ZME SCIENCE JOURNALIST ARGUES MASTURBATION IS HEALTHY

 Science writer Tibi Puiu has argued that based on a review of clinical studies, masturbation for both males and females does not lead to depression or erectile dysfunctions but is even healthy since it releases mood-enhancing hormones, helps improve the immune system and reduces susceptibility to pain.

In his August 21, 2020 article for ZME Science, Puiu interviewed Heather Armstrong, Lecturer in Sexual Health at the Department of Psychology at the University of Southampton in the United Kingdom, who confirmed that masturbation is not an anomalous type of behavior. During masturbation, the brain releases a number of hormones, the most important being dopamine. Also known as the “happiness hormone”, dopamine is heavily involved in the brain’s reward system. Along with oxytocin, a hormone that improves social bonding, dopamine also improves mood and satisfaction. Other hormones that are released during sexual release also include endorphins, testosterone, and prolactin. These have roles in reducing stress, increasing arousal, and boosting immune system function.

Among the positive results of masturbation, Puiu narrated, are the following: Masturbation releases feel-good hormones that boost your mood; it alleviates stress and anxiety; you fall asleep faster; masturbation may improve immune function; it eases or prevents pain; masturbation isn’t associated with mental illness, and; masturbation is actually better than sex (for most women).

A 2015 study found that female masturbation enhances sexual satisfaction, and helped women have more orgasms when they had sex with a partner. A 2014 study showed that 35% of women who regularly had orgasms when they had sex also masturbated compared to only 9% of women who could climax regularly during sex but reportedly did not masturbate. A 2015 study found that female masturbation enhances sexual satisfaction, and helped women have more orgasms when they had sex with a partner.

As for heterosexual men, 95% climax regularly during sex, according to a 2017 study, regardless of their masturbation habits. In a 2013 study published in the journal Cephalalgia, researchers found that sexual activity relieves pain caused by migraines or cluster headaches in up to a third of patients. The authors of the study claim that endorphins, the body’s natural painkillers, are released during orgasm thus numbing the pain of migraines.