The MH pleasure-enhancer

Upgrade every aspect of your sex life with our seven-part guide


Part 1: flirting
As Derek and Clive so eloquently pointed out, it doesn't take much to topple that first domino of male desire. She may just be asking for directions, but it kicks off a chain reaction of neuro-electrical and hormonal mechanisms, which you may know as ‘the horn'. A part of your brain that triggers arousal immediately lights up like the Las Vegas strip on a power surge. Jackpot! But prepping your body can make sure the pleasure pay-out coming your way is more high stakes than slot machine.

"Part of your brain's hypothalamus responds to flirtatious encounters by producing the feel-good hormone dopamine," says Dr Michael Green, a neurologist at Aston University, Birmingham. "Brain cells which store it are then primed to fire the feel-good chemical into your synapses." When they attach to dopamine receptors, you get a pleasure rush, so it pays to give your body everything it needs for optimum dopamine production. If pleasure is an exclusive club, this gets you past the velvet rope.

Flick the pleasure switch
Add almonds and apples to your breakfast to turn up the heat in the bedroom.
Even if you're not sharing a duvet with a Victoria's Secret model, breakfast is the meal that will maximise sexual pleasure. "The part of your brain that produces dopamine is particularly sensitive to falling glucose levels," says Green. And the critical time for production is when you wake up. "The first two hours of your day are when you produce your dopamine supply for the next 24 hours," says Professor Pierre-Marc Bouloux, consultant endocrinologist at the Royal Free Hospital, London. Almonds and apples were both found by Indiana University to have the most impact on dopamine production. Victoria's Secret models also provide a boost, but they're not available at Waitrose.

Part 2: arousal
Your brain is now entering what scientists don't call the "Russell Brand phase", but would do if they were allowed to. You turn sex-obsessive as the hypothalamus clocks that your body should be feeling randy. "It responds by triggering a release of endorphins," says Bouloux. "This flushes your body with opiate-like stimulants."

Flick the pleasure switch
Run 5K and refuel with bananas
If you already associate sex and running we'd like your PT's number. If not, you'll be interested to hear that this is where the fine line between pleasure and pain blurs. The more long-distance runs you do, the better your brain becomes at producing endorphins, University of Bonn research found. "We also found the endorphins attached to areas of the brain associated with sex," says lead researcher Dr Henning Boecker. "This primes those areas to be more sensitive to the endorphin rush during sex." But make sure you refuel your pleasure machine. Surrey University research found low levels of vitamins B, B12 and C can limit your high. "Set yourself up for pleasure by eating a fruit salad of orange, grapes and banana," says nutritionist Jayne Hurley. Premium fuel for the orgasmatron.

Part 3: priming

In the time it takes Usain Bolt to out-date your Guinness Book of Records, things are happening ‘downtown'. Specialised tissues in your penis trap increased blood-flow to make it hypersensitive. A complex nerve circuit board is now completed and your body is caught in a lust loop. "Titillating signals are sent back up to your hypothalamus, which responds to the sensations in the genitals," says neuroscientist Janniko R. Georgiadis from the University of Groningen in Holland. It sends more pleasure impulses back down to the shop-floor and pumps blood harder. "The greater the blood supply to the penis the more nerve endings are activated and the more intense the sensory experience," says Dr Arthur Bennet, associate professor of urology at Johns Hopkins University.



Flick the pleasure switch

Forgo the foie gras and pre-coital smoke for broccoli and spa holidays
For extra pleasure, you need extra blood down there. And the key isn't a subscription to ‘those' channels, it's healthy arteries. "Stress and smoking limit the body's ability to widen arteries," says consultant cardiac surgeon Shyam Kolvekar from University College London. "And saturated fat clogs those arteries." So keep that unholy trinity out of your life. Research at Imperial College London also found the chemical sulforaphane boosts your natural anti-clogging defences. "It switches on a protective protein in the body, and you get it from green leafy vegetables," says Hurley. Then challenging for the ‘research that most benefits mankind' award is a study from Chicago's Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation, which identified a connection between the scent of doughnuts and increased blood flow to your old chap. "The effects can last for 16 hours," says study author Dr Alan Hirsch. So ditch the aromatic candles and open a box of pre-coital Krispy Kremes. Just don't tuck in.





