0:00:07.497,0:00:09.138
Inspired by the last talker

0:00:09.138,0:00:12.983
I'm going to have a little song[br]about Internet porn.

0:00:12.983,0:00:15.515
No, just kidding.

0:00:15.515,0:00:19.620
The widespread use of Internet porn[br]is one of the fastest moving

0:00:19.620,0:00:23.749
most global experiments ever[br]unconsciously conducted.

0:00:23.749,0:00:26.734
Nearly every young guy[br]with an Internet access

0:00:26.734,0:00:29.446
becomes an eager test subject.

0:00:30.072,0:00:32.459
Canadian researcher[br]Simon Lajeunesse found

0:00:32.459,0:00:36.327
that most boys[br]seek pornography by age 10.

0:00:36.327,0:00:41.338
Driven by a brain that is suddenly[br]fascinated by sex.

0:00:41.338,0:00:45.134
Now, users perceive Internet porn[br]as far more compelling

0:00:45.134,0:00:46.684
than porn of the past.

0:00:46.684,0:00:48.048
Why is that?

0:00:48.048,0:00:50.680
Unending novelty.

0:00:50.680,0:00:52.379
In this Australian experiment,

0:00:52.379,0:00:57.882
it's not mere nudity but novelty[br]that gets arousals skyrocketing.

0:00:57.882,0:01:01.567
Subjects watch 22 porn displays.[br]See that spike?

0:01:01.567,0:01:04.642
That's where the researchers[br]switch to porn

0:01:04.642,0:01:06.782
the guys hadn't seen before.

0:01:06.782,0:01:11.705
What happened?[br]Their erections and their brains fired up.

0:01:11.705,0:01:13.499
Why all the excitement?

0:01:13.499,0:01:17.421
Mother nature likes to keep[br]a male fertilizing willing females

0:01:17.421,0:01:19.942
as long as any new ones are around.

0:01:19.942,0:01:22.393
In that top line the ram,

0:01:22.393,0:01:28.283
he needs more and more time[br]to make with the same old ewe.

0:01:28.283,0:01:37.030
But if you keep switching females -[br]the bottom line - well she's not the same.

0:01:37.030,0:01:39.997
He can get the job done in 2 minutes flat

0:01:39.997,0:01:43.617
and keep going[br]until he's utterly exhausted.

0:01:43.617,0:01:46.445
This is known as the Coolidge effect.

0:01:46.445,0:01:51.324
Without the Coolidge effect[br]there would be no Internet porn.

0:01:51.324,0:01:54.886
This old mammalian program,[br]the Coolidge effect, perceives

0:01:54.886,0:02:02.159
each novel female on a guy's screen[br]as a genetic opportunity.

0:02:02.159,0:02:06.052
To keep a guy fertilizing[br]the screen his brain releases

0:02:06.052,0:02:11.835
the "go get it" neurochemical dopamine[br]for each novel mate or image.

0:02:11.835,0:02:13.800
Eventually the ram will tire

0:02:13.800,0:02:15.787
but as long as the guy can keep clicking

0:02:15.787,0:02:18.742
he can keep going[br]and so will his dopamine.

0:02:18.742,0:02:22.826
With internet porn a guy can see[br]more hot babes in 10 minutes

0:02:22.826,0:02:27.459
than his ancestors could see[br]in several lifetimes.

0:02:27.459,0:02:31.342
The problem is he has[br]a hunter-gather brain.

0:02:31.342,0:02:37.523
A heavy user brain rewires[br]itself to this genetic bonanza

0:02:37.523,0:02:44.271
so it carefully becomes associated[br]with this porn harem.

0:02:44.287,0:02:48.698
Such behaviours that are associated[br]with this are being alone,

0:02:48.698,0:02:52.250
voyeurism, clicking,[br]searching, multiple tabs

0:02:52.250,0:02:57.295
fast-forwarding, constant novelty,[br]shock and surprise.

0:02:57.295,0:02:59.095
As one young guy once asked:

0:02:59.095,0:03:04.415
Are we the first generation[br]to masturbate left handed?

0:03:04.415,0:03:09.480
Now, real sex, in contrast,[br]is courtship, touching,

0:03:09.480,0:03:13.669
being touched, smells, pheromones,[br]emotional connection,

0:03:13.669,0:03:17.031
interaction with a real person.

0:03:17.031,0:03:23.435
Now, what happens when our guy[br]finally gets with a real mate.

