Alcohol and drugs have long been known to affect sex. As Avert points out, alcohol can make individuals less coordinated and is an anesthetic, meaning that it is more difficult to feel sensation and, therefore, to have an orgasm. Drugs like amphetamines, cocaine and ecstasy can have similar effects, making it difficult for individuals to have orgasms and for men to have erections. However, a new study has found that the sexual repercussions of alcohol and drugs can have effects that last way beyond the party. A study conducted by researchers at the University of Granada in Spain and at Santo Tomas University in Colombia has found that, for men who had addictions to alcohol and drugs, their sexual woes can continue long after rehabilitation.

The study was conducted with 905 men between 2009 and 2011. Of the group, 549 men had been diagnosed with an addiction to alcohol, cocaine, heroin, marijuana, or some mixture of two of those substances. The other 356 men were used as controls. The researchers evaluated each of the men in four categories: sexual desire, sexual satisfaction, sexual arousal and orgasm.

When they compared the two groups, researchers found that the experimental group's sexual performance was moderately or significantly impaired. That impairment was often different based on the substance addiction. For example, cocaine and speedball - cocaine and heroin - abuse significantly affect sexual pleasure, but only slightly affect sexual desire. In fact, while in the throes of addiction, cocaine users have high amounts of sexual desire. Alcohol most significantly impaired sexual arousal. Researchers also found that orgasms were significantly impaired by alcohol, cocaine, heroin and speedball.

The study is the first time that sexual performance has been studied in individuals who are recovering from addiction.

The study was recently published in the online version of the Journal of Sexual Medicine.