While considering how best to respond, Dr. Northrup mused... Some people don’t realize there are two gasses that sound similar: nitric oxide, which is mostly in the lining of the blood vessels, and nitrous oxide, used commonly in the dentist’s office. Then she said to the reporter, “A lot of people haven’t heard of nitric oxide, but this happy molecule exists throughout everyone’s body—although it typically lessens as we age.” Then she added, “Get ready to hear a lot more about it, because it’s leading edge medical science!”

Nitric oxide is a cornerstone in Dr. Northrup’s latest book, The Secret Pleasures of Menopause. Dr. Northrup went on to explain, “When nitric oxide is produced, through meditation, exercise, and glorious sex, the smooth muscles in your blood vessels relax. This allows life-nurturing oxygen to be circulated throughout the body, especially to the heart and brain. Although you might not have known what it was called, you do know about nitric oxide—increasing the quantity and flow of it is the mechanism used in nitroglycerin and in erectile dysfunction drugs like Viagra.”

Dr. Northrup added, “This is a beautiful, natural mechanism that we need only enhance. I’m not talking about something that numbs the pain, like alcohol or a recreational drug. Increasing your nitric oxide levels requires simply increasing the joy in your life—through pleasurable pursuits of any kind. I talk a lot about how to enjoy the best sex of your life in The Secret Pleasures of Menopause, which will definitely increase nitric oxide levels. But there are many other effective ways to raise our levels.”

In fact, any activity that enhances the mind-body connection, such as meditation, breathing deeply and rhythmically, and yoga raise nitric oxide levels in the body. And science backs this up. “A recent study by Randall Zusman, M.D., conducted at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Hypertension Program and the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind-Body Medicine at MGH, shows that meditating lowers blood pressure. Participants in the study meditated daily using a method that would trigger the relaxation response, first introduced about thirty years ago by Herbert Benson, M.D., in his classic The Relaxation Response. When asked to comment on the study, Dr. Zusman explained that the relaxation response increases nitric oxide levels, which causes the blood vessels in the veins and arteries to dilate. This allows the blood to flow more easily, which in turn lowers blood pressure.

“I tell a story in The Secret Pleasures of Menopause about how thinking positively can also improve nitric oxide levels,” says Dr. Northrup. “Herbert Benson, M.D., whose work I’ve followed for years, believes nitric oxide is the key to how and why the placebo effect works. The positive and hopeful emotions a patient feels when she’s taking a medication she thinks might be beneficial trigger an increase in nitric oxide in her body, and the higher levels of nitric oxide in turn have a positive effect on her health—despite the fact that the medication contains no active ingredients.

“Benson’s research with nitric oxide goes further still. He suggests that higher level of nitric oxide molecules in the brain can also trigger yearnings that are linked with profound spiritual experiences,” says Dr. Northrup.

So why was it that the interviewer from WebMD had never heard of nitric oxide before? Dr. Northrup will never know for sure. But she hopes everyone will learn about it soon—and start the daily practices that boost their levels of joy and satisfaction today. Taking care to boost nitric oxide regularly can improve your health, your attitude, and your connection to spirit.

Learn more in The Secret Pleasures of Menopause.

Includes excerpts from The Secret Pleasures of Menopause, Hay House, 2008.

• Secret Pleasures of Menopause, by Christiane Northrup, M.D.