Impotence is the inability to get an erection or keep it during intimacy. But you might be surprised to learn that age by itself does not appear to cause the ailment. And if you’re a natural pundit generally averse to prescriptions, you’ll be pleased to know you may not need drugs to beat it.
Consider impotence a wake up call, actually, that all is not fine with you and your health. Impotence is a red flag for heart disease, because the blood vessels that carry blood to your penis during arousal are similar to the veins that pump blood to your heart.
Failure of the blood vessels to dilate is a common cause of impotence. The same factors that cause limpness can spell trouble for your heart.
Why You Might Not Need Drugs to Fight Impotence
You might not need drugs for impotence and here’s why: a recent study of more than 800 Australian men published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine found that addressing risk factors for impotence was more effective than taking ED prescriptions.
Make sense? Sure it does. Many health issues come down to lifestyle and habits like diet and weight. Impotence appears to be one of them – and the study adds further weight to a growing list of doctors who prefer to prescribe lifestyle changes rather than medications to address impotence.
A recent study of more than 800 Australian men published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine found that addressing risk factors for impotence was more effective than taking ED prescriptions.
The study followed men between 35 and 80, in which researchers assessed each man’s sexual desire with a standard questionnaire. They asked questions about sexual interest with another partner, individually and/or lack of interest in being intimate.
As well, they measured each participant’s erectile function with a scoring system that factored height, weight, blood pressure, hand grip strength, fat, age, education, marital status, occupation and smoking habits, along with these risk factors for impotence.
The men who improved their health habits tended to have better sexual function on the study follow-up five years later. The reverse held true as well; men whose health and lifesyle habits got worse were more likely to be impotent in the years following the study.
8 Ways to Fight Impotence
Lifestyle, guys. You’ll want to speak with your doctor on the first signs of impotence. He’ll pop the hood and test for other, more urgent health issues like diabetes.
He might look for symptoms of heart disease too, and considering that it’s the leading cause of death in the U.S., you should follow his advice.
While your doctor might prescribe an ED prescription for temporary help, the emphasis will probably be on short term. He’ll probably recommend reducing your risk factors for ED, which should benefit your heart and the rest of your body. You can do that by:
Stop Smoking – The list of ways smoking can hurt you gets bigger by the year. This nastiest of habits doesn’t help your erection either because it can lead to atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). But it’s never too late – studies show that guys who quit smoking can restore sexual function.
Healthy Weight Management – The American Urological Society says that overweight guys are more likely to have limpness issues, in part because being overweight can lead to vascular disease. You can define ‘overweight’ as a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than 25. Calculate your Body Mass Index with this BMI calculator.
Don’t Be a Couch Potato – The sedentary lifestyle is somewhere between smoking and eating a deep-fried candy bar when it comes to erectile function. Inactive guys tend to have lower sperm too.
Manage Diabetes – Uncontrolled diabetes can affect both blood flow to and the nerve endings in the penis. And more bad news – about 10% of Americans are now diabetic and that number is climbing. If you’re among them, eat a diabetes-friendly diet and exercise often. Note that diabetes is a common trigger for ED.
Reduce Cholesterol – High cholesterol can damage blood vessels throughout the body, including those that lead to your ticker. It can also harden and block the arteries leading there. You might remedy that with some basic steps, like healthy diet and regular exercise, though your doctor might also prescribe cholesterol medication. So tackle high cholesterol, and you’ll be healthier and bust impotence.
Cap it At Two Drinks a Day – Keep it at two drinks daily. Yes, we all like to let loose with a beer after work but more than that can restrict blood flow to the penis and inhibit production of testosterone. You might score points for booze tolerance but you’ll lose them in the bedroom.
Don’t Use Illegal Drugs – Weed is out too, along with cocaine and other illegal drugs because, like alcohol, they can damage the blood vessels and restrict the blood flow your penis needs to get hard.
