What Causes the Loss of Sex Drive?

The first thing to understand is what causes the loss of sex drive in woman. While it is necessary to speak to a doctor to make the final determination here are possible causes of reduced libido:
· Hormonal imbalance. There are many types of things that can be imbalanced here including progesterone. Progesterone is responsible for your libido but can fall quite low during pre-menopause.
· Fatigue. Of course you can see that there is a real connection here. One of the most common reasons for fatigue is the fact that there is another hormonal imbalance or there is poor nutrition coming into the body.
· Adrenal exhaustion can also be a factor that causes the hormones to go the wrong direction. It can be caused by medical menopause occurrences.
· Stress, depression, and even child birth are also contributing factors to the lack of sex drive that women have. These situations may not be as easy to fix, but they are common signs of something being wrong.

Licorice

Historical or traditional use: Licorice has a long and highly varied record of uses. It was and remains one of the most important herbs in traditional Chinese medicine. Among the most consistent and important uses were as a demulcent (soothing, coating agent) in the digestive and urinary tracts, to help with coughs, to soothe sore throats, and as a flavoring. It has also been used to treat conditions ranging from diabetes to tuberculosis to Hot flashes.
Active constituents: The two most important constituents of licorice are glycyrrhizin and the flavonoids. Glycyrrhizin is anti-inflammatory and inhibits the breakdown of the cortisol produced by the body.1 2 It also has antiviral properties. Licorice flavonoids, as well as the closely related chalcones, help digestive tract cells heal. They are also potent antioxidants and work to protect the cells of the liver.

Licorice and Women's Homones

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Licorice root contains a saponin-like glycoside, glycyrrhizin (glycrrhizic acid) and has historically been used for a variety of female disorders and also as an expectorant and antitussive in treatment of respiratory tract infections and asthma. It is believed to reduce estrogen while increasing progesterone and is used for this reason by Dr. Michael Murray in his clinical practice. Licorice has a steroid component that can change to the estrogen precursors estradiol and estrone, and it can therefore provide mild estrogenic properties. Glycyrrhizin has a regulatory action over estrogen metabolism, i.e. when estrogen levels are too high it inhibits estrogen action, and when estrogen is too low, glycyrrhizin potentiates it. This is a useful factor for many female hormonal problems, including PMS.
Licorice is considered a powerful drug that is useful in treating a number of conditions, such as peptic ulcers, malaria, abdominal pain, insomnia and infection. This herb’s uses have been substantiated by modern research, and it is generally considered very safe in moderate doses. German health authorities consider maximum doses of up to 100 mg of glycyrrhizin (the major active component of licorice) a day acceptable and safe. However, it should not be taken for more than 4-6 weeks without medical advice.
Are there any side effects or interactions? Licorice products without the glycyrrhizin removed may increase blood pressure and cause water retention. Some people are more sensitive to this effect than others. Long-term intake of products containing more than 1 gram of glycyrrhizin (which is the amount in approximately 10 grams of root) daily is the usual amount required to cause these effects. As a result of these possible side effects, long-term intake of high levels of glycyrrhizin are discouraged and should only be undertaken if prescribed by a qualified health care professional.
Deglycyrrhizinated licorice extracts do not cause these side effects because there is no glycyrrhizin in them.
Special United Kingdom Considerations: Licorice is either not available or may require a prescription. Please check with your nutritionally oriented physician.

Burdock- also helps cleanse the liver

Historical or traditional use: In traditional herbal texts, burdock root is described as a “blood purifier” or “alterative.” Burdock root was believed to clear the bloodstream of toxins. It was used both internally and externally for eczema and psoriasis as well as to treat painful joints and as a diuretic. In traditional Chinese medicine, burdock root in combination with other herbs is used to treat sore throats, tonsillitis, colds, and even measles. It is eaten as a vegetable in Japan and elsewhere.
Burdock root has recently become popular as part of a tea to treat cancer. To date, only minimal research has substantiated this application.
Active constituents: Burdock root contains high amounts of inulin and mucilage. This may explain its soothing effects on the gastrointestinal tract. Bitter constituents in the root may also explain the traditional use of burdock to improve digestion. It also contains polyacetylenes that have been shown to have antimicrobial activity. Burdock root and fruit also have the ability to mildly lower blood sugar (hypoglycemic effect). Even though test-tube and animal studies have indicated some antitumor activity for burdock root, these results have not been duplicated in human studies.

