Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.
U.S. approves 'female Viagra'
In this June 22, 2015 file photo, a tablet of flibanserin sits on a brochure for Sprout Pharmaceuticals in the company's Raleigh, N.C., headquarters. Sprout soon may succeed where many of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies have failed: in winning Food and Drug Administration approval for flibanserin, dubbed Addyi, the first drug to boost women’s sexual desire. /AP-Yonhap
By Bahk Eun-ji
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Addyi (Flibanserin) to help women boost their sex drive.
Addyi is often referred to as “female Viagra” because it is a pill for sexual dysfunction in women. But it works differently from Viagra, which treats erectile dysfunction, a physical problem, experts say. Addyi works on the central nervous system, which induces sexual desire.
The FDA had previously refused to approve the drug over worries about side effects. Addyi will carry warnings and prescriber certification requirements to meet FDA concerns about serious interactions with alcohol, other drugs that slow Flibanserin metabolism and low blood pressure.
Unlike Viagra that is needed before a sexual encounter, women will have to take Addyi every night.
In clinical trials by Sprout Pharmaceuticals, women taking the drug experienced a 37 percent increase in sexual desire.