Scientists reveal what happens to the brain while sexting - and the biggest turn-ons (and turn-offs)

Sexting won't just spice up your relationship, it will also make you more awake and happy. 

A new study has found that reading a naughty message caused a surge in women's 'feel good' hormones and increased their ability to process information and made them more attentive and alert.

But men should take note - passionate messages that included kissing and gentle caressing elicited a stronger response than those that were too raunchy.

More intimate messages fire up the parts of the brain that release dopamine and oxytocin that trigger pleasure and more sexual impulses.

Researchers at the University of Guadalajara found that women prefer reading sexual text messages that mimic their desires and allow them to create personalized fantasies 

The researchers said they used excerpts from the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy because past research has shown that heterosexual women preferred erotic writing rather than videos.

'This is perhaps because, unlike men, women often find more ‘humanity’ in stories or novels,' the study said.

'The characters have names, stories and their own desires. Literature provides guidelines that highlight the important relationships developing between participants in a sexual relationship.

'Unlike erotic videos, reading allows you to add or remove elements based on your preferences, creating a personalized fantasy.'

Researchers at the University of Guadalajara in Mexico analyzed the brains of 27 heterosexual women between 20 and 30 years old while they read both Sexually Explicit Texts (SET) and Sexually Explicit Texts with Aggression (SETA). 

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Each message consisted of 700 words, divided into paragraphs of 70 to 100 words each of the Fifty Shades of Grey excerpts.

For SETA examples, the researchers included sections that featured whipping, spanking and bondage.

While SET messages focused on descriptions of sexual activity like passionate kissing, fondling and explicit sexual descriptions.

The team made recordings using electrodes placed on the right and left prefrontal, temporal and parietal locations in the brain.

The study found that messages with an aggression component attached still had a positive response - subjects didn't find them 'unpleasant' or 'aversive.'

Researchers observed an activation in the prefrontal cortex when women read SETA - this region controls goal-directed behaviors like planning, attention and emotional processing. 

However, subjects rated SET as more enjoyable compared to sexual messages with aggression.

Women also had more activation in brain areas that involved in tasks like planning, remembering information and controlling impulses.

'Both texts were classified for the women as generators of general activation and sexual arousal,' the study reads. 

Scientists found that sexting elicited a response in the prefrontal and temporal locations of the brain that are responsible for processing emotions, 'indicating that women are not only more alert but also more sexually receptive to this kind of material.'

Sexting is a great way to release dopamine in the brain - often known as the 'feel good' hormone because it creates feelings of pleasure and satisfaction. It also releases oxytocin, sometimes called the 'love or cuddle hormone' because it creates a feeling of closeness and a connection to your partner

Research has shown that sexting is a great way to release dopamine in the brain - often known as the 'feel good' hormone because it creates feelings of pleasure and satisfaction.

It also delivers oxytocin, sometimes called the 'love or cuddle hormone' because it creates a feeling of closeness and a connection to your partner.

'Sexting is an act of sexual empowerment because it's a part of sexual communication,' Dr Tara Suwinyattichaiporn, a relationship coach and sex educator who wasn't involved in the study told DailyMail.com.

'When you engage in healthy sexual communication, you're giving yourself the permission to express your sexual self and that's great for your sexual self-esteem.'

Sexting kicked off in the early 2000s as a way for people to creatively express their yearning for another person and provided a platform for them to ask for all the naughty things they want and deserve.

Since then, it has become more commonplace among young adults, as couples share their sexual desires with their partners by sending nude photos and explicit text messages.

Sexting also activates the body's limbic system which is controlled by the amygdala - a part of the brain that processes emotions, particularly fear and anxiety.

So that sudden rush you feel after sending a raunchy text is your brain activating an anxiety-inducing fight or flight response.

That initial fear-based response is triggered because of the risk that comes with sending explicit messages and the feeling that you're doing something bad or naughty.

'For some, sexting can be awkward and confusing because you don’t have non-verbal cues like facial expressions and body language to add context, which sometimes leads to misinterpretation,' Dr Justin Lehmiller, Research Fellow at the Kinsey Institute and host of the Sex and Psychology Podcast told DailyMail.com.

You might have thoughts like: 'I hope I'm not the only one into this right now' or 'He/she hasn't responded. Was that too much?'

A 2018 study found that sexting can be good for your relationship and found that those who sent dirty texts and photos more often had higher sexual satisfaction with their partner.

'In a healthy relationship, sexting is a wonderful practice that helps bring partners closer together,' Suwinyattichaiporn said. 

'It contributes to excitement and novelty in the sexual relationship and helps couples bond over doing 'taboo' activity together.'