New research shows orgasms make you smarter

The French word for orgasm means ‘little death.’ Applying a Gallic sensibility then, and in the case of current research into feminine sexual arousal, it seems that whatever doesn’t kill you, only makes you smarter.

For years now, science has advised us to keep our brains sharp and supple by lubricating them with new challenges — learn to play an instrument, study a second language, take up chess.

More banal armchair options for keeping your mind youthfully sharp include doing crosswords or Sudoku, putting together jigsaw puzzles.

Now neuroscientist professor Barry Komisaruk, from Rutgers University, who has spent years studying female sexuality, recommends mastering the universal language of love if you want to give your brain the ultimate power workout, according to a recent article in the Daily Mail.

As it turns out, sex isn’t just for procreation or even pleasure — if you’re doing it right, it may just send you rocketing to the top of the class.

The female orgasm sends a mighty surge of blood flowing to the brain, says Komisaruk, dramatically increasing mental activity throughout the length and breadth of all that resistant grey matter.

The New York Times crossword, by comparison, only lights up parts of the brain — its benefits are localized.

As much fun as a brain teaser can be, it’s probably fair to say that most people would label it a distant second in the contest between sex and Sudoku, when it comes to entering the pleasure dome.

Not only do orgasms make you smarter but they also appear to block out pain, which is good news and bad news for women everywhere, especially those in long-term relationships with men who are not Michael Fassbender.

The next time you beg off, pleading a headache, he may be quick to remind you that he has the cure.

Read more about the health benefits of sex here.