Milk Thistle

Using herbs like milk thistle detoxicate the liver and thus helps it process sex hormones better.

Milk Thistle
Botanical name: Silybum marianum.

May help: Hepatitis, cirrhosis, mushroom poisoning, liver inflammation, and liver damage caused by alcohol abuse, long-term use of medications, and chemical exposure; endometriosis; and Parkinson’s disease.

Special instructions: For maximum absorption, take with food.
Origin: Native to the Mediterranean.

Cautions and possible side effects: Generally regarded as safe; may cause loose stools.

Good Health Depends on Proper Liver Function
A healthy liver cleanses the body by:
Filtering the blood: Each minute nearly 2 quarts of blood pass through the liver for detoxification. When functioning properly, it clears 99% of the impurities before blood re-enters circulation
Secreting bile: Every day a healthy liver produces a quart of bile, which carries toxins to the intestine for elimination.
Neutralizing toxins: Through a complexity of enzymatic processes, a healthy liver neutralizes toxins directly or converts them into fat or water-soluble forms to be eliminated from the body.
A Healthy Liver Enables the body to:
Produce energy when needed
Store key vitamins, minerals & sugars
Manufacture new proteins
Control cholesterol production & excretion
Facilitate proper digestion
Maintain hormone balance

source-bodyandfitness.com

Vitamins as stimulants

Vitamins James F. Balch, M.D., co-author of Prescription for Nutritional Healing, says that "vitamin deficiency can cause a deficiency in estrogen levels and result in improper lubrication." He recommends damiana, kelp, vitamin B-complex, vitamin E, fish liver oil, lecithin, vitamin C with bioflavonoids, and zinc to help with symptoms. Supplementation with boron, a trace mineral, is also suggested, especially for post-menopausal women. However, keep dosages low: too much boron increases risk of osteoporosis. Essential fatty acids (EFAs) are also important, and come from flaxseeds and borage, evening primrose and black currant oils.

Foods and spices as stimulants

Coffee, cola and chocolate, all stimulants, have folkloric reputations as libido-enhancers. From the spice rack come anise, fennel, sage and parsley, also reputed to boost sex drive. (But don't substitute fennel oil for this, say experts, it's toxic in relatively small quantities.) There are a number of traditionally-known aphrodisiacs, masquerading as gourmet treats, from various world cultures-including oysters, asparagus, etc.-but it's unclear whether they really work.

Conventional Hormone Supplements

Testosterone or DHEA are two possible libido-enhancers. Both should be undertaken with physician supervision. And, estrogen replacement therapy, or ERT, controversial in some circles, may make sexual activity more comfortable and pleasurable, but it has no effect on sexual desire-whereas testosterone does. (Surprisingly, testosterone, famous as a "male" hormone, is present in women as well, to diminishing degrees over time, and it affects sexual arousal and responsiveness.)

Forces of attraction

To come up with the list, Meston and Buss asked 444 men and women, age 17 to 52, to list reasons why they, or people they've known, have had sex. They then had 1,500 undergraduate students at UT-Austin rank the reasons on a one-to-five scale of how often they applied to their experiences.

Twenty of the top 25 reasons given were the same for men and women, and the No. 1 for both was "I was attracted to the person."
"I was surprised there wasn't a great gender difference," said Meston. "Women were more likely to say they wanted to express their love for the person, but they were very quick to also cite physical reasons and out-of-control hormones most people associate with men."

Meston, who is continuing to collect data for follow-up studies, acknowledged that college students' out-of-control hormones tilt the results. Future studies will focus on other age groups, ethnic groups and religious people. Metson said she also wants to find out about the outcome of sex for which people gave particular reasons.

Despite youthful answers like "the person was too hot to resist," Meston said she was struck that the college students gave some reasons that might offer lessons for people of all ages, such as that sex helped them get to sleep.

"For older couples in which the sex drive is mismatched, it might be instructive to learn that not everybody is having sex for pleasure," she said. "Nothing's wrong with you — you just might need to find your own reason for having sex."