The Sex Reimagined Podcast

Amy Reiley: Eat This, Get Horny? Discover the Science behind Aphrodisiacs | #114

Leah Piper, Dr. Willow Brown, Amy Reiley Season 3 Episode 114

Send us a text & leave your email address if you want a reply!

Can certain foods really enhance your sex drive? While chocolate and oysters might be the first aphrodisiacs that come to mind, there's much more to the science of sexual nutrition. Meet Amy Riley, our guest on this episode of the Sex Reimagined Podcast. Amy is a renowned authority on aphrodisiac foods, a speaker, cookbook author, and wine expert. With five cookbooks under her belt, including tantalizing titles like "Romancing the Stove," "Fork Me, Spoon Me," and "Eat Cake Naked," Amy brings a wealth of knowledge about the sensual world of food and its impact on our love lives.


EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS

  • The surprising connection between nutrition and sexual health
  • Top aphrodisiac foods for vulva owners and penis owners
  • Why dark chocolate is a must-have for vulva health (permission to indulge, granted!)
  • The unexpected benefits of peanuts for your love life
  • How spicy foods can heat things up in the bedroom
  • The power of omega-3s and selenium for sexual wellness
  • Why fiber is secretly crucial for your sex life


EPISODE LINKS *some links below may also be affiliate links

KING & QUEEN OF HEARTS. Leah & Willow's King & Queen of Hearts Intimacy Toolkit is on sale. Buy Now. 10% off Coupon: KINGANDQUEEN10.

THE MALE GSPOT & PROSTATE MASTERCLASS. This is for you if… You’ve heard of epic anal orgasms, & you wonder if it’s possible for you too. Buy Now. Save 20% Coupon PODCAST20.

THE VAGINAL ORGASM MASTERCLASS. Discover how to activate the female Gspot, clitoris, & cervical orgasms. Buy Now. Save 20% Coupon: PODCAST 20

LAST 10x LONGER. If you suffer from premature ejaculation, you are not alone, master 5 techniques to cure this stressful & embarrassing issue once and for all. Buy Now. Save 20% Coupon: PODCAST20.

Support the show


SxR Hotline | SxR Website | YouTube | TikTok | Pinterest | Instagram | Dr. Willow's Website | Leah's Website


Leah:

Hey, hey, hey, it is your favorite duo. We have Dr. Willa Brown and Leah Piper, Sex for Imagination Podcast, and we've got such a fun sexpert for you today.

Willow:

Yes, and her free gift right off the bat is six sexy snacks. We're going to put the link in the show notes. Amy Riley is her name and she is best known as an authority on aphrodisiac foods, but she's also a speaker, cookbook author, and consultant, as well as a freelance wine writer and wine competition judge. She's written five cookbooks in total, including Chili Aphrodisia, Romancing the Stove. And, um, the Love Diet. Then she's got another one that's called Fork Me, Spoon Me. Such a great title, yes. And Eat Cake Naked as well. So she's got some goodies for you.

Leah:

So, so many goodies. So, y'all know what to do. Tune in, turn on, and fall in love with Amy Riley.

Announcer:

Welcome to the Sex Reimagined Podcast, where sex is shame free and pleasure forward. Let's get into the show.

Leah:

All right, yay, Amy, you are here and you're about to turn us on with some food, girl. We love it.

Willow:

I'm so excited. Amy Riley is a specialist in aphrodisiac food. What a fun topic. How, okay, tell us how you got into this. Tell us your genesis story. Where did this sort of niche market come from?

Amy:

um, so it really came from learning learning how I really need to eat as a grown up. Um, when I was in my early twenties, I got very, very, very sick. Uh, and it took a long time to diagnose. And basically I had no energy. I kept losing weight. I was miserable. And when they finally figured out the problem, it turned out to be a systemic yeast infection, which might be the least sexy thing ever. Um, but, uh, as well as a severe mold allergy and the cure was basically diet. You know, a severe change of diet. Um, But I hated it. I hated it. It was the worst diet you could,

Willow:

it's a hard

Amy:

you could imagine,

Willow:

Yeah. The, the, the candida overgrowth in your body, that systemic yeast, and then the mold cleanse. I've done both of those diets

Amy:

I had to do it at the same

Willow:

challenging. You're like, what should I eat? Just celery all day long?

Amy:

I, yeah, I mostly, I, like, I had celery and roast turkey. That was about all I could

Willow:

Yeah. Pretty much. Yeah. It gets very boring. Right. And, and so that's how you got to kind of get more creative in the kitchen. It sounds like.

Amy:

well, I, so I'd always loved cooking. Um, but what that showed me, I, I, I got better so quickly. Like, it was remarkably fast. Within weeks, I felt like a

Leah:

oh,

Willow:

Oh, good.

Amy:

and so for me, it was just this profound, you know, it was my, aha, this is, this is the key to everything. What you put in your body is absolutely like, The key to all happiness in life. And you know, I, I also learned then it's, it's not just eating the right foods for your health, but also the right foods to make you feel happy and joyful foods, because I didn't get to have any joyful foods. And so now my, I, I build a whole career around helping people eat healthy, but joyful

Willow:

Nice. Love

Leah:

What, what do you consider joyful foods? Because I know what I would consider joyful foods, and it's McDonald's french fries and milk chocolate. Thank you very

Willow:

Oh, damn girl. No, sorry. And those are not on the joyful list.

Amy:

No.

Leah:

speak for yourself.

Amy:

I mean, I do enjoy a good french fry on occasion, but I'm also at this point, I'm also a migraine sufferer, so those are really, um. Pretty much off the list for

Leah:

yeah,

Amy:

But, um, but no, dark chocolate would be on the list. Oh, fresh fruits when they're in season. Like, nothing's

Leah:

Oh, totally.

Willow:

Love a good fresh fruit.

Leah:

Nothing's better. When it's at the peak of its season, there is nothing more beautiful to, uh, consume. I couldn't agree with you more.

Willow:

So when you sort of figure this So, um, diet out for yourself and, you know, started to feel better, started to heal in your own body. I imagine then you had more energy, so you were able to kind of, um, start to think about what you could do with what you were learning. Did you ever take a nutrition course, or did you just jump right in and start helping people?

Amy:

Well, what happened was I was actually working as a food and wine writer. So it was, you know, it was a natural I was mostly writing about wine at the time and

Willow:

drink.

