Viagra, the most popular and most well known impotence and male sexual enhancement drug on the market, followed only by Cialis and then Levitra, may have some unexpected, and albeit welcome, side effects.

Researchers are saying that not only does Viagra physiologically produce the effects it is meant to, that is to increase blood flow to the penis to help men get an erection, but it also may produce a more psychological effect as well, putting men "in the mood" mentally for intimacy, affection, and love. In other words, this may be the drug that is every woman's dream!

Although Viagra has been plagued with some negative press about side effects that are unwelcome (what "wonder drug" isn't), it still continues to be one of the best selling drugs ever, and almost immediately became a household name after it's patenting and launch to the public in 1996. Sildenafil, which is the drug's pharmaceutical name, gained almost instant notoriety, and was even featured in a commercial with former presidential candidate Bob Dole.

Viagra became the punchline of jokes on late night shows like Jay Leno and David Letterman, and was the subject of much excitement, and still is today, as an apparent cure for male impotence and other virility issues such as premature ejaculation. The drug started off in the lab as a test drug for patients with heart problems, specifically angina, which is marked by chest pain.

Although the drug did not have any significant impact on these patients, a noticed side effect of the drug was that it produce erections in many of it's subjects. And the rest is history, hence Viagra was born and became a best-selling drug for ten years and counting.

Now onto the unexpected side effect. Recently, it was discovered that not only did men experience increased erections from taking Viagra, and an improvement in their impotence symptoms and inability to maintain a full erection, but they also experienced more of a mental stimulation when it came to getting in the mood for love.

I'm sure Pfizer, the drug company that has put out Viagra, is beside themselves with delight, as yet another benefit is realized from their already blockbuster drug.

The drug apparently increases the feelings associated with love and affection by boosting levels of a hormone that is associated with feelings of intimacy and closeness leading to sexual arousal. This hormone is called oxytocin, and you may have heard of it for another reason.

Oxytocin is a hormone which acts as a neurotransmitter to the brain, that occurs in both men and women, and is secreted when one feels "lovey dovey" and in the mood to snuggle with their partner.

In fact, pregnant women who are in their last trimester and ready to have their baby are encouraged to have sex, since the release of oxytocin, which occurs during orgasm and also during sexual arousal, is supposed to help bring on contractions and lead to a sooner birth at the end of a pregnancy.

The bottom line as it relates to the unexpected and pleasant side effect of Viagra for both the man and his partner, is that this stimulation of the part of the brain that produces oxytocin, definitely enhances the bonding experience of sex, and the feelings of security and closeness that is experienced between partners during sexual union.

This news is undoubtedly welcome to Viagra users, as well as to the maker of the drug, who probably didn't imagine that it would have anything other than a purely utility effect on the men that took it.

It also opens the door to other possible uses for the erectily dysfunction drug, but that has yet to be determined, as it is not yet clear how this release of oxytocin can help other bodily functions or be a part of some other type of therapeutic treatment. At any rate, it certainly is a nice additional benefit for men taking Viagra!