Photo by: Gabriel S. Delgado C.

Most people enjoy listening to music at some point in the day, maybe on the way to work or in the evening to relax and wind-down. With the variety of different genres and artists available to listen to now easier than ever, it’s not surprising that it’s a source of enjoyment that can be tailored to individual tastes, giving it such a universal appeal.

According to research, music possesses healing powers, increases happiness and comfort, is good for your heart and improves memory performance. But, it’s slowly being unveiled that music can have very significant effects on sexual interaction. 

Montreal’s McGill University has looked into this thesis, and has found some interesting results. According to the study, listening to music can lead to the release of dopamine in our brains. High dopamine levels ultimately means a feeling of pleasure and euphoria, both found during sexual intercourse and when listening to music you like. 

Adam Safron from the department of Psychology at Northwestern University also recently published a paper on the website www.socioaffectiveneuroscipsychol.net where he stated “music and dance may be the only things that come close to sexual interaction in their power to entrain neural rhythms and produce sensory absorption and trance”. In other words, music, dance and sexual interaction can produce very similar results, transcending our other senses and inducing a rhythm. 

Safron continues, drawing on the effect of both music and sexual interaction to induce a ‘flow’ state. This ‘flow’ state results in increased concentration, a loss of self-awareness and intrinsic reward. “Both sexual and non-sexual flow states may be rewarding because of enhanced engagement with pleasurable activities, allowing self-processes to be outcompeted for attentional resources, thus allowing for deeper pleasurable engagement.”

Another study conducted by Brian Primack from the Center for Research on Health Care at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine concluded that song lyrics can also influence the desire and likeliness for sexual intercourse. According to the study, teenagers who listened to popular songs with provocative lyrics and sexual references were more likely to engage in intercourse.

The links between music and sexual interaction are undoubtedly there; whether you can relate or not is a different story, but for many people music may simply add to the moment, enhancing the sexual experience by providing a soundtrack. However you may respond to the music you listen to, in some shape or form it acts as a stimulus, both mentally and physically.