What Are The Risk Factors Associated With Impotence?

Impotence or erectile dysfunction is the inability to achieve or maintain an erection to perform sexual intercourse.

Impotence is a common problem for men and many of them experience short term impotence episodes.

But, the problem continues for one in ten men. There are many factors that can cause impotence.

How diabetes can cause impotence?

If you have diabetes, you are likely to develop impotence or erectile dysfunction 10 to 15 years earlier than men without diabetes. As you age with diabetes, impotence also becomes more common. Difficulty in erection occurs above the age of fifty in 50 to 60 percent of men with diabetes.

The cause of impotence in you with diabetes involves nerve, blood vessel and muscle function impairments. You need healthy blood vessels, male hormones, nerves, and a sexual desire to get an erection.

Diabetes is a condition that damages the blood vessels and nerves which control erection. If you have normal male hormones and the sexual desire, you may not get an erection due to diabetes [diabetes diet].

If you have diabetes, the erections can be maintained with oral medications like Levitra, Viagra and Cialis. But, if you have heart problems, these medications can cause dangerous interactions with heart medications. Talk to your doctor before taking any medications.

Smoking can lead to impotence:

Impotence is twice likely to occur in smokers than non-smokers. Sexual functioning involves coordination of several functions in the body. This includes nervous system working in coordination with hormones, and vascular system which pumps blood into the muscle tissue that maintains erection. Smoking affects all the systems and can lead to impotence.

Arteries blockage can take place due to smoking and blood flow to all parts of the body is inhibited. Therefore, arterial blockage can lead to impotence.

You can recover from impotence completely or partially by stopping smoking. If you smoke more, the damage caused to the biological system is more which can lead to impotence.

High blood pressure: A potential cause of impotence:

If you have high blood pressure, the blood vessels responsible for the transformation of blood to the penis narrows down and sometimes even get damaged. As a result, sufficient quantity of blood fails to reach the penis. Therefore, this result in failure to get erections that is necessary for sexual intercourse.

Sometimes, medications taken for high blood pressure can cause erectile dysfunction. If you experience impotence while on blood pressure medications, talk to your doctor. Your doctor can change the medicines to lower blood pressure and to improve the impotence condition.