The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of the new libido-enhancing drug for women is apparently troublesome for self-proclaimed asexuals.
Individuals who describe themselves as asexual have little to no interest in sexual activity and often do not feel sexual desire. Since the newly approved Addyi (flibanserin) is marketed to treat hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD), asexuals are concerned over the drug’s implications for their sexual orientation.
Prior to the FDA’s approval of flibanserin, a group of individuals claiming to speak on behalf of the “asexual,” “grey-a” and “demisexual” communities authored a petition in order to “urge” the FDA not to approve the drug.
Instead, the Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN) offered a few points for the FDA to consider: “Distress caused by low sexual desire is too complex to medicate,” “Many therapeutic options exist,” “The marketing of flibanserin to the general public will cause more distress than it mitigates,” and, “Marketing of flibanserin to clinicians will encourage misdiagnosis and mistreatment of people on the asexual spectrum.”
“Many individuals struggling to come to terms with their identity seek clinical support, or are encouraged to do so by their families. Many more seek support for unrelated conditions. Since medical and mental health professionals are generally not educated about our community, it is not uncommon for our low sexual desire to be ‘treated’ even when it is not the cause of our distress,” AVEN wrote.
“The approval and subsequent marketing of flibanserin will exacerbate this issue, sending an amplified message to the medical community that variations in sexual desire are a condition to be treated rather than a form of natural diversity to be understood and respected.”
AVEN also tried to send the message the approval of flibanserin would cause shame: “Shame, especially shame about failing to fit a social norm, does not warrant pharmaceutical treatment. Approving flibanserin to treat low sexual desire will hinder rather than help our ability to feel confident, connect intimately with our loved ones, and live lives free of shame.”
Supporters of the petition were urged to use the hashtag campaign “#DontDrugShame.”
In order to assuage the concerns raised by the asexual community, a representative from Sprout Pharmaceuticals told Newsweek asexuals would not be impacted by the approval of flibanserin.
“Asexual individuals are not distressed, and therefore would not be a candidate for treatment with Addyi,” Sprout stated. “Sprout is committed to educating healthcare providers about Addyi to help facilitate informed, educational conversations with their patients. With the five question screener, called the Decreased Sexual Desire Screener (DSDS), doctors can effectively rule out women who would not be considered for medical intervention.”
Regardless of the statements made by Sprout, asexuals are concerned the drug could be used to marginalize their alternative sexuality (or lack thereof).
David Jay, the author of the AVEN petition, told Newsweek he believes the marketing of the drug will be targeted towards asexuals who are mistakenly led to believe they suffer from HSDD: “The scary thing about this drug is that the disease it treats can be spread with marketing dollars.”