What happens to drugs that fail to work against the diseases they’re supposed to treat? In the case of one chemical, the manufacturer has tried to repurpose the pharmaceutical for another health problem it allegedly might alleviate.
Take flibanserin, an anti-depressant that doesn’t relieve depression. The drug company Sprout Pharmaceuticals is trying to convince the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that the substance can help increase women’s libido.
But the FDA may not be buying Sprout’s claims.
You see, the side effects of flibanserin (is it just me or does that sound like something a mad inventor in a Disney film would brew in his garage?) are so egregious, the FDA’s experts don’t think the potential benefits come close to justifying its risks.
The research supposedly indicates it can bump up the number of “satisfying sexual events” (SSEs) women experience.
But the increased number of SSEs in the research was not very impressive.
And then there are the drug’s unintended side effects.
The drug increases a woman’s risk of fainting and hurting herself when she falls. This problem is heightened when the drug is combined with alcohol – which is many folks’ drug of choice when they are trying to get “in the mood.”
Other side effects of the drug include insomnia, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, anxiety, upset stomach and dry mouth.
A better, natural way to improve your sex life is to try the Mediterranean diet. Studies on this diet, which focuses on consumption of fruits, vegetables, fish, olive oil and a moderate amount of wine, shows that it can help improve desire in women.
Plus, research in Hong Kong shows that exercise improves the health of brain cells that are linked to a better sex life.
Ad did you know that there are supplements that can improve women’s sex lives? Dr. Michael Cutler tells me that there are many herbs like damiana leaf, black cohosh root, bayberry fruit, and red raspberry leaf, along with isoflavones, that can boost a women’s libido naturally, with no chemical side effects.
