A Canadian researcher has argued that regular pornography consumption is increasingly being viewed as a quick fix for sexual desire, but that it in the long run is not good for both physical and mental health, as the neurotransmitter controlling satisfaction and memories gradually weakens the natural reflexes.

Originally published 29.11.2019, source: Sputniknews

In a report published in The Conversation, a researcher at Canada’s Université Laval, Rachel Anne Barr, warns that people who regularly watch and masturbate to adult content can fall victim to brain damage, more specifically to a region known as the prefrontal cortex, which is not formed until adulthood and is responsible for willpower, morality, and impulse control.

After years of study, Barr has come to conclude that pornography can cause consumers to struggle with their impulses and emotions, possibly leading to compulsive behavior with adults degrading into a childish state.

“It’s somewhat paradoxical that adult entertainment may revert our brain wiring to a more juvenile state”, she said adding:

“The much greater irony is that while porn promises to satisfy and provide sexual gratification, it delivers the opposite”.

The researcher has warned about repercussions such as depression and erectile dysfunction, arguing that constant exposure to erotic content “makes us more vulnerable as ever to its hyper-stimulating effects”. The disrupted neural wiring may ultimately lead to “inability to achieve erection or orgasm with a real life partner”, the researcher contends.

She has likened those who binge on porn to drug addicts:

“When a person uses cocaine, their brains give off a rush of dopamine, the ‘feel-good’ hormone. The same happens with sex and arousal”, Barr said, adding that the same neurotransmitter is in charge of memories.

If exploited too often, the neurotransmitter wears down the natural reflexes and habits, leaving porn consumers’ bodies unable to respond to them in real life sexual encounters with a partner.