Sex addiction may be caused by neurological damage: Study

[Ed Barrow]

Sex addiction is more than the latest celebrity disorder du jour, but a dysfunction in a critical brain region that controls decision-making, new research suggests. Dr. Lique Coolen, Canada Research Chair in the Neurobiology of Motivation and Reward, and colleagues have found that rats with a damaged prefrontal cortex become compulsive sex seekers. Coolen says the prefrontal cortex, located in the front part of the brain, normally acts as a break on self-destructive behaviour.

"We're always very cautious to draw parallels between studies in rodents with human behaviours," she says. But Coolen believes hyper-sexuality doesn't deserve the bad press it has recently attracted.

"My concern is with all these celebrities claiming they have sex addiction. I read the newspaper just like everyone else. A first gut reaction is to say, 'Oh, come on, this is just an excuse that people are using.'

"I think that that really damages or hurts people who really truly suffer from hyper-sexuality. They may feel even more inhibited to talk to their physicians about it and ask for help."

"Hyper-sexual disorder" is being recommended for inclusion in psychiatry's official manual of mental illness. The disorder would refer to men and women with recurrent "out-of-control" sexual behaviours. They may be consumed by pornography or cybersex, for example, or repeatedly engage in one-night stands or affairs, according to the criteria being developed for inclusion in the next edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.


http://www.canada.com/health/addiction+caused+neurological+damage+Study/3151657/story.html

[OffWithTheirHeads]

1. Who the fuck are they kidding?

Sex addiction = being attracted to the opposite sex + having enough money to back it up. Ever hear of a poor, not famous person with this problem? Sure you have! They're called horny. Horny = sex addiction without cashflow.

[LaurenG]

2. No there really is a condition that many people have

that is a sexual addiction. It has nothing to do with money it's thought to be associated with ocd.

The World Health Organization produces the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), which is used globally and is not limited to mental disorders. The most recent version of that document, ICD-10, includes "Excessive sexual drive" as a diagnosis (code F52.7), subdividing it into satyriasis (for males) and nymphomania (for females).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_addiction