Drugs, medication and sexuality
Numerous ethnological and psychological studies have dealt with repercussions of uses of drugs, and more recently of pharmaceutical drugs on sexual functions. We present in this paper the main dimensions reported on these questions. At first, main aphrodisiac substances are envisaged from the ethnological and experimental perspectives. This review shows the diversity of contexts and products used as well as the variability of effects. The second part deals with contemporary synthetic drugs, contexts of use and consequences on sexuality and risk–taking behaviour linked to STDs and HIV/AIDS. The third part deals with the pharmacological innovations which modulate sexual functioning as well on the illicit uses of pharmaceutical drugs for recreational sexual purposes. This overview of actual research reveals the significant role of eroticism in the consumption of the different substances and the interest to develop a program of studies more precise in this field.