Doctors, psychologists and educators nationwide detail how sex - or lack of it - affects our mental and physical health. Includes a focus on potential threats to sexual health, be they mental, physical, cultural or religious.

In this unprecedented four-volume set, doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, educators, and clergy join forces to present information vital for sexual health. Topics candidly discussed include the meaning of sexual health, the effects of ignorance or neglect, and the role of love, touch, and communication. Doctors explain the roles of physical systems, while psychologists and members of the clergy detail the roles of religion, culture, and parental or family beliefs in spurring or squashing sexual health. State-of-the-art treatments and research are also featured. Each volume includes a chapter on how to talk with a doctor, therapist, or patient about sexual health.

Americans feel free to tell medical doctors of health ills from headaches to hemorrhoids, and to tell psychologists about mental problems from depression to delusions. Yet, there is one area that affects both physical and mental health most people don't discuss with either doctor or psychologist: sexual health. According to a survey published by the American Medical Association, 43 percent of women and 31 percent of men in the United States experience some form of sexual dysfunction, problems are largely hidden, and so exacerbated. Doctors don't initiate the topic with patients; neither do most psychologists aside from trained sex therapists. The problems might not even be rooted in disorders commonly understood as illness. As officials at the World Health Organization have defined it, sexual health is more than the absence of disease. It is a state of physical, emotional, mental and social well-being related to sexuality.

Volume I
Set Foreword, David Satcher
Sexual Health: Definitions and Construct Development
The Health Benefits of Sexual Expression
Love and Sexual Health
Evolution and the Adaptive Significance of Sexual and Erotic Touch
Touch as the Primary Element of Sensual and Erotic Expression
Facilitating Positive Sexual Communication
Childhood Sexuality
The Magical Age of 10
Gender Identity.: From Dualism to Diversity
Orientations: GLBTQ
Sexuality: Young and Middle Adulthood
Sexuality at Midlife and Beyond
The Direct and Indirect Impact of Childhood Abuse and Neglect on Sexuality
Mental Health, Mental Illness, and Sexuality
Sexual Health Resources
Index
About the Editors and Advisors
About the Contributors
Volume II
Systems that Contribute to Sexual Response and Expression
The Role of the Brain and Nervous System
Hormones and Female Sexuality
Hormones Involved in Male Sexual Function
The Circulatory System
Sexual Anatomy and Physiology: An Overview
Pregnancy and Sexuality
Menopause and Sexuality
Sexual Changes in the Aging Male
The Effects of Drugs and Alcohol Use and Abuse on Sexual Function
Sexual Pain Disorders
Meeting the Challenge: Providing Comprehensive Sexuality Services to People with Intellectual Disabilities
Neurological Impairment of Sexuality in Men and Women
Chronic Conditions and Disability
Sexual Health Resources
Index
About the Editors and Advisors
About the Contributors
Volume III
Public Health Perspectives in Sexual Health
Classical Jewish Perspectives on Sex
Catholic Culture and Sexual Health
Sexual Value Systems and Sexual Health
Sex in America: From Below the Victorian Belt to the Start of Modern Dating
Cultural Perspectives on Orgasm Imbedded in Medicine, Science, Philosophy and Literature
Cultural Influences on African American Sexuality: The Role of Multiple Identities on Kinship, Power, and Ideology
Native American Culture and Sex
Contrasts and Contradictions: A Brief Look at the Construction of Sexualities in Mexico
Eros in the Dragon Empire: The Open Door to Sex in China
Sex and Sexual Dysfunctions in the Middle Eastern Culture
Female Genital Cutting: Understanding the Tradition
Sexual Identities of Gay Men and Lesbians: Cultural Foundations and Controversies
Sex Sells: Business, Politics, and the U.S. Media
Adolescent Sexuality Viewed Through Two Different Cultural Lenses
The Importance of Broad-Based Human Sexuality Education as the Context for Sexual Health Instruction
Alternate Expressions
Sexual Health Resources
Index
About the Editors and Advisors
About the Contributors
Volume IV
Sexual Problems and Dysfunctions in Men
Psychological and Relationship Aspects of Male Sexuality
Pharmacological Treatment of Male Erectile Dysfunction
Devices Used for the Treatment of Sexual Dysfunctions in Men
Womens Sexual Problems and Concerns
Therapy Update for Women: The Treatment of Low Libido in Women Using an Integrated Biopsychosocial Approach
Spiritual Dimensions of Sexual Health: Broadening Clinical Perspectives of Womens Desire
Gender Variability: Transsexuals, Crossdressers, and Others
Physical Therapy and Sexual Health
Understanding Family Planning, Birth Control, and Contraception
Sexually Transmitted Infections
Sexual Rehabilitation after Cancer
Access to Pleasure: Onramp to Specific Information on Disability, Illness, and Changes Throughout the Lifespan
Iatrogenic Causes of Female Sexual Disorders
Current Controversies in Sexual Health: Sexual Addiction and Compulsion
Compulsive or Other Problematic Sexual Behavior
Appendix. The Evolution of Definitions for Womens Sexual Disorders
Series Afterword, Judy Kuriansky
Sexual Health Resources
Index
About the Editors and Advisors
About the Contributors

