The First Study of Cannabis and Sexual Function Specifically in Women
The Relationship between Marijuana Use Prior to Sex and Sexual Function in Women.
Bottom Line
A survey of 373 women found that cannabis use before sex doubled the odds of satisfactory orgasm, with most users reporting improved desire, pleasure, and orgasm quality.
Why It Matters
This was the first study designed specifically to examine how cannabis affects sexual function in women. With female sexual dysfunction affecting ~40% of women and only two FDA-approved treatments available, the finding that cannabis may enhance orgasm satisfaction opens a potential therapeutic avenue in an area with enormous unmet clinical need.
The Backstory
Female sexual dysfunction is one of the most common — and least studied — areas in medicine. An estimated 40% of women experience some form of sexual difficulty, from low desire to pain during intercourse to difficulty reaching orgasm. Yet the number of FDA-approved treatments for female sexual dysfunction can be counted on one hand, compared to more than two dozen for men.
Into this research desert walked Becky Lynn, an OB/GYN and sexual medicine specialist at Saint Louis University, who noticed something her patients kept telling her: cannabis helped. Women were reporting that using cannabis before sex increased their desire, made orgasms more intense, and reduced pain — but no one had systematically studied it. The medical literature on cannabis and sexuality was almost entirely focused on men, and mostly on negative effects (reduced sperm count, erectile dysfunction with heavy use).
In 2019, Lynn published the first study designed specifically to examine how cannabis use before sex affects sexual function in women. The results made national headlines — not because they were shocking, but because someone finally asked the question.
The Study
Lynn and colleagues surveyed 373 women presenting for gynecologic care at a single academic OB/GYN practice in St. Louis between March 2016 and February 2017. The survey asked about cannabis use patterns, whether they used cannabis before sexual activity, and how cannabis affected five domains of sexual function: sex drive, orgasm, lubrication, pain during sex (dyspareunia), and overall sexual experience.
The sample broke down into three groups:
The demographics reflected the practice population: mean age 34-37 years, majority white (51-73%), predominantly heterosexual (87-94%). This wasn't a nationally representative sample — it was a clinical population at a single center — but it was the first controlled look at a question that had only existed as anecdote.
The Results
The headline finding: women who used cannabis before sex had more than twice the odds of reporting satisfactory orgasms compared to women who didn't use cannabis (adjusted odds ratio 2.13, 95% CI 1.05-4.35, p=0.04). This held after adjusting for race — the most significant demographic variable in the analysis.
A secondary finding was equally interesting: frequent cannabis users — regardless of whether they used it before sex — also had twice the odds of satisfactory orgasm (aOR 2.10, 95% CI 1.01-4.44, p=0.02). This suggests the effect isn't purely situational. Regular cannabis use may shift baseline sexual function in ways that persist beyond the acute high.
The other four domains showed consistent trends in the same direction but didn't reach statistical significance:
The pattern is clear even where individual domains don't reach significance: cannabis before sex was associated with improvement in desire, orgasm, and satisfaction, with minimal effect on lubrication or pain. In a study powered for 373 participants with one significant primary outcome, the consistent direction of the non-significant results suggests real effects that a larger study would likely confirm.
Why It Might Work
Lynn proposed several mechanisms, each grounded in known cannabinoid pharmacology:
What This Study Didn't Measure
This was a first pass at an under-researched question, and it had important limitations that honest interpretation requires acknowledging.
Myth vs. Reality
The Evidence
Evidence-based analysis
Other limitations: the survey didn't define "sex" — participants used their own definition. It didn't assess timing between cannabis use and sexual activity, the amount consumed, or whether cannabis was used alongside alcohol or other substances. It didn't capture relationship context or partner satisfaction. And it was conducted at a single practice in St. Louis, limiting generalizability.
The Research Landscape
Lynn's study didn't exist in isolation. It was the first to ask about cannabis and female sexual function directly, but it arrived in a small and growing field.
What makes Lynn's contribution distinctive is focus. Rather than asking the broad question ("does cannabis affect sex?"), she asked the clinically relevant one: does cannabis use before sex improve specific, measurable domains of sexual function in women? And she asked it with the same validated-survey methodology used in pharmaceutical sexual dysfunction research.
Why This Matters Beyond the Bedroom
Female sexual dysfunction affects an estimated 40% of women at some point in their lives. The FDA has approved only two drugs for it — flibanserin (Addyi) and bremelanotide (Vyleesi), both for hypoactive sexual desire disorder, both with modest efficacy and notable side effects. There are no approved treatments for female orgasmic disorder.
For those curious about the broader interaction between cannabis and sexual health, our guide to sex and cannabis covers both sides — the potential benefits and the potential downsides for men including testosterone effects with heavy use. The picture is more nuanced than either "cannabis is an aphrodisiac" or "cannabis kills your sex drive" — and this study is the strongest evidence we have for one part of that picture.
The Relationship between Marijuana Use Prior to Sex and Sexual Function in Women
Lynn BK, Lopez JD, Miller C, Thompson J, Campian EC () · Sexual Medicine
Frequently Asked Questions
Cite this study
Lynn, Becky K; Lopez, Julia D; Miller, Collin; Thompson, Judy; Campian, E Cristian. (2019). The Relationship between Marijuana Use Prior to Sex and Sexual Function in Women.. Sexual medicine, 7(2), 192-197. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esxm.2019.01.003