Pornography: A new era of media requires a new understanding

Consistent consumption of pornography should be recognized as an addictive disorder in the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders”. Excessive use of pornography shares many characteristics with diagnosable addictions and can even be mitigated by medications used to treat other forms of addiction.

Pornography addiction should be taken seriously, and we should analyze the effects of pornography exposure in order to help those who struggle with avid pornographic consumption.

“The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, Text Revision” — shortened to DSM-5-TR — is a regularly updated guide used by mental health professionals to assist in diagnosing mental disorders. Commonly known DSM-5-TR conditions include anxiety, depression, eating disorders and substance use disorder. 

The DSM-5-TR does not currently list constant pornography viewing as an addiction — but instead a compulsion. 

The American Psychological Association — or the APA — lists addiction as “a state of psychological and/or physical dependence on the use of drugs or other substances, such as alcohol, or on activities or behaviors, such as sex, exercise, and gambling.”

Sex is listed in the definition of addiction yet the American Psychiatric Association denied the identification of pornography viewing as an actual addiction in 2013 upon the release of the then updated DSM-5. 

According to the APA, they debated whether an addiction called “hypersexual disorder,” that included a pornography subtype, should be added to the DSM-5. By publication of the fifth edition, reviewers determined that there “wasn’t enough evidence to include hypersexual disorder or its subtypes in the 2013 edition.” 

But 11 years later, there is even more sexual media. And each year, consumers are exposed at an even younger age. 

According to The Guardian, revenue estimates for the pornography industry in the United States range between 9 billion  to 97 billion dollars a year — with a conservative estimate of $15 billion. 

‍Addiction Help statistics cited that “the porn industry saw a 12.6% increase in revenue each year from 2018 to 2023.” 

Pornography’s customer base has grown significantly since the DSM-5’s publication in 2013; a new understanding of sexual media is needed.

This is not to say casual viewing of sexual media is wrong or an addiction after a few questionable late nights or spicy moments with a partner. 

Pornography consumption is like a digital media diet. Some over consume or under consume, some are average and some are at opposite ends of an extreme spectrum. But binge eating is listed as an eating disorder in the DSM-5-TR, while instances of voracious consumption of a pornographic diet are ignored.

According to another article in the National Library of Medicine, some evidence suggests that compulsive pornography consumption “may fit into the general addiction framework, and share similar mechanisms with those observed in addictions to chemical substances.”

In the same article, it is noted that naltrexone, a medication used for treating  alcohol and opioid dependence, can also help those who compulsively view pornography achieve success with the treatment. 

The article stated that out of 4260 individuals who were self-declared pornography consumers, “51.0% admitted to making at least one attempt to give up using it with no difference in the frequency of these attempts between males and females.” 

The article also stated that between 14.8 and 19.3 percent of university students experienced a neglect of basic needs and duties — such as food, sleep and responsibilities at home and work, in preference of pornography consumption.

But the current version of the DSM-5-TR does not include overconsumption of pornography as an addiction, only a compulsion. 

The neglect of everyday duties and the instinct to sustain the human body over routine viewing of pornography can lead to mild to severe distress. Distress is one of the main factors the DSM-5-TR considers when determining if a compulsion has become an addiction. 

Distress can originate from a multitude of factors. Medical and relational damage can result from an overconsumption of pornography. According to the same article, “The odds for longer stimulation and more sexual stimuli needed to reach orgasm with pornography, decrease in sexual satisfaction and quality of romantic relationship, and neglect of basic needs and duties were higher in females and males exposed earlier to pornography.”

So, if people who avidly consume pornography attempt to stop but cannot find relief through medication, lose romantic partners, as well as disrupt their day-to-day lives, how would this issue not be considered an addiction when it reaches these extremes?

Pornography has become available to nearly every man, woman and child in the last 15 years. The 1970s were colloquially known as the “Golden Age of Porn,” but the unlimited access we now have as a population may lead to even more unhealthy mindsets and possible actions.

The National Library of Medicine article that was earlier referenced stated that more sexual stimuli are needed along with a decrease in satisfaction. This can arguably lead a very small number of the population to seek out more intense or even illegal material.

Pornography has made its place in the world. Now that it has established its roots deep into the knowledge of everyone with internet access, we should attempt to understand those who struggle with pornography addiction. 

Listing consistent pornography consumption in the DSM-5-TR would allow researchers to better determine the effects of pornography consumption, in turn, allowing mental health professionals to better assist those who are struggling. Therapeutic programs, relationship counseling and medical considerations could all be advanced to help people who suffer from pornography addiction.