Leah:

right, right. Yeah, I imagine you couldn't

Amy:

I could not, right? But my first job out of college happened to have been in, in a winery and I just really fell in love with it. And, you know, I happened to be this young voice who also had journalism experience. And so it was kind of easy to get jobs and that's what I was doing, but I wanted to make this shift. I enrolled in the Master of Gastronomy program at Le Cordon Bleu.

Willow:

Nice.

Amy:

was, you had to pick sort of an area for your self traction. Self directed study. There was a lot of it and I was just kind of like looking around like what what feeds all of my interests what feeds my interest in wine and nutrition, which don't really seem to go together very well and Um, and

Willow:

they can. They

Amy:

right and food and food history because I I did I was really interested in I still am really interested in food History and I found the topic of aphrodisiacs and it truly combines all All of my interests in this fabulous way and what I liked most about it was this seems like a really great way to reach people. Because you're telling them, you know, you're giving them ideas on eating better and making better food choices. But you're telling them to do it so they'll have a better sex life. So it felt like this is an easy sell. This is a great way to people get people interested in food. And so that's where it all happened. I did my dissertation on the relationship between food and sex in American pop culture and

Willow:

cool. I want to read your

Leah:

yeah, what was the most surprising thing in your research?

Amy:

Wow, you know, that was a long time ago Um, I think the most surprising thing for me was the number of pop culture references that combined food and sex like there was actually a lot of material and I didn't I didn't expect it when I started. So...

Leah:

mean the only thing that comes to mind is American pie.

Amy:

well American Pie

Leah:

Yeah,

Amy:

Also, there was, there was a whole Friends episode about sex or cake.

Leah:

oh,

Amy:

better, sex or cake? Um, so there were a lot of things like that. the thing that I found most interesting when you look historically at aphrodisiacs is I like to look at the time period and like what diseases were going on and what food source, you know, where the food shortages shortages were, and it was really became much more telling about, like, what really did you. And maybe why, when you look at all of, when you get that whole big picture. Um,

Willow:

That's so cool. So you're looking at the whole sort of history of it in different cultures. So I imagine in like, you know, in Turkey and in Greece, there's different aphrodisiacs than we have here and in California, um, tell us, tell

Amy:

have never been that big, sadly, on aphrodisiacs as compared to, oh, it is. And you know, we've been a puritanical culture for pretty much since the beginning, I think. I mean, we're, we're moving away a bit from that, but, um, when I started working in this field, I was actually doing more interviews outside the U. S.

Willow:

Interesting.

Leah:

Oh,

Willow:

In Europe? I bet a lot in Europe. Mm hmm.

Amy:

also popular in Australia. These days I get a lot of web traffic from Africa. Yeah, yeah,

Willow:

Well, Africa's got its own whole set of herbs

Amy:

right. And they, they, yeah, there's a lot of interest in coming to my site just to read that historical information and the scientific information that I'm listing. That's

Willow:

So on your website, you have sort of everything that you've

Amy:

Yes, yes, not all, but a lot of it,

Willow:

Some of

Leah:

what's the name of your website?

Amy:

it's eatsomethingsexy. com.

Willow:

Great. Great. Love it.

Leah:

Okay. So though, how, how, how would you tell, right, um, penis owners versus vulva owners what to eat for their own aphrodisiac response? Are they different or are they the

Amy:

oh, yeah, totally different. Yeah, yeah, I mean not totally different, obviously. But I do, if you go to eatsomethingsexy. com, you'll find a list of the ten best foods for men, and the ten best foods for women. Um, we have, the site has a nutrition director, Who she actually started as my intern when she was at she was she was going to chef school And she became my intern and she was so captivated by like the nutritional side of sex that she went on to get her PhD in nutrition.

Willow:

Great.

Amy:

And so she and I created these lists together.

Willow:

Nice.

Amy:

So they combine, you know, a bit of the history as well as the nutrition and they all had to be like tasty things. We, we put in variety as well.

Willow:

And nice. I

Leah:

so give us an example that that that the audience could like even do tonight.

Amy:

So, oh, you, do you want like men's and women's together? Or do we

Willow:

Let's start, let's start with vulva owners.

Amy:

owners. All right. Vulva owners should have the dark

Willow:

Can I guess? Let me guess a couple. Are, are yams on there?

Amy:

No, they're boring.

Willow:

No. What about, what about

Amy:

But yes, they could be. Yams could be on there. No, cinnamon. I do have a lot of information on my site about cinnamon. It's very popular in Google searches. People are really into their cinnamon.

Willow:

I know Damiana, but that's like more of an herb, so not so much of a food. Okay. Surprised me.

Amy:

Okay, so, so vulva owners should have plenty of dark chocolate. Permission to eat dark chocolate. It actually helps balance the pH of the vagina, among other things. So, great, great choice for, you know, obviously the antioxidants. Um, are not only going to help you with looking and feeling, you know, younger, slowing, slowing those, those internal and external signs of aging. It's also good for heart health. And we always talk about that in conjunction with men, but women, of course, need to worry about heart health as well. And from my perspective. You need to worry about circulation because you can't have the optimal sexual experience if you don't have good circulation. So I'm always worried about heart health. Yes,

Leah:

oxygenated, fueled blood flowing down to the nether regions! Yes, yes, because the more plump your vulva is in arousal, the easier it is to climax and have very differing climaxes, you know, not just the regular clitoral orgasm, but you're much more likely to have a vaginal orgasm if you've got good blood flow coming to the vaginal lining and to the vulva itself.

Willow:

And this is gonna be especially more important if you're, if you're going through perimenopause or post menopause. So make sure you've got at least five bars of dark chocolate on hand. the darker, the better? Like 70, 90%.

Amy:

yeah, 70 90 percent throw cacao nibs on your salad, whatever it is. Yeah, all the, all the things. Yes,

Leah:

So, so why do we have to boohoo milk chocolate so much? Is it because of the sugar?

Amy:

you poor thing. Yes, it's, it's,

Leah:

Fuck you!

Amy:

chocolate.

Leah:

keeping my milk chocolate!

Willow:

her milk chocolate.

Amy:

There's a lot

Leah:

Oh, I love milk chocolate because the, the, the meltability factor, the way it melts in your mouth is much more sensual to me.

Amy:

know, there are

Willow:

raw dark chocolate. It would do the

Leah:

I do like raw dark chocolate, but

Amy:

are some brands that melt a little better than others, so you might need to experiment

Leah:

Any you can name here?