Reduce Stress – Chill out, friend. Stress can make it difficult to get and keep an erection. Of course, that’s like telling a man with low self-esteem to ‘be confident’, so work on it. Try these relaxation steps and identify what puts you at ease. Also, consider using a natural enhancement gel, which should make it easier to get an erection and can alleviate concerns about not getting wood.
Also, eat foods for the male libido.
While that’s another article to itself, it’s worth mentioning, because few factors influence health quite like your diet. You know the obvious ones, like oysters and dark chocolate, but did you know that spinach, eggs, beans and salmon are good for your sex drive?
Check out Men’s Health’s list of How to Eat For Better Sex for more information.
Can Natural Supplements Treat Impotence?
Not being a doctor, I don’t know your medical history, nor do I have the credentials to say that a natural supplement like VigRX Plus can treat ED in your situation.
The makers of VigRX Plus tend to lean to the supplement being used for mild cases of erectile dysfunction too, rather than more advanced cases, which should be reviewed by a doctor.
But look at the stats.
Each of the products mentioned here have clinical studies to vouch for their efficacy. And assuming you have no underlying health issues responsible for mild cases of impotence – which should be diagnosed by a doctor, no matter how sporadic – you might find relief with the following supplements.
VigRX Plus – For Sex Drive and Satisfaction
Author of The Hardness Factor, Dr. Steven Lamm champions lifestyle factors that benefit both the heart and the sex drive. He’s an advocate for preventative medicine too, for guys with mild impotence. One of his favorites? None other than VigRX Plus.
Clinical Proof: Arguably the best-documented male libido supplement, VigRX Plus brings legitimacy to natural male enhancement, with a clinically proven formula that helped guys increase their ability to keep an erection by over 62%.
Penetration improved too, by more than 58%, as did intercourse satisfaction and overall sex drive, by 71% and 47% respectively.
Use it For: Mild ED, to increase sexual desire, performance and stamina.
ProSolution Plus – For Sex Drive and Premature Ejaculation
ProSolution Pills brings huge increases to sex drive. ProSolution Plus does that AND helps guys with another devastating problem: it’s clinically proven to help guys reduce premature ejaculation.
Clinical Proof: If ever there were a rival to VigRX Plus, it might come from the ProSolution camp. Men who used the ProSolution Plus formula enjoyed a 67% improvement in erectile quality, and 78% more satisfaction with sex.
And very notably, they improved premature ejaculation by up to 64%.
Use it For: Mild ED, sex drive, satisfaction, and to release when you choose.
Semenax – For a Longer and Intense Orgasm
The Semenax orgasm is stuff of legends. The popular semen volume enhancer is designed to increase ejaculate load so your climax is long and very intense. A better orgasm with an all-natural supplement? Yup, and guys eat it up for good reason.
Clinical Proof: In what might be the more enjoyable study in history, Semenax helped more guys increase volume by at least 20% than those on a placebo. Lucky them – more semen means the orgasmic muscles contract longer and with greater intensity. Put another way, they had a longer orgasm.
Use it For: The best orgasm ever. While you wouldn’t use Semenax to address impotence or erectile dysfunction, the product works for guys who simply want to get the most out of sex. They’re not concerned so much about erectile dysfunction as they are about squeezing more satisfaction out of their encounters.
Funny how they do that over and over.
Remember, natural male supplements like VigRX Plus work best for mild erectile issues. You’ll want to speak with your doctor about impotence, no matter how sporadic, because it may precurse bigger health concerns like diabetes and heart disease.
Deal with those first. Keep an open communication with your doctor and do as he says. It’s quite likely he’ll recommend many of the ways to reduce impotence we’ve discussed in this article.
Then again, he might also clear you to address mild impotence with a natural supplement. More doctors are doing that now, in part because they’re leaning away from medications as the first line of defence against impotence and related bedroom problems. Your doctor has the final say, but if he’s part of this growing trend, you might be among the millions of guys who can address impotence without so much as touching medication.