0:03:23.435,0:03:26.614
Well, researchers don't know[br]much about the effects

0:03:26.614,0:03:29.644
of Internet porn for several reasons.

0:03:29.644,0:03:34.774
In 2009, when Lajeunesse[br]tried to study porn's impact

0:03:34.774,0:03:39.717
he couldn't find any college age males[br]who weren't using it.

0:03:39.717,0:03:45.659
So the first serious dilemma[br]is that studies have no control groups.

0:03:45.659,0:03:48.973
Now, this creates a huge blind spot.

0:03:48.973,0:03:52.852
Imagine if all guys[br]started smoking at age 10

0:03:52.852,0:03:55.122
and there were no groups that didn't.

0:03:55.122,0:03:59.890
We would think that lung cancer[br]is normal for all guys.

0:03:59.890,0:04:05.898
Undaunted by his lack of non-users[br]Lajeunesse asked 20 male students:

0:04:05.898,0:04:11.185
Is Internet porn affecting you[br]or your attitude towards women?

0:04:11.185,0:04:14.353
They answered,[br]"No, I don't think so."

0:04:14.353,0:04:16.835
But they've been using it[br]for about a decade then

0:04:16.835,0:04:19.185
pretty much non-stop.

0:04:19.185,0:04:24.361
This is like asking a fish[br]what it thinks about water?

0:04:24.361,0:04:26.892
Which bring us to a second problem.

0:04:26.892,0:04:31.331
Researchers haven't asked porn users[br]about the symptoms

0:04:31.331,0:04:35.539
Zimbardo described in[br]"The Demise of Guys."

0:04:35.539,0:04:38.250
Arousal addiction symptoms[br]are easily mistaken

0:04:38.250,0:04:44.370
for such things as ADHD,[br]social anxiety, depression,

0:04:44.370,0:04:47.906
concentration problems,[br]performance anxiety,

0:04:47.906,0:04:50.326
OCD and a host of others.

0:04:50.326,0:04:55.745
Now, healthcare providers often assume[br]that these conditions are primary

0:04:55.745,0:05:01.545
perhaps the cause of addiction but[br]never really the result of an addiction.

0:05:01.545,0:05:05.943
As a consequence they often[br]medicate these guys

0:05:05.943,0:05:11.292
without really inquiring about[br]if they have an Internet addiction.

0:05:11.292,0:05:13.958
Guys never realise[br]that they could overcome these

0:05:13.958,0:05:18.059
symptoms simply[br]by changing their behaviour.

0:05:18.059,0:05:21.511
Now, the third problem[br]is it's hard to believe that

0:05:21.511,0:05:26.608
sexual activity can cause addiction[br]because sex is healthy.

0:05:26.608,0:05:28.627
But Internet porn is not sex.

0:05:28.627,0:05:32.807
Internet porn[br]is as different from real sex

0:05:32.807,0:05:36.867
as todays video games are from checkers.

0:05:36.867,0:05:39.828
Watching the screen[br]full of naked body parts

0:05:39.828,0:05:45.212
won't automatically protect one[br]from arousal addiction.

0:05:45.212,0:05:48.579
In this Dutch study - here's the title -

0:05:48.579,0:05:53.435
they found that in fact of all activities[br]on the Internet

0:05:53.435,0:05:57.045
porn has the most potential[br]to become addictive.

0:05:57.045,0:05:58.216
Here's why.

0:05:58.216,0:06:00.618
This ancient programme,[br]the reward circuit,

0:06:00.618,0:06:04.773
evolved to drive us towards[br]natural rewards

0:06:04.773,0:06:09.195
such as sex, bonding and food.

0:06:09.195,0:06:13.482
As a consequence extreme versions[br]of natural rewards

0:06:13.482,0:06:17.747
have a unique ability to capture us.

0:06:17.747,0:06:22.422
For example: high-calorie foods[br]or hot novel babes

0:06:22.422,0:06:24.892
give us extra dopamine.

0:06:24.892,0:06:30.753
Too much dopamine though can override[br]our natural satiation mechanisms.

0:06:30.753,0:06:34.180
For example: give rats unlimited access

0:06:34.180,0:06:39.228
to junk food and almost all of them[br]will binge to obesity.

0:06:39.228,0:06:42.665
This is also why 4 out of 5 Americans[br]are overweight

0:06:42.665,0:06:45.201
and about half of those are obese.

