| Aphrodisiac foods have a long history, the word | | | | with a strong symbolism of seed or semen, hence |
| aphrodisiac itself is derived from the name of the | | | | eggs, bulbs, snails etc were favoured for their |
| ancient Greek goddess Aphrodite, goddess of love, | | | | outward resemblance to testicles, but also aniseed, |
| fertility and sexual rapture. In olden days, aphrodisiacs | | | | rocket seeds, sage and pistachio nuts were thought |
| were much sought after as promoters of fertility as | | | | to increase male potency.So far, so tasty (possibly |
| well as sexual appetite, in light of this perhaps the link | | | | apart from the snails depending on your tastes) and |
| between foodstuffs and sex does not seem so | | | | it does become tempting to attribute the association |
| tenuous. Sexual appetite and fertility are both linked | | | | of foods and sex to a simple parallel between |
| to nutrition; the better fed a person is, the more | | | | corporeal pleasures; namely that food and sex are |
| likely he or she is to be able to conceive successfully, | | | | the things that we find most enjoyable on a basic |
| whilst a malnourished person will be not only less | | | | level, and that people with full bellies are better |
| fertile, but less libidinous. It is perhaps hardly surprising | | | | disposed to look around for other distractions, but |
| then that, in ancient and older modern cultures where | | | | wait! We haven't yet delved into the more stomach |
| malnutrition was common and reproductive | | | | churning side of aphrodisiac 'foods'! Fancy a stewed |
| imperative for survival, the belief that certain foods | | | | sparrow, anyone? How about a spit of roasted skink |
| were linked to sexual appetite and fertility | | | | (a type of lizard)? |
| emerged.Chief among these aphrodisiacs were foods | | | | |