Amy:

know. Sure, um, it's not necessarily my favorite, but it's available everywhere and it melts on the tongue. It's Lint. L A N D T.

Leah:

Oh, sure. Uh

Willow:

actually really like lint. I was just in Mexico, and all I could find was lint and dark chocolate, so. It was great. Yeah, and I found like, uh, 90%, and then I found some straight cacao, and it really didn't taste that different.

Amy:

No, it doesn't taste that

Willow:

Yeah, but the, but the way the bars, you know, are more melty

Amy:

Right, because they're thin. They do, they make a nice, their bars are fairly wafer thin, which also helps, for sure, with the

Willow:

Mm hmm.

Amy:

So that's a good one.

Leah:

Any savory foods that you would recommend to women?

Willow:

Yeah, let's go down the list. Keep

Amy:

So, okay, well, um, well, let's talk about peanuts, actually. People are always surprised when It's just peanuts and I, I like to say the reason that peanuts are an aphrodisiac for women is because if you took peanut butter in a lab and put it under high pressure, it will make diamonds.

Willow:

really? Whoa

Amy:

there are actual nutritional reasons, uh, that peanut, I mean, peanuts don't sound sexy, but they're great for

Leah:

Chocolate covered peanuts sound sexy.

Willow:

Milk chocolate to Leah.

Leah:

I can only do dark chocolate with those.

Willow:

I think I had a dream last night about peanuts Actually, I was eating like a payday, which I don't ever eat fucking candy bars But in my dream, I think it's a precursor to

Leah:

Wow, I dreamed of snakes. Like, so many snakes.

Willow:

Wow,

Leah:

know, maybe it's because I'm the snake whisperer, what can I say?

Amy:

Wow.

Leah:

Okay, anyways, we digress. Um,

Amy:

does not, snake is not on the list, but,

Willow:

Okay, it's good meat though,

Amy:

yes, so, good meat,

Leah:

So when you say peanuts, Mel, I always saw peanuts on certain lists as being having a high mold content and, and it being a legume you may want to avoid.

Amy:

Well that, yeah, that depends, if you have a mold allergy, I can speak from experience, that's one you have to avoid, sadly, um, but for the rest of us Peanuts are great. Yeah, peanuts are great. They're,

Willow:

in it then that is good for us?

Amy:

So it is, so peanuts are good, first of all, source of protein, right? A sustainable source of protein. So that's always a good thing. Um, and peanuts are a source of arginine.

Willow:

Okay, L Arginine, a protein, an amino acid that is good for also circulation and

Leah:

Blood flow, right? It helps with, um, engorgement. And protein helps with ejaculation, fortifying ejaculation. Is that true?

Amy:

I, that is, you know what? That

Leah:

I could be, I might

Amy:

is beyond my, my knowledge. Um, that could

Leah:

I thought, I thought semen in particular had a high protein count, but

Willow:

Well, it definitely has a high protein count. I'm not sure, like, if a vegan male compared to a meat eating penis

Leah:

animal protein

Willow:

have a different level of semen coming out. That's a

Leah:

Well, I just thought maybe with the protein level in peanuts, it would be especially helpful for those who are, you know, having fertility, um, wanting to increase their fertility. I don't, I'm just making this shit up. I don't really know. Yeah, well,

Amy:

Yeah, yeah, it sounds

Leah:

sounded kind of smart. Okay,

Amy:

Eat peanuts. Yes.

Leah:

maybe don't take me so seriously

Willow:

Okay, okay, back to

Leah:

enjoy the peanuts, alright?

Willow:

Peanuts and dark chocolate, good

Amy:

So, one other point I want to make about peanuts, and this goes for a lot of the foods on the list, you'll notice. It's a recurring theme. Good source of fiber,

Willow:

Mm hmm.

Amy:

which we don't think about fiber as being sexy, but fiber is so, fiber is really important to your sex life.

Willow:

Heck yeah, you don't want to have a bloated belly. I haven't had poop in four days.

Amy:

gotta move it all

Willow:

that stuff out. You gotta be empty, you gotta clear,

Amy:

Yeah.

Leah:

sex is much better when you are not full.

Amy:

Yep.

Willow:

y'all have noticed that already.

Leah:

yeah, yeah, yeah.

Willow:

Okay, what else is on the list?

Amy:

Um, I love chili peppers, and this is one I like to talk about not just for women, but also for like a romantic evening. Um, and this is, this one has to come with like the caveat, you have to like spice. If you don't like spice, or your partner doesn't like spice,

Willow:

not gonna work.

Amy:

don't, don't go trying to sell them on, on chilies. It's really,

Leah:

because not everybody processes that well can create a lot of indigestion and discomfort, which would be, that would oppose the sexy element, but I can see how the warming qualities of Chile, um, what does that do precisely? Mm hmm.

Amy:

Well, they, they warm you up. You get, you're kind of a little more amenable to tearing off your clothing,

Leah:

Yeah, yeah,

Amy:

Uh, they, they do make your lips plump up a little, so you're, you seem a little more kissable. Uh, some psychologists have suggested that the, the flush it can bring to your cheeks if you eat enough chili. Uh, but Someone who's attracted to you, it will, like, equate to a sexual flush in their mind. It'll turn them on a little bit to see you with that flush. So these things are all fun. Um, if you

Leah:

Well, I imagine cinnamon, cinnamon does the same thing, right? It's known for its warming quality. So I'm

Amy:

to a, to a lesser degree. To a lesser degree, yeah. Yeah.

Willow:

You know, I recently put on some, uh, lip gloss of a friend of mine. It had capsicum in it, and it was like my lips were on fire. I was not, I'm not a fan of spice, so it wouldn't work for

Leah:

little too much for

Willow:

okay, but tell us how this works in a romantic environment. The romantic night,

Amy:

yes, so you're having your romantic evening, you make something that tastes a little spicy, and the two of you are both getting warmed up, you're getting that flush. Um, if you eat enough of it, and I have never eaten enough spice to, to experience this, so I can't, I can't, you know, say firsthand, but supposedly you'll get like an endorphin rush, like a runner's high, like this incredible feel good, endorphin rush. Take on the world feeling and, um, which can also help you, you know, throw off some inhibitions and go for it.

Willow:

Mm hmm.

