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Topics: Sex and Relationships, Social Media
Mia Williams
Topics: Sex and Relationships, Social Media
In a world where pornography is more accessible than ever before, research suggests that over-consumption could be altering your brain.
Studies suggest that Americans in particular are watching more porn than ever, totalling three billion visits to PornHub in January 2024 alone.
But now health experts are warning of the implications that porn can have on how our brain operates.
Social media has completely revolutionised how accessible it is to view the adult films, and many people are battling with addictions to the free, and sometimes paid-for, platforms.
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It's said that 12 is the average age that a child is first exposed to porn, which is an alarming statistic for many reasons.
While porn can, in some capacities, be used as a tool for sexual exploration, over-consumption can be extremely problematic.
Speaking to The Conversation, licensed marriage and family therapist Danielle Sukenik revealed the implications.
A 2015 study revealed that men who frequently view porn have less grey matter in the brain’s area which is responsible for motivation and decision-making.
They were also less responsive to sexual stimuli, likely due to desensitisation.
Sukenik suggested: "This in turn leads to increased cravings and impulsivity in order to achieve the previous levels of reward in the brain."
Dopamine is the brain's feel-good chemical - it is released when we experience pleasure.
But watching porn often can lead to the brain building up a tolerance, feeling the need for more intense stimulation to feel the same satisfaction.
The expert noted: "Pornography can affect brain changes and subsequent pleasure responses, porn users may eventually feel the need to seek more extreme content."
As this process continues to occur, it can also impact real-life relationships and sexual encounters.
A 2020 study found that 23 percent of men under 35, who regularly watched porn, reported some level of erectile dysfunction (ED) with their real-life partner. Researchers found that, in general, men who watched more porn per week were more likely to suffer from ED.
It also found that it could take men longer to orgasm with a partner as a result.
Sukenik said: "Higher rates of infidelity, lower levels of commitment, increased emotional detachment and loss of trust are also evident in relationships affected by problematic porn use."
But her warning did not stop there.
She added: "Pornography use could have even more profound effects on the developing brain.
"This is because adolescent brains are undergoing rapid development, and connections are being formed and reorganised at a high rate of speed during the teen years."