6 Foods to Boost Sexual Health (and Improve Blood Flow Everywhere)

[Editor’s Note: Centenarians in all blue zones regions are spry, fit, and live with energy and vitality into their golden years. Eighty percent of centenarians in Ikaria between ages 65 and 100 are having sex. (No enhancement drugs needed.) What they eat and how they live their lives have a lot to do with it.

The longest-lived men in the world hail from Sardinia. For every one male centenarian in the U.S., there are five women centenarians; in Sardinia, it’s 1:1. Because of the steep, mountainous landscape and the active “shepherd’s lifestyle,” men there are getting low-intensity exercise all the time. People there walk almost everywhere. Their work isn’t causing burnout. Family comes first and there’s no option for loneliness. Their low-stress work lives may be why men live longer in Sardinia. While men are traditionally the breadwinners, women are managing the home, children, meals, and finances, carrying the burden of most of the stress for a family. Centenarians in Sardinia typically eat a plant-based diet with lunch being the biggest meal of the day.]

Since November is Men’s Health Month, Jill Edwards, MS and Clinical Exercise Physiologist and Director of Education for the Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate at the T. Colin Campbell Center for Nutrition Studies highlights six foods that can amp up that sexual mojo.

Spinach

Spinach can help the mood by increasing blood flow below the belt. It’s packed with magnesium, a mineral that decreases inflammation in blood vessels and increases blood flow allowing erections to come more naturally.

Garlic

Garlic contains allicin and keeps the heart healthy for sexual activities. (Consume well before things get intimate!)

Watermelon

Watermelon has ingredients such as citrulline that can increase libido. When consumed, citrulline converts to an amino acid, arginine, which works wonders on the heart and circulatory system and, again, improving that all-important blood flow.

Blueberries

Blueberries are one of the most antioxidant-dense foods on the planet. They are full of anthocyanins – a type of flavonoid with powerful antioxidant effects and associated with a reduced risk of erectile dysfunction in men.

Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes are packed with energy-boosting iron and vitamin C, which produces anti-aging collagen. They are also a fantastic source of potassium which counteracts salt’s bloating effect and boosts circulation, which can help men look better in bed and improve pleasure in the bedroom.

Dark Chocolate

Dark chocolate increases both serotonin and dopamine levels in the brain, boosting happiness and lowering stress levels, and improving mood.

Jill Edwards, MS, CES received her BA in Education from the University of Michigan and MS in Exercise Science from Oakland University. She is a certified Clinical Exercise Specialist through the American College for Sports Medicine and is the Director of Education for the Center for Nutrition Studies. Jill has attended Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn’s Heart Disease Reversal Program at the Cleveland Clinic and has over 8 years of experience helping patients recover in Cardiopulmonary Rehab.