It’s no secret that a lot of us enjoy X-rated entertainment, with some studies estimating as much as 99% of men and 86% of girls have consumed porn.
And while many might while away the hours watching raunchy scenes, some experts say it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re addicted.
The American Psychological Association (APA) has cited a UK study suggesting that prolific porn viewing could also be more of a compulsion than an addiction.
Other scholars say that feelings of shame surrounding porn consumption may cause many viewers to imagine that they’re addicts once they’re not.
But while the tutorial community stays divided over whether excessive porn consumption will be considered a diagnosable addiction, they typically agree on several signs to look at out for.
Spending excessive amounts of cash on kinky content and browsing porn in dangerous situations are two major red flags.
Consistently pushing aside essential tasks in favor of watching X-rated movies can be considered one other classic sign that the person is likely to be developing a dependency that goes beyond an easy habit.
Many psychologists also say those that find themselves withdrawing from their partners and real-life sexual situations in favor of porn should take into consideration speaking with an expert.
Nonetheless, provided that there’s no consensus on whether porn is an actual addiction, treatment methods may vary.
The Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy released a 2013 study claiming that therapy will be useful to beat high consumption of porn.
“Our results lend themselves to the sensible and clinical consideration of treatment and therapy for sexually compulsive individuals, or those excessively preoccupied with Web pornography,” experts Reena Parmar and Vincent Egan said.
Nonetheless, University of California Los Angeles researcher Dr. Nicole Prause doesn’t necessarily agree.
“There’s an incredible treatment industry that needs this to be a disease — a thing they will charge people to treat,” Prause is quoted as telling the APA.
“You possibly can [actually] harm patients by utilizing treatment models that aren’t research-supported,” she added.
Psychologists are similarly divided on whether porn has overall positive or detrimental effects on a viewer
The APA has quoted a study from the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction at Indiana University which found that 72 percent imagine porn “provides a harmless outlet for fantasies.”
Meanwhile, 86 percent of respondents said porn had the flexibility to “educate people.”
Nonetheless, some experts have warned concerning the negative effects of porn exposure on teenagers, a lot of whom are ceaselessly viewing the content.
Research indicates that the biggest consumers of porn are 12 to 17-year-old boys, while 70 percent of young men ages 18 to 34 years old visit porn sites not less than once per 30 days.