FDA approves flibanserin, the first pill to increase female libido

The FDA has approved flibanserin, the first pill to treat sexual dysfunction in premenopausal women.

The pink pill will be sold under the brand name Addyi. A 2002 study found that about one-third of adult women could have hypoactive sexual desire disorder, meaning they lack sexual desire or fantasy. Sprout Pharmaceuticals, the maker of the drug, says that during clinical trials, women taking flibanserin experienced a 37 percent increase in sexual desire.

Addyi doesn’t work in the same way as Viagra, the male pill for erectile dysfunction. Viagra is taken before a sexual encounter and treats a physical problem, while Addyi is taken daily, works on the central nervous system, and is in the same category as an antidepressant. Some experts say that the pill won't be an instant remedy for women experiencing low libido. "Women's sexuality is very complicated," Judy Kuriansky, a clinical psychologist and certified sex therapist, told CNN. "It's not a matter of just taking that pill, by the way, and then all of a sudden the lights go on. You have to feel good about your body. You have to feel good about yourself. You have to feel the guy really loved you...it's complex. It's not the same as a man taking a pill."

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