Excerpts from the book “Your Brain on Porn”
Gary Wilson, author of the book “Your Brain on Porn” and the creator of the website by the same name gave a 16+ minute TedXGlasgow talk on May 16, 2012, which as of this writing has over 11,315,000 views. Here are some of the facts from his talk:
Today’s Internet
Most boys seek pornography by age 10 - Simon Lajueunesse PhD
The Difference between pornography of the past and today - Unending Novelty
Today’s pornography is as different from that of the past as playing a video game is to playing checkers
“Real Sex” involves courtship, touching, pheromones, emotional connection, and interaction with a person
Researcher Simon Lajueunesse could not find an appropriate size study group of college age students because “Guys who do
not watch porn don’t exist”
Today’s teens start on pornography when their brains are at the peak of dopamine and neuroplasticity
Pornography and the Brain
The brain reward circuit is set for natural rewards and has a natural satiation mechanism
The Coolidge Effect - Dopamine surges when viewing novel mates or scenes
Heavy user’s brain becomes accustomed to and seeks constant novelty
Dopamine surges activate the molecular switch known as DeltaFosB, which accumulates in the brain’s reward circuit.
Chronic consumption of drugs or natural rewards causes the build of DeltaFosB and can alter the brain promoting a cycle of
and craving
The brain changes include numbed pleasure response, hyper-activity to porn, and willpower erosion
All addictions share these same brain changes and the action of DeltaFosB
All brain research indicated that the constant novelty provide by the internet can cause addiction
Extreme versions of natural rewards (pornography, high calories foods) provide excess dopamine, which overrides our natural satiation mechanism
Medical Effects
Symptoms of arousal addiction mimic ADHD, social anxiety, depression, and OCD
Physicians frequently misdiagnose these conditions as their primary problem rather that a secondary due to internet
addiction
For young men, addiction related physical changes in the brain are causing lower reactions to porn websites, general drop in libido, ending erectile dysfunction.
This process is due to gradual desensitization and the pornography of today is radically different from that of the past.
The current rate of youthful ED has never been seen in the past.
Symptoms of heavy pornography may include depression, memory impairment, lack of mental focus, and severe social anxiety
Teen brains strengthen heavily used circuits and prune back unused ones. By age 22 a male’s sexual taste can be similar to “deep ruts” in his brain
The Good News
Ex-Internet Porn Users are providing the missing control group in the great porn experiment
Examination of former internet addicts showed that the brain changes were reversing themselves
Fortunately, the brain can revert back to more healthy behavior as the user abandons pornography
Gary Wilson is former anatomy and physiology teacher and an expert in the neurochemistry of addiction, mating, and bonding. His research is compelling, and in our opinion this talk is a must watch. Additionally, the yourbrainonporn.com website is an excellent resource for more education in the research of the pornography/brain connection.