According to statistics, one in every four men experiences erectile dysfunction during their lifetime. About 5% of men aged 40 years old have complete erectile dysfunction, and this number increases to 15% once they reach 70. Erectile dysfunction can affect men of all ages, but their susceptibility increases as they age.
Erectile dysfunction is common among men, but leaving this condition untreated can result in having an unsatisfactory sex life, severe stress and anxiety, and even low self-esteem. This health condition can even cause problems in your relationships and will hinder your ability to reproduce.
If you want to prevent erectile dysfunction, take note of the things that cause it:
1. Age
Age is one of the most common reasons why men suffer from erectile dysfunction. As men start to age, their body’s ability to maintain an erection during intercourse also deteriorates.
Fortunately, you can decrease your susceptibility to erectile dysfunction by maintaining a healthy diet, staying active, and adding men’s supplements to your diet as per doctor’s recommendation. These may compensate for your body’s inability to function on its own so you can continue to have an erection.
2. Diabetes
It’s a well-known fact that diabetes can trigger several health conditions. The longer you have diabetes, the more health conditions your body develops over time. But are you aware that diabetes can also increase your risks to experience erectile dysfunction?
There’s a link between diabetes and erectile dysfunction because when you have diabetes, your nerves and blood vessels are damaged as your body can no longer control its blood sugar levels. This can result in erectile dysfunction.
Treatment of erectile dysfunction caused by diabetes often starts by controlling your blood sugar. You can do this by following your doctor’s advice to keep your diabetes under control and regulate your blood sugar.
3. Smoking
Smoking comes with several health risks, but because of the pleasure nicotine provides to the brain, more and more people still choose to smoke. If you’re one of those who disregard the dangers of smoking in exchange for temporary pleasure, you should change your mindset and quit smoking right away.
Smoking is associated with erectile dysfunction because tobacco can decrease the blood flow of your body. When the blood flow of your penis decreases at a significant rate, it’ll be challenging for you to achieve an erection. Fortunately, erectile dysfunction from smoking can be reversible. Your erections will gradually improve if you quit smoking for good.
4. Side Effects From Medication
It’s common for men to take medications throughout their lives. This is especially true among seniors. Since aging makes their bodies susceptible to illnesses and diseases, they have to take prescription drugs to maintain their health.
However, these medications aren’t all good, as some of these can also cause erectile dysfunction. Antidepressants, opioid pain medications, acid reflux medications, and blood pressure medications can trigger erectile dysfunction.
If you start to notice that you’re struggling to have and maintain an erection after you were prescribed with new medications, inform your doctor right away. They can provide alternatives that can improve your health but won’t adversely affect your ability to maintain erections.
5. Mental Health Issues
You might have heard about how vital your mental health is to your physical health. Both are interdependent with each other, which means that when one is disregarded, the other will also suffer. This might come as a surprise to some, but the condition of your mental health directly affects your ability to have an erection.
Chronic stress, anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues can prevent your brain from creating nerve connections with the hormones responsible for your erection. Having mental health issues blocks your body’s ability to release these hormones and causes difficulty to have erections.
6. Low Testosterone
Having low testosterone can cause a lot of health issues in men. Having lower levels of testosterone in the body can cause hair loss, insomnia, and erectile dysfunction. The lower your testosterone levels are, the more health problems you can experience.
Problems with low testosterone can be treated with medications. After getting a blood test and your doctor confirms that you have low testosterone, they can recommend appropriate medications to increase the testosterone in your body. Once your testosterone levels are back to normal, having erections will also become easier.
Talk To Your Doctor
If you suspect that you have erectile dysfunction, seek professional help right away. Medical professionals can provide medications that increase the blood flow of the penis. If these medications don’t produce positive results, they can recommend penis pumps, surgery, and implants.
Since erectile dysfunction can significantly affect the quality of your life, it’s important to get medical help immediately. The sooner you talk to your doctor about erectile dysfunction, the better chances you’ll have in recovering from this condition.
