Since recorded history until now, we have been on a quest to find the perfect aphrodisiac. From lizard skin to Viagra, our desire to create more desire has existed since the dawn of civilization.
Simply put, and aphrodisiac is a potion, elixir or some other substance that heightens sexual desire. Just in case you forgot your Greek mythology, the word aphrodisiac comes from the ancient Greek goddess of lust and sexual desire, Aphrodite.
Surprisingly, according to scientists, some of these historical aphrodisiacs seemed to have been effective. Let’s take a look at just a few of these sexual aids. We’ll try to keep the innuendos to a minimum.
Spanish Fly
Probably the most well known of the aphrodisiacs is Spanish Fly. This spicy concoction goes way back to Roman times. Romans loved their orgies, and what better way to last all night than to use a bit of help from this aphrodisiac.
Oddly enough, it’s not a fly at all, but derived from a beetle. A family of blister beetles to be more precise. Blister beetles secrete a chemical agent called Cantharidin that can cause burning and blistering of the skin. Cantharidin is also the active ingredient in Spanish Fly. It would be used to promote warmth throughout the body including the genital area. It’s true, there is evidence to suggest Spanish Fly created erections. This is mainly due to inflammation and not solely from arousal. There are a number of other adverse symptoms from ingesting Cantharidin including:
Severe toxicity, burning of the mouth, unable to swallow, nausea, bloody vomit, painful urination, gastrointestinal bleeding, kidney failure, bloody urine, seizures, abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, vaginal bleeding and painfully long erections.
Oh. Spanish Fly can also cure you from life. People can and have died from it. Even though most products marketed as ‘Spanish Fly’ don’t contain the beetle, it’s probably wise to steer clear of this potential nightmare.
Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder was a Roman author and philosopher. He wanted to put all human knowledge into an encyclopedic collection called (Naturalis Historia) Natural History. Included in this extensive writing, is an odd assortment of mixtures for sexual arousal. It’s fairly self-explanatory, so we’ll just list the translated quotations below.
- A bat’s blood, too, they say, received on a flock of wool and placed beneath a woman’s head, will promote sexual desire
- A goose’s tongue, taken with the food or drink.
- The right lobe of a vulture’s lungs, attached to the body in the skin of a crane, acts powerfully as a stimulant upon males
- Taking the yolks of five pigeons’ eggs, in honey, mixed with one denarius of hog’s lard
- Wearing the right testicle of a cock, attached to the body in a ram’s skin
- Take the ashes of a spotted lizard wrapped in linen and held in the left hand
I don’t imagine any reader is in any danger of trying any of these concoctions.
Marijuana
This goes back to ancient Hindu Tantric traditions and maybe even further. Indian Serbia, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon and many more cultures have used Marijuana to increase sexual desire. Even science is beginning to back up this theory. With the steady legalization of marijuana throughout the country, maybe you can test this theory, unless you you don’t care about the law. In that case, we wont tell 😉
Ambergris
You might be asking yourself, “What is Ambergris?”. Ambergris is a substance that could either be inside sperm whale vomit or poop, but mainly in whale poop. Before you become too revolted from this prospect, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that ambergris is also used in many perfumes and colognes for its fragrant properties. Chances are you have sprayed yourself with it.
It was used in Arab medicine during the Middle-Ages. It was suggested to rub into the hair or drunk as a powder to stimulate sexual arousal. There has been scientific research ambergris does hold aphrodisiac qualities. When male rats were given doses, sexual activity would increase. They would even have sexual intercourse with other male rats in the absence of a female.
I wouldn’t replace your Viagra with ambergris just yet. Ambergris is ridiculously expensive. It can go for between $30-$50 per gram.
Arugula (Lettuce)
Probably the only appetizing and easily accessible aphrodisiac Arugula was commonly used in salads from ancient times to today. Rome and Egypt not only used it for its taste, but also for its properties of sexual arousal since the first century. Egypt was a province of Rome at this time, so this makes since. Even our man Pliny (also around in the 1st century), noted the aphrodisiac qualities in arugula.
I’m unable to find any real scientific evidence of arugula’s effect on the human body other than health. However, I wouldn’t think it far fetched that having a healthy body can translate to having a healthy sexual life.
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