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Marijuana has been used as an aphrodisiac for thousands of years. So what exactly is it about weed that turns people on?

The ancient Indian Ayurvedic medicine systems used cannabis to increase libido, produce long-lasting erections, delay ejaculation, facilitate lubrication and loosen inhibitions.

Some Tantric sex practitioners drink a substance called bhang, a sort of spiced marijuana milkshake to enhance the sexual experience. According to one source, Indian prostitutes eat bhang sherbet to help them feel sexually aroused.

In 19th century Serbia, female virgins were given mixtures of lamb's fat and cannabis on their wedding night to make sex less painful. Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon and other Middle Eastern and Northern African cultures used cannabis for sexual purposes in a potent form known at kif as recently as the early 20th century.

So what exactly is it about weed that turns people on?

Besides the obvious: it heightens your senses, relaxes you and makes you feel hyper connected, there are also physiological effects.

Along with an increased heart rate, changes in blood flow and respiration, according to William Novak, author of the 1980 tome, High Culture: Marijuana in the Lives of Americans, "Neurochemistry, hormonal systems and brain regions such as the temporal lobe are affected by both marijuana and sexual arousal."

That's because THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol), the active ingredient in pot, not only releases dopamine in the brain -- causing the "high" -- it actually replicates the effects of a sexy little naturally occurring neurochemical called anandamide.

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