Amy:

So, I'm never gonna get there, but

Leah:

I know people who really love spicy food and I've, I've watched that happen where it's like, especially when they're being challenged to do something extremely spicy and you can see the endorphin rush

Willow:

They're like, I'm gonna do it.

Leah:

they talk about that quite a bit in, in like taste testing of like spicy hot sauces and whatnot. I do not tolerate spice well, unfortunately. I always think of like all these amazing countries that you would travel to, that I want to travel to. Where the cuisine is so much of its like wonder and delicacy and range is based on chilies. And I'm like, I don't know. Dammit, I

Amy:

Oh, they'll be, they're, they're kind to foreigners, you know, they'll be, they'll

Leah:

Yeah. Yo, sure, sure. But still, like, I get, I miss out on a certain range that I watch on these, like, culinary television shows of, like, how amazing this different variety of, of chilis are. And in, you know, going beyond chilis, I think one of the things that's really interesting about taste. And then the last thing is it gives you an opportunity to savor something. And so there's the senses that food evokes, right? When we smell something, something really wonderful, again, like cinnamon cookies can give us a throwback to a warm, cozy feeling that kind of opens and relaxes the body. So when you have things It gets you salivating. It brings you into your senses and then you get to taste something. If it's food, that's like finger food, you get to touch the thing. And then our eyes are perceiving the beauty of something. And so when you have all these different senses, and I'm sure you make this point in your work, it's like now we're engaging in sensuality, which does not make a very hard, you know, jump into sexuality. So.

Amy:

one of my cookbooks, Romancing the Stove, I built all of the yeah,

Leah:

You're great at like iterations on

Willow:

I know, love

Amy:

Well, I also wrote Fork Me, Spoon Me, so

Willow:

my god, I love it. I

Leah:

my god,

Amy:

But, um, in Romancing the Stove, I built every recipe on those kind of principles. I tried to have multiple textures and temperatures. In every dish, and a variety of colors whenever possible. So that you had a full sensory experience. That it was more sensual, essentially. Yeah.

Leah:

And I think sensuality is an important bridge because it's one of those things that People everywhere have a felt sense for. There's other sort of exotic sexuality that we often highlight on the show and it's not necessarily going to be everybody's cup of tea, but sensuality is very relatable.

Amy:

Yes, definitely.

Willow:

have senses, and when we tune into them, actually, those senses are the doorway to the moment that you're in, they're the doorway to presence, so we can really drop. And food is a great one to get present with. So that, okay. Tell us what's next on the list.

Amy:

Well, let's see. Oh, do we want to talk about men a little?

Willow:

Sure. Let's do penis owners.

Amy:

So, let's see. What do we have for men? What else? Salmon. Salmon's a good one.

Willow:

Mmm. Lots of omega 3s.

Amy:

Yes, I love the Omega 3s. They have a very positive effect on my husband, for sure.

Leah:

Okay, so why?

Amy:

on mood, on mood, not, like, not sexually, like.

Leah:

Okay, it doesn't like raise your testosterone or

Willow:

Good for your brain. It helps you like think more clearly. It's good for your heart. Um, What else? Omega 3s. The, what I know about Omega 3s is, is you want to have a ratio. So, they're good for inflammation. Like, if you have a, you want to have a ratio of 1 to 1 for Omega 6, Omega 9, and Omega 3. And Omega 6 and 9 are in a lot of different oils. So, we're already getting a lot of 6 and 9s in our diet. So, If we're not taking a three, then we've got an imbalanced ratio, usually, and that can cause inflammation. So usually getting more omega 3s in, um, is, is good for, you know, lowering pain in the joints, um, headaches, uh, you know, different things that feel inflammatory, maybe rashes or skin things,

Leah:

Yeah, but none of that sounds sexy, Willow. I mean, that just

Willow:

Sorry, I'm just doctoring over here.

Leah:

Oh,

Amy:

you know, I mean, it's, it's part of it.

Leah:

part?

Willow:

those are not sexy. That's why you want to eat salmon, okay?

Amy:

right, because salmon is, you know, kind of a sexy fish, so you're getting, you're getting all that while having this lovely fish. And I will say, there aren't a lot of great sources of omega 3, and so that's part of the reason salmon's on the list. Yeah, yeah, not a lot of great food sources. Um, so salmon, and so salmon is, for men, it's a good protein. It's a good protein for anyone, but obviously, but you know, I put peanuts on the list for women and we talked about it being a good protein. And, um, what people don't often don't realize is that your body has to work a lot harder to access that protein when you're eating a heavier, fattier meat than eating something that's a little more lean. So yeah, so we did, I did put a red meat on the men's list, which is bison.

Willow:

Buffalo. I was going to say buffalo

Amy:

yes,

Willow:

for the win. I think women need to eat buffalo too,

Amy:

Oh, I'm all for that. Yeah. Yes. Yeah, I'm all for that. Definitely. I, um,

Leah:

But why? What is it about buffalo that is aphrodisiac

Willow:

I'll let Aimee answer. I'm like, I want to talk,

Amy:

this sexy red meat. Um, so it's, again, it's a protein that's more accessible, right? And so it's a, it's a better, it's like, it's the better choice for your sex life than, say, beef or lamb. And then you can also, you know, Because you're, it's, yes, because it's more lean. Yes. Yes.

Willow:

and it's more filled with blood, you know, less fat, more blood, so again, circulation, blood flow for women who are still in their fertility years before and after you have your period, have some buffalo with a little bit of cinnamon and maybe some cayenne in there and boom, bada boom, bada bing, you're

Amy:

Or maybe some peppercorns

Willow:

you go.

Amy:

uh, what else can we warm you up with? Yeah. Yeah. So yeah, so, so back to the salmon. That's, um, that is a favorite of mine for men. And it's, it's, like, it's easy. It's accessible. It's easy to cook. I recommend Wild Over Farmed if you can possibly get it. Um, so that's, you know, that's good. Um, there's something else about salmon that's particular to men. I know what it is. It's the selenium. The

Willow:

Oh, nice.

Amy:

Um, we often talk about women having to potentially change their diet or get certain nutrients for, Conception, we don't, we kind of give men a past when in reality like it's, it takes two.

Willow:

need it too. Yeah.

Amy:

Selenium is great for, for men who are in, you know, who are trying to, they're not trying to conceive. We're in a couple.