Reviews
"The editors interweave areas of basic and clinical science that are not often seen together--to the benefit of students and scholars alike. In doing so, they clarify the diverse contributions that have been made to the field of sexual health....[T]he editors have skillfully brought multiple disciplines and perspectives together into one comprehensive anthology....I know that these volumes will certainly help me to educate medical students, residents, and physicians about sexual health. I believe this collection will be a valuable resource for clinicians, researchers, sexual health educators, and even persons outside the field who are simply interested in enhancing their own sexual health."—The New England Journal of Medicine

"This four-volume set is founded on the World Health Organization's definition of sexual health as being more than just the absence of disease; instead it is a state of physical, emotional, mental, and social well-being related to sexuality. Each volume focuses on a broad area of sexual health, and the chapters within each volume, written by academics and health practitioners, treat various topics in language that is scholarly but accessible to lay readers....[a] comprehensive, nonjudgmental resource on a high-interest topic. Access to information is through each volume's table of contents and a subject index; cross-referencing would have made this set more useful as a reference resource. However, its chapter-based format makes it appropriate for placement in either circulating or reference collections. Recommended. All levels."—Choice

"Tepper is a sexual educator, researcher, and advocate; Owens is a certified sexuality counselor. Both are with the Sexual Health Network, an organization of health professionals and educators providing online information and guidance to the public. They present a four-volume set comprised of 61 chapters contributed by some 70 doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, educators, and clergy addressing the meaning of sexual health, the effects of ignorance or neglect, and the role of love, touch, and communication. Each volume focuses on one of four subcategories of sexual health psychological foundations, physical foundations, moral and cultural foundations, and state-of-the-art treatments and research and contains a subject index specific to the individual volume. A list of print and nonprint resources is also included at the end of each volume for further information. For students and healthcare professionals, and general readers interested in sexual health."—Reference & Research Book News

Endorsements
"This monumental work presents in-depth knowledge and extensive information from many different points of view. Several chapters deal with the cultural and religious aspects of sexuality, of great importance in our present world. An excellent work!"—Gorm Wagner, M.D., Ph.D., Senior Researcher, Copenhagen University Hospital, Denmark

"This is an incredibly complete text on sexual health, and includes chapters from many of the most prominent researchers and clinicians in the field. Contributing authors provide detail without losing sight of the big picture, which is organized by the editors into three volumes on the underpinnings of sexual health, and one on treatments and research. This comprehensive anthology of sexual health is an essential resource for clinical practice, medical education, and further advancements in our understanding of human sexuality."—Anita H. Clayton, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, University of Virginia