Watching porn can actually enhance sexual arousal and is unlikely to cause erectile problems, a study from the University of California, Los Angeles and Concordia University has revealed.
"We found that the men who had watched more sex films at home were more aroused when they watched sex films in the lab," said Nicole Prause, associate research scientist in the department of psychiatry at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience.
Prause and Jim Pfaus from Concordia University analysed data collected from 280 male volunteers during previous studies in Prause's lab for the effect that watching erotica has on sexual arousal.
All the men reported the average number of hours per week that they had viewed sex films - which ranged from zero to 25 hours - and also completed a questionnaire that measures levels of sexual desire, said the paper published in the online journal Sexual Medicine.
Of the 280 volunteers, 127 had regular partners and completed the "International Index of Erectile Function", a questionnaire that requires men to rate their experience with erectile function.
Participants also viewed films in the lab, showing a man and woman having consensual vaginal intercourse, and then reported their level of sexual arousal.
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"While one could object that this was expected since they like sex films, the result is important because clinicians often claim that men get desensitised by watching these films," Prause added.
Prause and Pfaus also found that there is no relationship between viewing sex films and the incidence of erectile dysfunction in men who are sexually active.
"Many clinicians claim that watching erotica makes men unable to respond sexually to 'normal' sexual situations with a partner. That was not the case in our sample," they said.
While many people think easy access to porn leads to problems in the bedroom, the study suggests the opposite.
"The erectile dysfunction is most likely caused by the same issues that have been known for some time, such as performance anxiety, poor cardiovascular health, or side-effects from substance abuse," Pfaus said.