0:06:45.201,0:06:47.006
That is addicted to food.

0:06:47.006,0:06:51.366
Now, in contrast to natural rewards,[br]drugs such as

0:06:51.366,0:06:55.732
cocaine or alcohol only hook[br]about 10% of users

0:06:55.732,0:06:58.484
whether they are rats or humans.

0:06:59.521,0:07:06.933
This binge mechanism for food or sex[br]was once an evolutionary advantage.

0:07:06.933,0:07:10.381
In essence, it is getting it while[br]the getting is good.

0:07:10.381,0:07:14.152
Now, you can think of wolves packing[br]away 20 pound of meat per kill

0:07:14.152,0:07:18.433
or it's mating season[br]and you're the alpha male.

0:07:18.433,0:07:21.872
What if mating season never ends?

0:07:21.872,0:07:26.071
All those hits of dopamine can tell[br]your brain to do two things.

0:07:26.071,0:07:30.011
First they say, "Man, you've hit[br]the evolutionary jackpot."

0:07:30.011,0:07:35.745
Second, they kick in a molecular switch[br]called Delta-FosB.

0:07:35.745,0:07:39.738
I know it is a fancy word,[br]but dopamine kicks in Delta-FosB

0:07:39.738,0:07:44.657
and that starts to accumulate[br]in the brain's reward circuit.

0:07:44.657,0:07:48.974
Now, with excess chronic consumption[br]of drugs or natural rewards,

0:07:48.974,0:07:52.969
this build up a Delta-FosB[br]starts to alter the brain

0:07:52.969,0:07:57.947
and promotes the cycle[br]of binging and craving.

0:07:57.947,0:08:01.217
If the binging continues[br]the Delta-FosB builds up

0:08:01.217,0:08:04.611
and it can lead to brain changes[br]seen in all addicts.

0:08:04.611,0:08:08.230
So the dominos are excess consumption

0:08:08.230,0:08:12.554
excess dopamine,[br]Delta-FosB, brain changes.

0:08:12.554,0:08:16.480
One of the first changes[br]is a numbed pleasure response.

0:08:16.480,0:08:23.931
It kicks in, and so everyday pleasures[br]really don't satisfy a porn addict.

0:08:23.931,0:08:26.741
At the same time other[br]physical changes in the brain

0:08:26.741,0:08:29.647
make the brain hyper-reactive to porn.

0:08:29.647,0:08:33.159
Everything else in the porn user's life[br]is sort of boring,

0:08:33.172,0:08:35.529
but porn is super exciting.

0:08:35.529,0:08:40.111
Finally his willpower erodes[br]as his frontal cortex changes.

0:08:40.111,0:08:41.988
I can't emphasize this enough.

0:08:41.988,0:08:45.462
All addictions share[br]these same brain changes

0:08:45.462,0:08:52.032
and the same molecular switch[br]that kicks them in - Delta-FosB.

0:08:52.032,0:08:55.020
Now scientists have used[br]brain scans to measure

0:08:55.020,0:08:57.336
these changes in drug addicts.

0:08:57.336,0:09:02.055
Up-here these scans show a reduced[br]pleasure response in drug addicts.

0:09:02.055,0:09:06.590
These and several other changes[br]have also been seen in gambling addicts,

0:09:06.590,0:09:10.622
food addicts, very recently[br]in video game addicts

0:09:11.322,0:09:13.622
and now in internet addicts.

0:09:13.622,0:09:16.767
I apologize for filling up the slide[br]with brain studies.

0:09:16.767,0:09:18.947
Just notice the dates.

0:09:18.947,0:09:22.387
But I want you to know that they exist.

0:09:22.660,0:09:27.175
So far all brain research points[br]only in one direction.

0:09:27.175,0:09:32.780
Constant novelty at the click[br]can cause addiction.

0:09:32.780,0:09:36.506
We know this because[br]when scientist examined

0:09:36.506,0:09:38.425
former Internet addicts they found

0:09:38.425,0:09:42.367
that these brain changes[br]were reversing themselves.

0:09:42.367,0:09:46.988
Unfortunately, none of these studies[br]isolate porn users,

0:09:46.988,0:09:49.124
but they do include them.

0:09:49.124,0:09:51.413
Here's the game changer.

0:09:51.413,0:09:55.622
At last we have a group of guys[br]who are no longer using Internet porn.

0:09:55.622,0:10:01.592
That's right! Heavy users are voluntarily[br]giving it up by the thousands.

