Obesity produces many health problems such as diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and arthritis just to name a few. Among the many maladies that accompany obesity is erectile dysfunction or impotence. This article will discuss the relationship between impotence and obesity and hopefully motivate overweight men to shed a few pounds.
How obesity leads to impotence?
Obesity often causes the deposition of cholesterol like plaques in the blood vessels. Blood vessels that contain too many deposits of cholesterol impede the flow of blood to the organs that those blood vessels supply. Examples include the blood supply to the heart which can lead to coronary artery disease, to the kidneys resulting in hypertension, and to the brain which can cause severely debilitating strokes. The same process occurs when the blood supply to the penis is affected by cholesterol deposits and there is a decrease in the blood flow to the penis thus affecting a man’s erections.
The solution to obesity and impotence
The only effective way in addition to taking medication for ED is to lose weight. It is shown that weight loss by lifestyle intervention like changes in diet and exercise can go a long way in improving ED. Several studies have also proved that weight loss by either diet and exercise or surgery has also shown a significant improvement in ED in obese men. Weight loss not only causes a decline in estrogen levels but also helps in increasing the levels of hormones, gonadotropins and testosterone in the blood.
Bottom Line: Obesity impacts many aspects of a man’s health including his ability to achieve an erection adequate for sexual intimacy.