A hidden source of erectile problems

The risk for erectile dysfunction can increase as a man ages.

And researchers at Kaiser Permanente in California have found a common practice that contributes to this problem…

According to the study published in the British Journal of Urology International: The more medications you take — the greater your chance of erectile dysfunction (ED).

Did your doctor give you ED?

The study, which tracked more than 37,000 men between the ages of 46 and 69, shows that the more prescriptions your doctor gives you, the bigger your ED risk.

The investigation also demonstrated that a man’s chances of ED also go up if you’re overweight, have diabetes, suffer from depression, smoke and if your cholesterol and blood pressure are out of whack.

If you take one or two prescription drugs, you have a 16 percent chance of having ED. Bump your medications up to between three and five pharmaceuticals and your ED risk goes to about 20 percent. Men who take six to nine prescription drugs have more than a 25 percent risk of ED. And once your prescriptions go over nine, your chances are 30 percent.

The researchers found that older men generally take more prescriptions. More than half of all men in their fifties take three or more prescription drugs. Two-thirds of men in their sixties take three or more pharmaceuticals. And one in four of the men in the study took 10 or more medications.

Is it the sheer number of prescriptions or something else?

According to Dr. Diana C. Londoño, a urologist at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center, it’s possible that interactions between medications may play a role.

If you are on multiple medications you should ask your doctor how many of these medicines are really necessary and also try to determine if there are drug interactions he may be unaware of. Look into more natural ways to deal with your medical issues. Natural methods usually get to the root of physical problems while most pharmaceuticals only mask symptoms — and often create more.

There are also many natural ways to reduce the effects of ED, but first look at your medicine cabinet, along with your doctor, and determine what you can throw out.

Source: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1464-410X.2011.10761.x/abstract

Carl Lowe

By Carl Lowe

has written about health, fitness and nutrition for a wide range of publications including Prevention Magazine, Self Magazine and Time-Life Books. The author of more than a dozen books, he has been gluten-free since 2007.

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