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The Female Orgasm

Why don鈥檛 we understand how it works? Basic information about women鈥檚 bodies is only just being discovered. Why don鈥檛 people think it鈥檚 important to study sexual pleasure?

Why don鈥檛 we understand how the female orgasm works? After years of scientific research, the male body is understood but when it comes to how women work, we are a long way behind. Why is there this gap in knowledge?

It appears research has been hindered by the assumption that the female body works in the same way as the male body and that for women, arousal is all in the mind. There鈥檚 also a general attitude that studying sexual pleasure isn鈥檛 important and that female orgasms aren鈥檛 important to study as they serve no purpose for reproduction.

Researchers are slowly correcting these assumptions and making surprising discoveries.

We鈥檒l take you behind the scenes to two orgasm labs to bring you the latest research on how orgasms work for women. We鈥檒l also hear from Callista, who struggled with excruciating pain during sex for many years but was told the problem was all in her mind. Her journey to diagnosis shows how little is known, even amongst gynaecologists and doctors, about female sexual pleasure.

Presenter: Aasmah Mir
Producer: Phoebe Keane

(Image: Woman's hand grasping a bed sheet. Credit: Shutterstock)

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18 minutes

Last on

Mon 5 Dec 2016 07:32GMT

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