Willow:

they're

Amy:

That is, well, they, yeah, they are trying to, well, yes, yeah,

Willow:

Selenium and zinc too. The, the combination of them together really is, um, helpful for your hormonal health. Do you recommend, um, what's the nut that's high in selenium? Brazil nuts or? Yeah.

Amy:

I do, they're not, they're not like on my list of the 10 best foods. Um, I do talk quite a bit about nuts in general and I will highlight that when I do, yes,

Willow:

Cool. Yeah. And then what about oysters? With the

Amy:

are so fun. Yes, oysters are good zinc food, for sure.

Willow:

Known aphrodisiac food.

Amy:

yes, yeah, oysters are fun, and of course,

Leah:

I've never gotten horny from eating oysters. I just really

Willow:

You need to eat more

Amy:

I think you, I

Leah:

I eat a lot of oysters. Like, I can eat two dozen to my head, you know? Like, no problem. But I've never felt like on, but yeah, like I've never had the urge like, oh, I gotta go have sex

Willow:

Well, what else are you eating with those oysters? Are you having pasta

Leah:

I'm probably having a cocktail. No, that's enough.

Amy:

Now, if you're having those french fries with the oysters, there might be a problem.

Leah:

Yeah, no, typically I have

Willow:

French fries and oysters definitely don't go together.

Leah:

You know, McDonald's doesn't serve oysters, y'all.

Amy:

Thank goodness.

Leah:

And I am, and I am a loyalist. If I'm going to eat a french fry, it's going to be McDonald's because frankly, they have the best fries on the planet and I'm not ashamed.

Willow:

There you go. No shame, no shame, no

Leah:

this girl! I worked hard to become shame free. I'm a McDonald's french fry. Okay, so moving on.

Amy:

great. They don't make either my list of the 10 best foods for men or women. Um, they are a great source of zinc, though, and they are historically aphrodisiac. A lot of people believe, you know, it's just the power of persuasion can make oysters successful. You hand someone a plate of oysters, you know what's on their mind, kind of thing. So it's fun. It's fun.

Leah:

Any foods that like, really um, give you a kind of a flood of testosterone that increases our urge to want to get sexy?

Amy:

Oh, so

Leah:

Or drive? Or sex

Amy:

Right. So, you know, that's something that is So, have you read that about oysters? Have you heard that whole study about the amino acids?

Leah:

No, mm mm.

Amy:

So, there was a study on amino acids that are found in bivalves. Um, the study was specifically on muscles, but they, you know, um

Leah:

Translates to other shellfish.

Amy:

Right, right. So, um, it did directly raise sexual hormone levels in rats. Um, nobody ever pursued it any further, so there's this kind of potential, maybe. I don't know. Yeah.

Willow:

curious, Amy, if you work with herbs much. Like, do you talk about ashwagandha in your work? Or are you a lither? No, ginseng. Okay. All mostly just foods. I don't, I wrote a cookbook too. It's called Eat Right for Your Hormones. And it's, you know, it's basically like what to eat specifically for women. But I've had, um, women who cook for their men. The men eat the food too. And, you know, trying to get pregnant, all the doctors say, oh, no way, you can't get pregnant. There's, you'll have to do IVF or you'll have to do some kind of alternative, um, you know, art therapy. And, um, They would eat, I've had couples eat from this cookbook for a good, a long time, like about a year, plus taking herbs and supplements and got pregnant naturally. So it, it really is such a testament to what you eat is like completely changes your, your genetic code. Like it changes your microbiome. When your microbiome changes, you are changing. So it's really, um, such a powerful thing. And, you know, I think one of the, One of the cool things about your cookbooks and your work is like, it's really drawing people in from this other lens, you know, it's like, okay, I don't want to just get my hormones healed, but I want to actually have my hormones healed so I can have a good sex life. So I love that. I'm curious. Have you ever, um, heard of Elissa Vitti and read her book, Woman Code?

Amy:

No,

Willow:

Anyway, she has a, you would like it. You would

Amy:

write that one down.

Willow:

Yeah.

Leah:

so I have a question. What about libations?

Amy:

Ooh. Well. Um, I was actually, funny, I will, I can, I can segue to that through the other food I wanted to talk about for men is pineapple.

Willow:

Nice.

Amy:

know, the

Leah:

that, that, did that make that top 10?

Amy:

pineapple. Yes, pineapple does make my top ten and not for the reason that you may be thinking. Um, it,

Willow:

have any idea what I would think.

Leah:

It's the flavor

Amy:

the

Willow:

Oh, flavor of

Amy:

Yeah, the semen thing.

Willow:

what?

Amy:

So that is

Leah:

to be true, by the way? Do

Willow:

I haven't noticed.

Amy:

No. Ha ha!

Willow:

I was just in Mexico, we were eating a lot of pineapple.

Leah:

I do think that like a cleaner diet does change the flavor

Willow:

Cleaner diet and less stress, for sure.

Amy:

yeah. Well, one of the doctors I talked to about this suggested that it's probably, if people are noticing a difference, because there's a lot of anecdotal evidence, and people are probably noticing a difference because of the acidity in the pineapple will diminish any bitterness a little bit. And that's really all it is, which means that anything that's, like, pretty acidic

Willow:

lemon.

Amy:

yeah, a lemon, some, um, hibiscus tea, something, you know, would probably, would probably all do the same thing. Um, pineapple is, though, associated with potentially triggering testosterone production.

Willow:

Cool. Is it the bromelain in

Amy:

bromelain, yeah, the bromelain will, it helps reduce inflammation. It can also, you know, so it can help potentially with the sexual experience, but it also helps trigger testosterone production. So that kind of goes back to your earlier question as well. So, and it's also a pineapple juice, obviously the popular libation. Um, the most important thing to me about pineapple is it's full of water, which people don't think about, but hydration is like one of the most important keys to enjoying your sex life. Uh, you know, and so I, that's the first thing I

Leah:

Why is that? What, what is it about hydration that can improve your sex life?

Amy:

Well,

Willow:

sex life, but your entire life.

Amy:

your entire

Leah:

I know, but I want to know specifically

Amy:

specifically to your sex life. Well, I mean semen production. Semen is liquid,

Leah:

ejaculation, I imagine, it

Amy:

female ejaculation. Well, just, just, just vaginal lubrication.

Willow:

Yep.

Amy:

So it's just, and it's, you know, um, I mean it reduces chances of headaches. So you got to feel good to be in the mood. I mean, it's

Willow:

Joint pain improves, your skin is healthier, your heart is healthier.