Part 4: instinct

Testosterone has a lot to answer for – monster truck rallies, Norwegian death metal, and the raging horn. Each moment of physical contact now makes you pump out more of the manly stuff, which ushers in the next stage of heightened pleasure. Brain imaging studies at Johns Hopkins University in the US showed that when your body is flushed with testosterone, activity in the amygdala – the brain's centre of vigilance and reason – decreases. Which is why we lose our inhibitions during sex and goes some way to explain why we suddenly think connecting jump leads to our nipples sounds like fun.

You're now a slave to your lower brain, spurred on almost entirely by instinct. But this return to ‘cavemania' is good news for your pleasure levels. "When the amygdala shuts down during arousal it triggers the brain's dopamine stores to pour into your synapses," says Green. "The more testosterone you have, the sooner your amygdala shuts down, lengthening the amount of time in which pleasure can be experienced." Welcome to your inner Neanderthal.


Flick the pleasure switch
Extra toast and skipping the coffee will top up your testosterone and prime you for more sexual ecstasy.
If testosterone could speak – we like to think it would sound something like
James Earl Jones – it would tell you its arch-nemesis is the stress hormone cortisol. If your levels are too high, cortisol cancels out testosterone's effects on sexual arousal. "You can keep cortisol spikes in check with a carbohydrate-rich breakfast," says Hurley. And you should also prep for a testosterone flood by limiting your caffeine hit pre-passion play. University of Minnesota Medical School research concluded that 200mg (roughly a Starbucks' Grande Americano) increases cortisol 30% in an hour, and levels can remain elevated for up to 18 hours. Back to hers for herbal tea then.

Part 5: touch
After the first rush of blood, the only thing stopping your erection from wilting is the release of nitric oxide from nerve endings in your penis. "Nitric oxide helps send information from nerve cells in the penis to other cells, but it breaks down after just a few seconds," says Bennett. "Releasing more nitric oxide means a sustained erection and heightened sensitivity." Which is obviously a good thing, and thankfully easy to prep for.

Flick the pleasure switch
Hit the gym and eat like a bird to add more magic to your wand.

Researchers at Duke University in Seattle found 13 minutes running at 10kph boosts nitric oxide levels for 24-hours. "Exercise can be supplemented with nutrition," says study author Dr Jason Allen. A fistful of pumpkin seeds packs 2g of L-arginine which is proven to increase nitric oxide in exhaled breath by 15%. Now where are those mints?









Part 6: enlightenment
We've long thought pleasure-prolonging delaying techniques are in the mind. But recent Utrecht University research found serotonin – known for keeping the blues at bay – is key to bringing you back from the brink, not recounting Plymouth Argyle's left-backs 1983-present. The Dutch researchers found serotonin was less active in men who suffer premature ejaculation. "A serotonin deficit could have a very real impact on the dopamine high you get during sex," says neuropsychiatrist Dr Marcel Waldinger. Now read that again with a comedy Dutch accent.

Flick the pleasure switch
See the light and stick turkey in your sarnies to prolong your pleasure.

Straight out of ‘Macabre Research Monthly', Canadian studies found serotonin levels are higher in those who die in summer. So what can the morgue teach us about sexual pleasure? "You can boost brain serotonin by getting more natural light," says Dr Simon N Young of McGill University, Montreal. "Even on cloudy days the natural light you receive is still on a par with serotonin-boosting light therapy." Half an hour is the minimum and an hour is optimal. "Another key ingredient in serotonin is tryptophan, high levels of which are found in turkey and bananas," adds Young.

Part 7: orgasm
You're at that stage where you're starting to pull a face akin to a Jeremy Kyle guest. Even this late in the game though, you can benefit from some pre-match rituals. "On average, there are eight muscle contractions during the male orgasm," says Barry R Komisaruk, author of the The Science of Orgasm. "These determine the intensity of your orgasm, and when you have more semen, you need stronger contractions to release it." More fuel in the tanks means more joy in the ride.

Flick the pleasure switch
Eat like an Italian and live like a monk (two days a week) to supercharge your orgasm.

Spanish research published in Fertility and Sterility found upping your intake of folates (found in spinach, asparagus and lentils), vitamin C (in broccoli, oranges and strawberries) and lycopene (tomatoes, watermelon, and grapefruit) increased semen volume for every man in the study, with one guy increasing his by 45%. Once you're back from the fruit and veg aisle, make like a monk. "Boost the amount of semen you produce by waiting two to three days before your next orgasm," says Komisaruk. "Beyond that, any extra fluid is reabsorbed." Probably not the basis for a chat-up line.