhance the workings of one’s overall health thus minimizing the other health conditions that inhibit proper sexual functions. Additionally, nettle extract is also believed to work as an adaptogen. It helps with the general stress response, they strengthen the adrenals, and they're loaded with minerals and trace elements.

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Aniseed as an Aphrodisiac

Anise or Aniseed, less commonly anís (stressed on the first syllable) (Pimpinella anisum) is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae, native to the eastern Mediterranean region and southwest Asia. It is a herbaceous annual plant growing to 50 cm tall. The leaves at the base of the plant are simple, 2-5 cm long and shallowly lobed, while leaves higher on the stems are feathery pinnate, divided into numerous leaflets. The flowers are white, 3 mm diameter, produced in dense umbels. The fruit is an oblong dry schizocarp, 3-5 mm long.

Its other names are Anise, Aniseed, Sweet Cumin, star anise, Chinese anise, and illicium. Its seed, leaves, oil, and anethole are what it is commonly valued for.

Anise leaves are used to treat digestive problems, to relieve toothache, and its essential oil is used to treat lice and scabies. In India, aniseed (Saunf in Hindi ) is also used as mouth freshener. It is also used for flavoring some foods.

Historically, this herb had been used for many centuries. The ancient Greeks, including Hippocrates, prescribed it for coughs. Ancient Romans used Anise in a special cake that concluded their enormous feasts. Historically, the herb was used because of its flavor (licorice flavor), as an aid for digestion, as an aphrodisiac, for colic and to combat nausea.

Ancient Chinese physicians used the herb as a digestive aid, flatulence remedy, and breath freshener. Early English herbalists recommended the herb for hiccups, for promoting milk production for nursing mothers, for treatment of water retention, headache, asthma, bronchitis, insomnia, nausea, lice, infant colic, cholera, and even cancer.

This wonder herb, which belongs in the same botanical family as parsley and carrots, have a number of functional properties such as antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant, stimulant, carminative and expectorant. But what about its aphrodisiac properties?

Because of its aromatic and countless medical properties, it was traditionally considered as an aphrodisiac. The ancient Greeks and Romans believed that you could increase desire by sucking on anise seeds. Also, its sweet, licorice taste is believed in many cultures to stimulate the libido and increase desire. It also contains estrogenic compounds (female hormones) which have been reported to induce similar effects to testosterone hence an increase in male potency and libido.

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Salep Aphrodisiac

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Aromatherapy as Aphrodisiac

Aromatherapy is the use of volatile liquid plant materials, known as essential oils (EOs), and other scented compounds from plants for the purpose of affecting a person's mood or health. Aromatherapy is a generic term that refers to any of the various traditions that make use of essential oils sometimes in combination with other alternative medical practices and spiritual beliefs. It has a particularly Western currency and persuasion. Medical treatment involving aromatic scents may exist outside of the West, but may or may not be intended by the term 'aromatherapy'.

Aromatherapy has roots in antiquity with the use of aromatic oils. However, as currently defined, aromatherapy involves the use of distilled plant volatiles, a twentieth century innovation. The word, aromatherapy, was first used in the 1920s by French chemist René Maurice Gattefossé, who devoted his life to researching the healing properties of essential oils after a lucky accident in his perfume laboratory. In the accident, he lit his arm on fire and thrust it into the nearest cold liquid, which happened to be a vat of lavender oil. Immediately he noticed surprising pain relief, and instead of requiring the extended healing process he had experienced during recovery from previous burns--which caused redness, heat, inflammation, blisters, and scarring--this burn healed remarkably quickly, with minimal discomfort and no scarring.

---Wikipedia

Aromatherapy is not only used to aid in the healing of illnesses and/or calming of the senses and the mind to relax, it can also be used as an aphrodisiac to set the mood for making love. Aphrodisiac aromatheraphy utilizes flowers most of the time. Every ancient culture has well documented the specific effects of flowers in the human libido. From the Egyptians and Romans to the Sumerians and Aztecs—sunflowers, peppermint, jasmine, lilies, and of course, roses—have populated the realm of romantic indulgence. The reason is not certain but perhaps it has something to do with the thought that flowers are the sexual representation of the plants. Logan Pearsall Smith pointed out in the late 1800s that flowers are the sex organ of the plant. Talk about phallic representation.