Amy:

You look, you look better. You feel better. You look, your face plumps up. All of

Leah:

hmm. Yeah, you look younger. Yeah,

Willow:

I have, um, patients come in sometimes and they're like, Uh, what herbs do I need? I'm always like, Well, how much water are you drinking?

Amy:

Yes,

Leah:

Nah,

Willow:

like, why don't you start drinking more water and then we'll talk herbs. Like,

Amy:

I had one, I had one urologist tell me if his patients all drank enough water, he'd probably have half the patients.

Willow:

Yep, that's so true. Even depression is usually due to dehydration. Um, anxiety, depression, a lot of mood issues as well. Irritability, frustrations.

Leah:

of digestion because a lot of those moon hormones are are actually developed in the stomach. They're made in the stomach. They're not made in the brain. So if that, I mean, although our brain is like 90 percent water, so if you're not drinking enough fluids, your brain is also really dehydrated, which creates all sorts of foggy issues. Okay, but I didn't mean to go to the brain. I want to go to, I want to stay on the libation because I'm curious if you ever teach sort of sex techniques in relationship to you. your foods. Cause I got one. I want to know if you know what it is.

Amy:

but I'd love to hear yours.

Leah:

So there's a really sexy kiss. that you can do with, let's say, and especially it's fun with different temperatures. So a little, a little, a mouthful of like a bubbly water, especially if it's a little flavored naturally, or champagne, you know, a little Prosecco in the mouth. And so one, the, the kisser takes the sip of the libation of choice. It could also be a hot tea. Um, so it could be a juice. It could be ice water versus room temperature water versus hot water. And you take one a sip of the beverage and then you bring your kiss to the kissee and it's the kissee that with an inhalation breath sucks the libation from their partner's mouth. The kisser does not push the fluid into their lover's mouth. It is the kissee that sucks. the fluid from their lover's lips and they swirl it around their mouth and then they can pass the slibation back and forth, should they choose, or the kissee can simply swallow it. But there's an elixir. When you bring your tongue to the roof of the palate, there is something in Tantra called the um, Willow, help me with this.

Willow:

Well,

Leah:

It is the, it's the elixir. It's the yoni of the mind drops the quintessence. So there is the yoni of the mind drops this elixir, which is the quintessence of the spirit. And then when you mix that with the fluid, with the libation, so this is a little ancient, woo woo, a little esoteric out there, um, for your enjoyment folks. And then you, you either, you, again, you either pass that, you know, Beautiful libation back and forth, or you take another sip of a different temperature and then you pass that back and forth, or you take a mouthful, let's say, of a bubble water or, um, a, a sparkling wine and you go down on your partner, and the trick to that is, let's say you were in, uh, uh, experiencing or giving, giving fellatio. You would bring that bubbly fluid and as you, as you love your lover with your mouth, you're swirling that libation all around their genitals and you're trying not to swallow too much and also not to let any of it leak out. Naturally, a little bubble here and there is going to fall from your lips down their beautiful shaft. And, and then you see how long can you do that, letting just, Just teeny bits dribble at a time, maybe a little bit goes down your throat a little bit. And you can do the same thing with Kali Lingus. So there you go, folks. That is my tip of the day.

Willow:

I had a,

Amy:

That was fun. That's a fun one. Although I gotta tell you, I'm a total germaphobe that I could never, I

Leah:

Do it back and forth.

Amy:

I could never do

Leah:

I'm sure that

Willow:

there's a lot of

Leah:

a number of

Willow:

mouth. Yeah.

Leah:

but you know, we kiss, we kiss passing the saliva unbeknownst to us. So for some people, it's fine. For other people, they're like, ick, that is not a yum. That

Amy:

No, it's, I think it sounds really fun, but I could never do it. I just know it's not, it's

Willow:

And for some vulva owners out there, you want to make sure you don't have too much sugar all over

Amy:

I was, that was my other, yeah, I was thinking that as well because yikes.

Willow:

But for some people, it's fine. So you just find what works for you. It's just something fun to

Leah:

it's not like you're bathing in the sugary juice or in a sip of

Willow:

you're pouring,

Leah:

like a teaspoon of something and then they're lapping it up. So I don't think you should fear. Yeah.

Amy:

Yeah. so my, my, the safe, safe version of that for germaphobes, and this is one I just tell, I suggest to women, is when you're drinking wine and you have lipstick on, um, it, It works with other drinks too, but it has to be with a glass, not a straw or anything. Um, you lick it first. You lick where you're going to sip. So you have

Leah:

Oh,

Amy:

and then you drink, and your lipstick doesn't come off, and people think it looks really hot when you do it. You're doing it for, you're doing it for a

Willow:

time I'm

Amy:

but people get turned on by your licking your

Leah:

That's a great tip. I like that. That is

Willow:

Let's go wine tasting, Leah.

Leah:

cheeky with that. I love it. And it's really annoying to get that lipstick on the glass. Like I can't stand it when it's on my mug.

Amy:

No, I know, I

Leah:

Yeah. Yeah.

Amy:

But yeah, lick the glass.

Leah:

wow.

Willow:

point?

Amy:

I have written or co authored five

Willow:

Nice. Well done. And they're all found on your website?

Amy:

Um, they are, so a couple are out of print. Um, and they're, you can find them, everything is sold on Amazon.

Willow:

Oh, great.

Amy:

They're all, they're all sold, um, I guess all of them are in e book form as well, so you can buy them from any e book retailer, Apple or Kobo or wherever you go for your e books. So, yeah, and then my newest thing is sold exclusively through my website, it's called the Better Sex Bundle for Men. And that is a book that I wrote called Fuel Your Fire for Men, and then I, it is accompanied by printable worksheets that support the idea of you're going to eat to fuel your fire. Um, so, yeah, so you can, you know, a journal to plan your own, plan your own menus, a sample menu, so that you Kind of know what's expected, and I don't ever do any, it's not, it's not calorie based, I don't, because everybody's calorie needs are so different, I, I don't believe in that kind of, you know, giving that kind of advice, um, but it's all on making the right food choices each day, and kind of planning that out.

Willow:

Yeah, what's this sort of like if somebody was coming brand new to your work and they're okay I want to eat right from a sex drive What would they what would you tell them that they should be expecting time wise to spend on, you know, sort of planning meals, going to the grocery store, cooking the meals. I mean, I am, I, that's the thing that keeps me away from cookbooks. Leah loves

Leah:

I love a

Willow:

but I'm like, ah, too much to look at and too much time. I'll just throw some food together.