0:10:01.592,0:10:07.350
These guys are the missing control group[br]in the great porn experiment.

0:10:07.350,0:10:12.285
They're showing experts what changing[br]one single variable can do.

0:10:12.285,0:10:16.442
I call it "The Resurrection of Guys"[br]as opposed to "the Demise of Guys."

0:10:16.442,0:10:18.722
Now, before I continue[br]probably you wanna know

0:10:18.722,0:10:23.149
why any porn loving guy[br]in his right mind would give it up.

0:10:23.149,0:10:27.820
Two words: erectile dysfunction.

0:10:27.820,0:10:31.737
Internet porn is killing[br]young men's sexual performance.

0:10:31.737,0:10:35.519
Now, Zimbardo said young guys[br]are flaming out with women,

0:10:35.519,0:10:39.126
this survey by Italian neurologists[br]confirms

0:10:39.126,0:10:43.262
what we have witnessed[br]over the last few years.

0:10:45.447,0:10:49.242
Sexual enhancement drugs[br]often stop working for these guys,

0:10:49.242,0:10:50.312
if they ever did,

0:10:50.312,0:10:54.103
because the problem isn't [br]below the belt where viagra works.

0:10:54.103,0:10:56.669
Nor is their problem really psychological.

0:10:56.669,0:10:59.489
It's due to physical changes[br]in the brain.

0:10:59.489,0:11:01.780
Those addiction related changes.

0:11:01.780,0:11:06.215
Their numb brains are sending weaker[br]and weaker signals to their bananas.

0:11:06.215,0:11:08.255
(Laughter)

0:11:08.255,0:11:13.433
As doctor Foresta says, "It starts[br]with lower reactions to porn sites.

0:11:13.433,0:11:16.391
Then there is a general drop in libido,

0:11:16.391,0:11:20.815
and in the end it becomes impossible[br]to get an erection.

0:11:20.815,0:11:23.309
There are 3 take-aways from this.

0:11:23.309,0:11:28.477
First, Foresta is describing[br]a classic addiction process -

0:11:28.477,0:11:31.276
gradual desensitization.

0:11:31.276,0:11:36.137
Second, Internet porn is qualitatively[br]different from Playboy.

0:11:36.137,0:11:40.769
Widespread youthful ED[br]has never been seen before.

0:11:40.769,0:11:48.111
And finally ED is often the only symptom[br]that gets these guys' attention.

0:11:48.111,0:11:52.771
The question is what less obvious symptoms[br]are they missing?

0:11:52.771,0:11:56.793
Most don't figure[br]that out until after they quit.

0:11:56.793,0:12:00.600
Here's a guy in his late 20s.

0:12:00.600,0:12:04.095
"I've been to psychologists[br]and psychiatrists for the last 8 years...

0:12:04.095,0:12:08.086
have been diagnosed with depression,[br]severe social anxiety,

0:12:08.086,0:12:10.645
severe memory impairment and a few others.

0:12:10.645,0:12:14.307
Have tried Fexer, Ritalin, Xanax, Paxil

0:12:14.307,0:12:17.764
dropped out at two different colleges,[br]been fired twice,

0:12:17.764,0:12:20.849
used pot to calm my social anxiety.

0:12:20.849,0:12:22.922
I've been approached by quite a few women

0:12:22.922,0:12:25.084
I guess due to my looks and status

0:12:25.084,0:12:28.480
but they quickly flew away[br]due to my incredible weirdness.

0:12:28.480,0:12:32.105
I've been a hardcore porn addict[br]since age 14.

0:12:32.105,0:12:34.547
For the last 2 years[br]I've been experimenting

0:12:34.547,0:12:38.092
and finally realised[br]that porn was an issue.

0:12:38.092,0:12:41.434
I stopped it completely 2 months ago.

0:12:41.434,0:12:45.152
It has been very difficult[br]but so far incredibly worth it.

0:12:45.152,0:12:48.973
I've since quit my remaining medication.

0:12:48.973,0:12:51.541
My anxiety is nonexistent.

0:12:51.541,0:12:55.062
My memory and focus are sharper[br]than they've ever been.

0:12:55.062,0:12:59.215
I feel like a huge "chick magnet"[br]and my ED is gone too.

0:12:59.215,0:13:05.447
I seriously think I had a rebirth,[br]a second chance at life."

