We have said it before and we’ll say it again. The FDA is bias towards male sexual dysfunction and continually ignores the plight of 100,000’s of women who suffer from female sexual dysfunction.
There is an unprecedented gender imbalance when it comes to the FDA approving drugs for sexual dysfunction. Men have more than 20 approved drugs to choose from and women have nothing. Many of these male approved drugs either simply treat erectile dysfunction or they come under the testosterone replacement therapy umbrella.
Testosterone therapy is not like talking Viagra, a common treatment for erectile dysfunction. Viagra gives a man improved sexual function and for those with erectile dysfunction it helps them achieve an erection. How does it do this? Viagra is a pill that can be taken before having sex; It basically increases the blood flow to the genital area, allowing for increased activity. Testosterone therapy, on the other hand, is dosed daily and treats the most common underlying cause of male sexual function – low testosterone. Users see a gradual and steady improvement to their life that lasts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Women suffer from sexual dysfunction too and low testosterone is the likely cause of it. Having low testosterone deprives women of sexual desire and sexual pleasure as well as causing other symptoms like a decrease bone density, mood swings and anxiety. Finding a Viagra style pill to help women has been a struggle but testosterone replacement therapy is being used in compounded formulas and has proven effective. For example, in Australia, a recent study sited AndroFeme cream as an effective treatment in post-menopausal women. There are many approved treatments for women in Australia, a country who is in the forefront of hormone research, so why not the USA?
Over the years many pharmaceutical companies have tried to find a treatment for female sexual dysfunction (FSD). Pfizer even tried a female version of Viagra but that didn’t work.
A product called Flibanserin has been battling with the FDA to get approval. This particular female sexual dysfunction drug works differently than testosterone therapy. It is taken daily and acts on the brain chemicals associated with mood and appetite. The effects of this drug are “modest” when compared with testosterone therapy and side effects can include dizziness, nausea and fatigue. Do the benefits outweigh the risks? The FDA don’t think so. In this particular case, we’re not convinced that it’s the best treatment either but we do think it should be available for those women who want to try it.
Procotor and Gamble also tried to enter the testosterone and female sexual dysfunction market back in 2004. They submitted a testosterone patch called Intrinsa for approval but it was rejected for unknown long term consequences, even though it proved effective.
If testosterone patches, creams, gels and injections are OK to use in men, why can’t they be approved and used by women as well? It’s the same testosterone, just in a lower dose, to suit the levels needs by women instead of men.
The task of finding an effective treatment is complex as the issue itself is complex. Many experts argue that a cure for female sexual dysfunction (FSD) is harder to obtain due to the emotional and psychological factors that contribute a to woman’s sense of well-being. Men are more primal so their sexual function issue is more easily solved.
Measuring sexual dysfunction in men is a far easier task. Take erectile dysfunction as an example, it’s very easy to measure the effect of treatment. The self-image, stress and mood motivations behind a woman’s libido are far harder to measure. Therefore the results of drug testing are far harder to measure.
While many experts, like the FDA, find it hard to believe that a single pill can solve a woman’s sexual dysfunction, the quest still continues. For now though, it seems that testosterone replacement therapy is at least along the right track. It eases many of the underlying physical and psychological symptoms of low libido and sexual performance. The results of testosterone creams like AndroFeme in Australia are growing in popularity.
What is AndroFeme?
AndroFeme is a low dose, pharmaceutical grade, bioidentical testosterone cream especially designed for women. There’s no need to use a compounded formula or a reduced men’s dosage, both of which can cause an excess of testosterone and unwanted side effects like too much hair growth. It is approved for use in Australia but can also be purchased worldwide online.