Leah:

Oh,

Amy:

I mean, it should, well, you could, you could just throw food together with this plan, it's just use these ingredients and maybe stay away, reduce, you know, reduce your saturated fats. Try to eat less fried food. Don't swing through McDonald's.

Leah:

Unless you hate your life. No, just joking. Unless you want to hate your life. I don't know. I don't know which way it goes,

Amy:

mean, you know, we all need a convenient meal now and again. And actually one of the pieces in, in this package is, um, it's a journal

Willow:

Mmm,

Amy:

you note, and it's not a journal, like, uh, my feelings today journal. It was simply a checklist of how much water did I have today? Um, did I stay on the plan? Was today the day I went through McDonald's? How did I feel after that? How was my energy? You know? So you just become more aware. And maybe there are people who can swing through McDonald's once or twice a week and still, everything is still working perfect.

Leah:

Yeah. Or

Amy:

people who can't.

Leah:

whatever, you know. Maybe they do it a few times a year just to get that salty fix, you know. Then you just say, I'm gonna eat a half a thing of small fries or I'm gonna share a small fries. It doesn't always have to be like crazy extra large fries that you stuff down, you know. There's a mindfulness to those crispy, salty, fatty,

Willow:

I can't remember the last time I had a McDonald's

Amy:

Do you,

Leah:

Probably with me.

Willow:

Definitely not.

Amy:

do they, do you make them make you, them fresh for you? Are you one of those? Cause sometimes I do that.

Leah:

No, if they don't

Willow:

Oh,

Leah:

good, I just throw them out. So I have a healthy relationship to the McDonald's french fries. I don't overindulge. And I really am with the, the beauty of them. And I like them when they're not too crispy, when they're a little, like the soggier, more softer french fries. Actually my favorite one.

Amy:

Were they're just crunchy on the end and then kind of

Leah:

yes. Uh huh. I'm kind of, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So I've been

Amy:

a sensory

Leah:

It's a total sensory thing and it brings joy. It is, it is one of those things that

Willow:

It's on Leah's joy

Leah:

release. Yeah, and it's a way that I pleasure myself.

Willow:

God bless.

Leah:

And it's a childhood comfort food. There's all sorts of associations that I think food has that opens us. And so I'm, I'm a big believer in Not being restrictive when it comes to food, when, when you really have foods and that there's a great variety of foods that bring you joy and make you feel good, that open you, and when close foods close you, those are the foods that I try to stay away from, like something that's too spicy, or when I overeat. Well, like when there's an overindulgence in the french fries, I feel like shit. You know, and I, and then there's a feeling, there's an emotional thing that goes down. I want to take a nap. There's all sorts of symptomology that I think we have to consider when we are playing with things that are in our mouth.

Amy:

But do you know, most people don't, aren't observant of that, and that's really a large part of the problem. Because if you know, and okay, today I'm going to eat cake and have my sugar slump,

Leah:

Uh huh. Right. Right.

Amy:

then great. But people aren't aware enough, and that's part of the better sex bundle for men. It's not a restrictive diet in any way, really. It's, it's encouraging and, and. Increasing awareness more than anything and giving you kind of the tools to like, these are the things that are going to make your sex life go pretty well. It's, you know, your choice, how much of them you want to do.

Willow:

There's a couple of pretty easy to follow sort of rules of thumb with that like balance of pleasure foods versus like eating really healthy. One is just

Amy:

Yeah.

Leah:

I indulge. Yeah,

Willow:

And then I, I'm always coaching women particularly to follow their menstrual cycle. That's what my whole cookbook is based on is like the menstrual cycle. So the four phases of the, of the moon cycle of the menstrual cycle and eating according to those. So I actually have dark chocolate in one of the specific phases, but I love that you're like. Eat as much of it as you want all month long.

Amy:

Yes. All month long. Please do. Yes.

Willow:

Yeah.

Leah:

final question and that is, you know, considering your cookbooks is how would you design a meal that like, you know, could you pick like a recipe that you could kind of describe to us that has like, okay, there's like maybe three to four parts to a meal to a dish that you want to create for your partner. And each one has an element that kind of is more efferdigiac than, you know, what you normally serve on Mondays.

Amy:

Hmm. Wow. That is, I, on the spot, I'm like, what do I do? What do I say? Um, I will, well, first of all, I will say this is all so dependent. Like I don't want to give someone this is the meal and have them feel that way and make it a meal with, I don't know, halibut and mushrooms. And they're like, halibut and mushrooms are gross. Um, that's fine. You don't have to eat. They're both, by the way, both aphrodisiacs, but you don't have to eat halibut and mushrooms. Um, when you talked about like the different experience, so like the textural and everything. I thought of a recipe, it's in, which of my books, I think it's in Fork, Wee, Spoon, Me, my first book, um, and it's a gingerbread recipe, which actually isn't even my recipe, a chef friend of mine, Sondra Bernstein, uh, gave me this recipe for the book because she knew I was featuring ginger

Leah:

Oh,

Amy:

book, but it is a triple ginger, gingerbread, so she uses three kinds of ginger. And it really, it changes the experience. So you've got fresh grated ginger, which has that bite, right? You've got ground ginger, which gives it a kind of a mellow, carries like this mellow ginger flavor through the whole, it's a quick bread, so that through the whole quick bread. And then the top is sprinkled with candied ginger, which is chunky and chewy and zingy and sweet. And

Leah:

lots of texture. Yeah. Well, I love that. So you all, if you got to try this ginger bread, this quick bread, which I love it when it's a quick bread, then, um, yeah. What's it called again? Uh, spoon and fork.

Amy:

fork

Willow:

fork me, spoon

Leah:

Fork me, spoon me. God, I love it.

Willow:

Fork me, spoon

Leah:

Yeah, or slow. I don't know.

Willow:

or soft. Whatever mood you're in.

Leah:

Cool. Well, uh, thank you so much, Amy. It's been a pleasure to have you here on the show and I hope we've inspired all y'all out there to really reconsider, like, how are you eating? What are you eating? What are you, do you and your lover enjoy? And can you add some of these beautiful ingredients that Amy has described to make your sex life more spicy, more fun, more juicy? So with that, please stay tuned. We've got the dish coming up and you don't want to miss it. Amy, thanks for being here and we'll stay in touch.

