What Are Sex Pills and Do They Really Work?

Generally, ‘sex pills’ is the name people give to pills taken for sex-related problems. These can include medications that are prescribed and recommended by doctors, but there are also unlicensed herbal pills that are sold over-the-counter as sex medicine. Unlike prescribed pills, these aren’t proven to work, and are also not properly checked to make sure they’re safe.

If you don’t have an actual sex-related problem (such ad erectile dysfunction or premature ejauclation) and are just looking to improve your sex life, sex pills likely won't work for you. While they can be effective at treating specific erectile problems, there’s little proof that tablets for other sex problems, like low sex drive actually work.

Before thinking about what pill to try for your sex life, it’s important to think about how you would like it to improve and what might be the best and safest way to make it happen.

If you’re looking for sex pills for men, there are two main types:

• Erectile dysfunction (ED) pills – If you can’t get or keep an erection there are treatments available for you. Some of the licensed treatments for erection problems include Viagra, Sildenafil, Levitra, and Cialis.
• Premature ejaculation (PE pills – If you can’t last as long as you want in bed because you’re ejaculating too quickly, the medications available include antidepressants (like Lexapro, Paxil, or Priligy).

These pills are designed to help treat these two conditions and either make it easier to get and keep an erection or delay ejaculation. When deciding which sex pills are the best for men with these conditions, a pharmacist or GP can help you work out which treatment option is right for you.

If you don’t have ED or PE, or if the medications available for PE or ED aren’t appropriate or effective for you, then you might try alternative measures such as non-pill medications, like EMLA, or a vacuum pump for ED. If these are ineffective lifestyle changes and talking therapies may be the solution.

You might have seen erection pills for men advertised online. People usually think of 2 different outcomes when they talk about erection pills:

• Medication used to treat erectile dysfunction (ED) - these pills can help you if you can’t reach or stay at your natural maximum erection size, but they won’t increase your maximum erection size. If you suffer from ED and the pills are safe for you you can order ED medication online, or get it from a pharmacist, or your GP.
• Pills which claim to increase maximum erection size (these don’t work) - there aren’t any pills that can make your erection bigger than what it is naturally. Products that make this claim, are doing so falsely. There is no evidence that they work and they may even be dangerous to your health. The only way to increase your maximum erection size is through surgery.

Generally speaking, ‘male enhancement pills’ describe pills marketed to men. They contain mixtures of different herbal ingredients, and sellers often claim they will improve sexual performance and/or increase penis size.

There’s no medical proof that these kinds of pills do what they claim to, so you might want to think twice about buying and using them. If you do decide to use these pills, always make sure the seller is regulated and check that the pills have been approved by the right organisations. Ideally, you should also talk to your doctor first before trying these kinds of products.

Normally, medications are carefully checked – it’s clear what the ingredients are and how much of them they contain. This helps professionals decide whether the medication is safe for you and how much to prescribe.

Sexual enhancement pills for men from unregulated sites aren’t checked in the same way, or may not be checked at all and they may not contain what they claim to.

Even if the ingredients are correct, and the right amounts, the medication may contain other non-regulated ingredients. Because of this the side effects of these male enhancement pills and the seriousness of them can’t be predicted.

Apart from possible side effects, the biggest downside to buying male enhancement pills is that they are unlikely to work.

Only medications from regulated medical organisations are proven to safely help sex-related problems.

Women can also get sex-related problems, these include:

• Low sex drive
• Feeling pain during sex
• Having problems getting an orgasm

There’s currently no medication available in the UK specifically for treating sexual problems in women. But there are some medications that are available in other countries, that may work, but there’s still not enough proof available for them to be approved in the UK.

Flibanserin

Flibansrin is available in the US and is marketed as a sex pill for women who haven’t yet gone through menopause. It’s been licensed since 2015, but it can’t be used for all causes of low sex drive. For example it can’t be used if the cause is a different medical condition or problems with your relationship. The evidence for Flibanserin is mixed, so it’s difficult to know if this can actually help improve the sex drive.

Prelox

This is a herbal product marketed at improving sex-related problems in women who’ve been through the menopause. Like with male enhancement products, using herbal products like Prelox isn’t a good idea and there is limited information about their safety and whether they work.

Often, you can see big improvements to your sex life by making changes to your lifestyle, getting counselling or therapy, or talking things through with your partner.

Here are a few different lifestyle changes, treatments, techniques and so on, which can have a positive impact on your sex life.

Looking after your health

Maintaining a healthy diet and weight and getting enough general exercise can be great first steps to take to boost your sex life.

Getting a medications review to see if any of your current medications are causing your sexual problems is also a good idea. You should also check for any underlying health conditions that might be causing your problems.

For example, if you find you are getting tired too quickly during sex there isn’t any medication that can help, but we would recommend seeing your GP to ensure that your blood levels are all normal as tiredness can occur due to many factors.

Sexual techniques

Before trying sex pills, there are a few techniques and tools you can use to treat sexual problems. Techniques for premature ejaculation such as the ‘start-stop’ technique or the ‘squeeze’ technique can help resolve the issue.

For erectile dysfunction, penis pumps or rings can ease symptoms if pills don’t work. And for both men and women, pelvic floor exercises can help with sexual performance.

Other medications

Topical treatments for premature ejaculation or erectile dysfunction like EMLA or alprostadil can help if the usual sex tablets aren’t effective for you.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are another treatment option. These medications are often prescribed for depression or anxiety, but can also be used for premature ejaculation in men. These medications may help if your sex-related problems are being caused by mental health problems such as depression or anxiety. SSRIs can also cause low sex drive as a side effect as well as reducing your ability to orgasm.

Sex therapy or counselling

Stress and anxiety can have a big impact on your sex life. Talking to a sex therapist or counsellor could help you explore your problems and develop coping mechanisms to deal with some of the roots causes of your stress.

Physical causes should be ruled out and if there is any indication of mental health problems these should be explored and discussed with your GP. Relationship concerns can also cause sex related problems and should be discussed with your partner or organisations such as Relate.