In order to raise our libido, we have to first raise our body temperature. The aphrodisiac essential oils are mostly warm, rich aromas, such as those that come from spices and certain flowers. Aphrodisiac aromatherapy can be tricky. It may take calculation. What one person loves, another might find ghastly, but on a very basic level aromatherapy is a natural aphrodisiac that works to calm, soothe, stimulate and reduce stress, or negative energy. Because impotence and frigidity is most often associated with stress, emotion and psychology, plants that work to calm and soothe while actively stimulating hormonal production and reducing stress and anxiety are key elements in an active and healthy sex life.

Flower aromas can have strong psychedelic effect if not used appropriately but in moderation it is mild and aids in sexual health by improving the mental and physical aspect of the one smelling it. Some flowers though can have both an aphrodisiac effect through its aroma and/or via its connotation with lust, beauty, and pleasure.


Aromatic Aphrodisiac Stuffs

Rose. What can be more romantic than a rose, especially if it is red? The essential oil from red roses is a strong aphrodisiac. It is said that Cleopatra used to take bath with milk and rose petals.

Jasmine. The queen of the night in India. This wonderful fragrance has proven to have sensual effects in humans. It has been found that Jasmine stimulates our senses without any negative side effects. This very expensive and rare essential oil has been used as an aphrodisiac for hundreds of years in India. Women in India use it in their hair at night so that their husbands will be drawn to them to make love. When elephants need some help to reproduce, it is said that the owners put jasmine oil on them to excite them. The fragrance alone, when it comes from good quality pure oils, is exquisite. Altered or artificial versions do not have the same aroma and effect.

Lavender. Lavender dates as far back as the early Egyptians, and the ancient Greeks used lavender to fight insomnia, insanity, and aching backs. During the Middle Ages, Benedictine monks used lavender as a medicine and a remedy against the Plague, while London peddlers sold it as a charm against evil. Lavender was thought to be a magical aphrodisiac. It could stimulate the senses while simultaneously relaxing the mind, putting the body into a unique and uncommonly comfortable state of pleasure.

Vanilla. The sweet aroma of vanilla also has aphrodisiac effects. It is subtle, but certainly it cannot be ignored. It was so precious to the pre-Colombian Indians that they considered it suitable for their Gods.

Ginger. This spice raises the body temperature and adds sizzling flavor to any foods and not many people will connect ginger and romance. It is used in creams for the bride to be in many countries in South Asia. The tangling flavor of ginger can be easily used to enhance the flavor of teas, drinks, and of course, Asian curries.

Lilies. These flowers have a very basic romantic quality, deriving their lustful nature from their simple beauty and purity. Since ancient times, lilies have been used in cuisine. The Romans would sprinkle roses and lilies on their food, the table, and over entire banquet halls. They can be eaten fresh, dried, crystallized or even sugared for decorating candies and cakes, and they can be added to salads, be infused into teas, and prepared with sauces, jellies and oils. The Greeks associate the lily with their goddess Hera, telling that the lily first sprouted from the milk of this divinity. It has also been said that Roman soldiers ate the bulbs for nutrients and that it was used as a salve for wounds and an ointment for burns.

Ylang ylang. This floral aroma comes from China and other Asian countries. By itself, it is very sweet, sometimes too sweet, but combine it with other essential oils and it creates great blends.

Peppermint. Peppermint is another out-of-the-ordinary plant served as an aphrodisiac. Peppermint is said to stimulate passion. It has also been heard that it increases activity of the imagination and creativity, as well as enhancing dreams. Peppermint contains several of the superior sex vitamins, but the most important is vitamin D, which is responsible for hormone reproduction.

Clove. Cloves also raise our body temperature. Cloves have a very distinctive and rich aroma. Combine with other aromas and it creates very rich fragrances.

Sunflower. Sunflowers are the symbol of the sun, deriving their life from the same energy that the planet and all its life forms breathe life from as well. Apollo, the Greek god of the sun, was like his father, Zeus. His lust for beauty and nymphs, and his enjoyment in female companionship added to his conquests, which numbered in the dozens. Sunflowers are versatile; their petals can be eaten or infused with tea and their seeds can be dried and eaten. Sunflowers contain chlorogenic acid, vitamin E and iron, all of which are essential nutrients in promoting sex drive and sexual health. Vitamin E is responsible for oxygenating your blood, while iron keeps your blood healthy and efficient. Stimulation of blood in your sex organs is a vital aspect of gratification, so healthy blood is important.

These are the essential aromatic and therapeutic aphrodisiacs that you can use to make you feel good and attract your partner. They are well-known and easy to use. You can use them in candles, oil burners, massage oils, bath oils, and even cooking, depending on your preference.

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