Chemistry has transformed the late night happenings
of your bedroom, So we put together a list of
four sexual innovations provided by chemistry.
CONDOMS
Condoms, rubbers or whatever you want to call
them, now those are a brilliant way
to stop pregnancy at the source.
They’re pretty cheap, pretty reliable,
and protect you from not-so-sexy STDs.
Most of you out there probably know that
a majority condoms are made out of
a stretchy polymer called latex.
Polymers are large molecules that are made
up of chains of smaller molecules called
monomers – in this case of latex,
the monomer is isoprene.
When used properly, condoms do a great job
stopping these little guys from reaching
their final destination.
LUBRICANTS
Now, when using condoms, it’s always wise
to have a bottle of lube nearby to smooth
things out a little bit – too much friction
can break a condom,
which gives these guys free reign.
Lubes come in a handful of forms,
some water based, some oil based,
and some silicone based.
At the surface level, all of these lubes work
the same way on any two surfaces that
happen to be rubbing together.
When two solid surfaces rub together,
they have tons of super small imperfections that
create friction. When a lubricant is applied,
it produces a film between these two solid
layers and removes immediate contact
from the two imperfect surfaces,
which smooth’s things out quite well.
But be careful folks.
The use of oil-based lubricants can lead
to breakage in condoms because petroleum
based products will eat latex.
There are also some additives that go into
lubes that give them certain sensations like warming.
Simulating the sense of warmth on the skin
is called thermoception. In most warming lubricants,
glycerol is the main ingredient as it helps aid the
ingredients that cause the heating sensation.
Some warming lubes even contain capsaicin,
a molecule found in hot peppers,
bringing a whole new meaning to
the phrase “spice up your sex life.”
PLAN B
Okay so safe sex is always the way to go.
Then there is Plan B -- the morning after pill.
This controversial form of emergency contraception
route has lead to wide range of debate in society,
but we’ll leave that aside for now and just
get right into the chemistry of how it works.
Plan B is actually a dose of a synthetic
hormone called levonorgestrel.
This hormone binds to the same protein
receptors as other sex hormones like estradiol
and progesterone, which aid in making women fertile,
but instead, levonorgestrel interrupts ovulation
or impairs the fertilization of egg cells.
It is also thought that plan B might stop
an already fertilized egg from adhering to
the uterine inner wall,
preventing embryonic development.
BIRTH CONTROL
Chemist Carl Djerrasi was a forerunner
of birth control in the 1950s.
Djerrasi developed the first orally deliverable
version of Progestin – a primary ingredient
in all birth control methods.
Progestin is the synthetic form of
the body’s hormone progesterone.
When combined with estrogen,
these hormones can control a woman’s ovulation
cycle and prevent egg release.
The birth control pill, revolutionized the
way that people get it on when it was approved
by the FDA in the early 1960s.
Djerrasi’s innovation in chemistry completely
reconfigured the way society thinks about sex.
Check out this bonus video of a sexy chemistry
poem written and recited by none other than
Djerrasi himself, who also happens to be
a well accomplished, published poet.
Believe me, it’s incredible!
Thanks for tuning in folks, don’t forget
to subscribe and we’ll see you again soon.
