Are you addicted to s*x?18+

(by men health)

Michael Douglas, David Duchovny, Russell Brand and most recently Tiger Woods. Read the chronicles of the world’s infamous sex addicts and it’s tempting to think that if that’s sex addiction, let me at it: queues of women, a life of experimentation and indulgence, and precious few consequences to boot. You get as much sex as you could want. And if your wife, fans (or multimillion dollar sponsors) find out, well, ‘addiction’ is a handy phrase to bandy about.

If celebrity sex addicts make you sceptical, think about what it means for anybody without an A-list shield. If you become addicted to sex, it’s not just the obvious risk to your relationship status.

You spend thousands on online porn, chatlines and prostitutes. Professional ambition and social commitments get sidelined in the pursuit of flesh. And as well as an increased risk of STDs, research at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden found that promiscuity also increases your chance of prostate cancer in later life. But here’s the real kicker: you hate sex. “For sex addicts, ejaculation usually triggers a terrible sense of remorse,” explains leading sex addiction therapist Dr Thaddeus Birchard (sexual-addiction.co.uk). “When that fades it’s replaced by an anxiety that can only be medicated by sexual fulfilment. It’s not fun.”

If it sounds alien, the roots of sex addiction will be all too familiar – meaning everyone is potentially at risk...