Men can judge themselves pretty harshly when it comes to their
performance in between the sheets. The unsettling fear of not being able
to rise to the occasion becomes a reccurring nightmare for men that is
often equated with failure, loss of dignity, and masculinity. If you
suffer from erectile dysfunction (ED), don’t be so hard on yourself,
since impotence can almost always be improved with treatment, without
having to rely on Viagra or other medications. Whether you suffer from
ED, or hope to prevent the condition, here are six tips to overcome
impotence without the side effects of the little blue pill.
What happens under normal conditions?Achieving a normal erection is a complex process involving psychological impulses from the brain, adequate levels of the male sex hormone testosterone, a functioning nervous system, and adequate and healthy vascular tissue in the penis.
The simplest way to describe the process of erection is to think of a washing machine. The “on-off” switch (the brain) initiates the process; the wires in the washing machine (the nerves) carry the electrical signal to the pipes (the blood vessels), when an appropriate signal arrives a valve opens to allow water to flow in (the arteries carry blood into the penis) and the drain shuts (the penile veins close). Water flows in and fills the tank (the penis fills with blood and becomes erect) and the wash cycle begins (enjoys sexual activity). At the end of the wash cycle this process reverses, the switch goes to the off position (the brain terminates erection), the valve closes (the arteries markedly decrease blood inflow) and the drain opens draining the wash tank of water (the veins open, blood leaves the penis and erection subsides).
How do erections occur?
When a man is not sexually aroused, his penis is soft, limp or flaccid. During sexual arousal, nerve messages release chemicals that increase blood flow into the penis. The blood flows into two erection chambers made of spongy tissue (the corpus cavernosum) in the penis. The “smooth muscle” in the erection chambers relaxes, which allows blood to enter and remain in the chambers. The pressure of the blood in the chambers makes the penis firm, producing an erection. After a man has an orgasm, the blood flows out of the chambers and the erection subsides.
What are the risk factors for ED?
- The most common risk factors for ED are:
- age over 50
- diabetes
- high blood pressure
- high cholesterol
- smoking
- cardiovascular diseaseThese diseases over a period, can lead to a degeneration of the penile blood vessels, leading to restriction of blood flow through the arteries and to erectile tissue damage, which allows leakage of blood through the veins during erection.Abnormally low levels of circulating testosterone may cause ED, although low testosterone is found in a minority of men who develop ED. Low levels of sexual desire, lack of energy, mood disturbances, loss of muscle strength and depression can all be symptoms of low testosterone. A simple blood test can determine if the testosterone level is abnormally low. Low levels of testosterone can be replaced by using a number of different delivery systems