0:13:05.447,0:13:10.151
This is why pockets of guys are peering[br]all over the web - body building sites,

0:13:10.151,0:13:14.591
sports sites, pickup artists sites -[br]wherever men congregate.

0:13:14.591,0:13:18.397
In essence, they are seeking[br]a neurochemical rebirth.

0:13:18.397,0:13:22.365
Here's a group on reddit.com[br]who call themselves "Fapstronauts."

0:13:22.365,0:13:25.666
Fapping is slang for solo sex,

0:13:25.666,0:13:29.494
but what they really mean[br]is giving up porn.

0:13:29.494,0:13:35.986
They've added about 2,000 members[br]since I captured this picture a month ago.

0:13:35.986,0:13:41.192
This movement to unhook from porn[br]is growing rapidly.

0:13:41.192,0:13:46.670
In fact, groups are springing up[br]all across the web and in Europe too.

0:13:46.670,0:13:51.356
But there is a bizarre fly[br]in the ointment.

0:13:51.356,0:13:54.603
Guys in the early 20s aren't regaining

0:13:54.603,0:13:58.264
their erectile health[br]as quickly as older guys.

0:13:58.698,0:14:06.134
How can a 50-year-old get his mojo back[br]quicker then a 20-something?

0:14:06.134,0:14:10.453
The answer, even though older guys[br]have been using porn a whole lot longer

0:14:10.453,0:14:14.538
they didn't start[br]on today's Internet porn.

0:14:14.538,0:14:17.057
Now, we know[br]this is a key variable because

0:14:17.057,0:14:20.562
the older guys didn't start[br]having sexual problems

0:14:20.562,0:14:27.664
until after they got[br]high-speed Internet. (Laughter)

0:14:27.664,0:14:31.781
Now, today's young teens[br]start on high-speed Internet

0:14:31.781,0:14:34.650
when their brains are at their peak

0:14:34.650,0:14:37.650
of dopamine production[br]and neuroplasticity.

0:14:37.650,0:14:40.926
This is also when they are[br]the most vulnerable to addiction,

0:14:40.926,0:14:43.237
but there is another risk.

0:14:43.926,0:14:47.096
By adulthood teens strengthen[br]heavily used circuits

0:14:47.096,0:14:49.425
and prune back unused ones.

0:14:49.425,0:14:56.470
So, by age 22 or so a guy's sexual taste[br]can be like deep ruts in his brain.

0:14:56.470,0:15:01.936
This can cause panic[br]if a guy has escalated to extreme porn

0:15:01.936,0:15:06.096
or porn that no longer matches[br]his sexual orientation.

0:15:06.096,0:15:08.784
Fortunately brains are plastic

0:15:08.784,0:15:14.830
so his taste can revert[br]once he quits porn.

0:15:14.830,0:15:17.443
As a guy returns to normal sensitivity

0:15:17.443,0:15:21.749
his brain looks around for the rewards[br]it evolved to see

0:15:21.749,0:15:25.358
such as friendly interaction[br]and of course real mates.

0:15:25.358,0:15:29.498
Here's one more example[br]of what we hear everyday,

0:15:29.498,0:15:33.589
"I feel like the next Sir Isaac Newton[br]or Leonardo da Vinci.

0:15:33.589,0:15:35.596
Since I quit a month ago, I've literally:

0:15:35.596,0:15:40.299
started a business, taken up piano,[br]been studying French every day,

0:15:40.299,0:15:44.366
been programming, drawing,[br]writing, started managing my finances

0:15:44.366,0:15:48.721
and I have more awesome ideas[br]than I know what to do with.

0:15:48.721,0:15:51.053
My confidence is sky-high.

0:15:51.053,0:15:54.346
I already feel like[br]I can talk to any girl!

0:15:54.346,0:16:00.641
I am the same guy who took 2,5 extra years[br]to graduate from college

0:16:00.641,0:16:03.433
because of procrastination[br]and depression."

0:16:03.433,0:16:05.749
I'll conclude with a wish:

0:16:05.749,0:16:08.234
I'd like to see Zimbardo's guys

0:16:08.234,0:16:11.952
who are wiping out and their[br]caregivers and the experts

0:16:11.952,0:16:15.903
listen to the thousands of men[br]who are teaching us

0:16:15.903,0:16:19.508
about arousal addiction by escaping it.

0:16:19.508,0:16:20.917
Thanks for listening.

0:16:20.917,0:16:24.270
(Applause)