Amy:

Thank you so much.

Leah:

Love, love, love.

Announcer:

Now, our favorite part, the dish.

Leah:

Yes,

Willow:

fun to bring them together at last.

Leah:

aphrodisiac food. I'm so glad that you have stayed tuned to Tune Into The Dish and that you're continuing with the episode. We love it when you do that because this is one of our favorite parts. To sit down and talk about the things that we really liked about our sexpert and, um, It was fun to see someone who's created an entire career around helping people with aphrodisiac foods. I'm kind of surprised that there's a niche for that. I'm

Willow:

I've never really heard of anyone else doing that, so she's got the market on that one. It's probably, it's herbs,

Leah:

that you had so much to say, you know, that you like, You are like coming up with these, like, I don't know if they're vitamins, are they nutrients, I don't know what the hell they are, herbs, really, you're like, Celium, and something that started with a B, and I'm like, what's in the pineapple, I was, and you're, you're naming, like, amino acids, I'm like, of course Willow would know these random things that are in these random foods.

Willow:

Well, yeah, I studied nutrition like for years and years and years. One of my favorite all time favorite Nutrition books y'all is called the diet cure by Julia Ross. She also has the mood cure So she really talks about amino acid therapy in that book and most amino acids which are The proteins, the building blocks for proteins, for our bodies and our tissues and everything that makes us feel strong and healthy. Um, she talks about different amino acids for whatever's going on. Like if you have an addiction to, let's say nicotine or addiction to sugar or an addiction to, um, you know, alcohol there, you can use food as medicine. And so not only is it to get you out of the hole in life, but as Amy brought forward, it's to get you on top of your life and get you more like into your arousal state and your sexy mode. And you know, one of my favorite things to do is strawberry kissing. I don't know if you've ever tried that, but it's like you take a bite. And you put the other half in the other person's mouth and then you bite it together and you can kiss from there. Oh, it's fantastic. Other fruits don't quite measure up to strawberries.

Leah:

to eat those fruit, the fruits together, it's just messy.

Willow:

Oh, I think it's fantastic. You have to have the right kisser. Has to be the right match and it has to all line up. But, um, yeah, I thought it was so fun. You know, what she brought forward about, you know, the different foods for, for different genders. And I'm all about that stuff. I mean, that's what my whole cookbook is based on too. So.

Leah:

Yeah, I have to say it doesn't really resonate with me, the, the foods and the reaction to sex drive. I have not had the felt sense when sort of paying attention to that sort of thing. It's, I'm, maybe it's because I like more instant gratification, hence the crispy French rice from McDonald's. It's

Willow:

And the milk

Leah:

yeah, and then they'll talk like, I want that instant gratification. That's what's going to open my sense of sensuality and sexuality.

Willow:

So I think that's super valuable for everyone to take note of. Like, it doesn't have to be nutritionally sound in order to arouse you. Like, whatever is arousing for you, let that be true to that. Be honest with yourself about that.

Leah:

I feel like from an aphrodisiac point of view, I think it's, for me, my body, and I know people are, they, I'm not super sensitive to things, like other people, they feel what they put in their body, um, in terms of their health, like, they're way more sensitive than my body just isn't, and maybe that's because I have a I haven't developed an attunement to like measure that. I'm much more attuned to emotional experiences when it comes to foods and what I put in my mouth or, you know, so again like for me aphrodisiac wise, I would be concentrating on the things that open my senses. That's what, that would be aphrodisiac for me and then that's, I would create a palate for

Willow:

one of the things you can find in Leah's refrigerator, y'all, is like a little cup of, of pieces of orange that it's already been peeled, and there's just little slices of orange, and when you put them in the fridge, then the, the skin kind of dries out a little bit, and then you take a bite, and the skin is like crispy. crunchy and cold, and the inside is all juicy and delicious and sweet. And then she'll dip it, or I don't know if you do this, but I imagine you doing it. You dip it in that Greek yogurt that you get at the farmer's market and hot damn, I mean, there's aphrodisiac right there.

Leah:

Yeah, they're that, that wonderful probiotic yogurt and it, and it's, thank you for mentioning one of my favorite snacks on the whole world is those, those little orange segments. And I prefer the sumo orange or the, that sumo, mandarin. Um, and to just be able to take that crispy, tight skin around those juicy ness and Right. It's cold. You dip it in that creamy yogurt and I'm gonna have that after this, uh,

Willow:

Heck yeah.

Leah:

moment because

Willow:

I bought

Leah:

in my fridge.

Willow:

I know I bought a couple oranges thinking just about you the other day. I even bought a grapefruit. You know, one of the, um, foods that I think is really, really powerful for, uh, for both genders, but especially for women, is avocado. That is a really, really, It's great for, well, it has lots of, um, healthy fats in it,

Leah:

Uh huh.

Willow:

And then it's also got tons of fiber in it. And when you cut an avocado in half, it looks like a little womb, actually. And then, yes. And then for the brain, little walnuts. If you have a walnut, it looks like a brain. Um, kidney beans, good for the kidneys. You know, all these different, like, foods that look

Leah:

look like the organ.

Willow:

actually good for those organs, which is really interesting.

Leah:

carrots and eyes.

Willow:

Yes, carrot, beta carotene in the carrots. You know, one of the things that, um, that she, or it's vitamin A in carrots, but anyway, one of the things that she definitely probably doesn't have on her list for, for aphrodisiac foods is organ meats, but they are really effing good for your hormones, which is going to be good for your libido and your sex drive.

Leah:

that's right. In fact, I want to encourage people to go check out that Hormone Happiness Kit over at the Sex Reimagined website that Willow has created for y'all that has to do with nutrition and herbs and will really get your hormones online and your

Willow:

you can check out my cookbook on my website, Dr. Willow Brown. It's there.

Leah:

All right. Well, thank you so much, Amy. It was a delight having you. And for the rest of y'all, have a stupendous day or evening, whatever time it is, wherever you are in the world.

Willow:

Ciao, ciao.

Leah:

Love, love.

Announcer:

Thanks for tuning in. This episode was hosted by Tantric Sex Master Coach and Positive Psychology Facilitator, Leah Piper, as well as by Chinese and Functional Medicine Doctor and Taoist Sexology Teacher, Dr. Willow Brown. Don't forget, your comments, likes, subscribes and suggestions matter. Let's realize this new world together.

People on this episode