Ever since Viagra revolutionised male sexual performance, researchers have been struggling to find an equivalent for women. They have now succeeded.
The world’s first ‘lust drug’ for women, PT-141, has been developed by scientists at Concordia University, Montreal, and Palatin Technologies. It is an odorous, colourless chemical, which claims to dramatically increase a woman’s sexual desire. It’s simple to use too -- just inhale it and wait for the sparks to fly.
If there was any doubt that sex for women is more between the ears than between the legs, PT-141 dispels it effectively. The drug works by targeting the female arousal centre in the brain rather than stimulating blood flow to the genitals like Viagra. Michael Perelman, co-director of the Human Sexuality Program at New York Presbyterian Hospital and an advisor on the PT-141 trials, confirms this by saying that the spray might affect how “we think and feel.”
The potential of PT-141 is huge, given that almost 40 per cent of women are said to suffer from a lack of libido. Also, there is a feeling that scientists, mostly men, ignore women’s sexual problems. In fact, say pharmaceutical industry sources, if PT-141 — which could be on chemist counters in three years — proves what is being claimed, it could even outsell Viagra.
In the trials conducted so far, 16 women were given PT-141 while 16 others were given a placebo. The latter hardly reacted, while those on PT-141 reported tingling and throbbing and a strong desire to have sex.
{{/usCountry}}In the trials conducted so far, 16 women were given PT-141 while 16 others were given a placebo. The latter hardly reacted, while those on PT-141 reported tingling and throbbing and a strong desire to have sex.
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