ED

Failure to “get it up” when you want to is a problem that many men dread having. Unfortunately, Erectile Dysfunction, also known as ED is a condition that most men will have to face at some time in their lives. While this condition is more common in older men (65+) it can happen to anyone at anytime during their lives.

What Causes ED?

It would be quite easy to say that men who suffer from ED are just “merely getting old” and this is why they no longer have the ability to maintain a erection hard and long enough for intercourse. While age does play a factor in ease of arousal, ED is not something that merely shows up with age like the hair growing in your ears.

Erectile Dysfunction can happen due to certain physiological factors such as:

• Diabetes (High Blood Sugar)
• Hypertension (High blood Pressure)
• Atherosclerosis (the hardening of your arteries)

While age plays a factor for these conditions, keeping them under control and taking the right medication for them will help them from causing difficulties with your plumbing. Just because you happen to be more advanced in years, does not mean you need to completely give up on sex. All you really need to do is to give yourself more time and stimulation for intercourse and to address your health issues.

Other Physical causes of Erectile Dysfunction

• Excessive drinking
• Smoking
• Injury to the Brain or Spinal Cord
• Low testosterone count (hypogonadism)
• Liver disease
• Kidney Problems
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Parkinson’s disease
• Radiation
• Stroke
• Surgery
• Pressure on the Prostate

Suffering from any of these problems does not necessarily mean that you will become impotent, but medical research does indicate that your chance of getting ED increases with each of these conditions. Many doctors agree that smoking is one of the key factors in erectile dysfunction today because it promotes arterial narrowing (yet another reason to think about quitting). Any kind of surgery in or around the prostate and penile glands also brings a high risk factor for the onset of ED. Radiation therapy or surgery may damage nerves of blood vessels making erections impossible to maintain.

Hormones also play a big part in helping to achieve and maintain an erection and a hormonal disorder may be at the root of your problem. Also, if you happen to be on a particular type of medication, this might be a cause for your problem. Be sure to discuss it with your doctor to find out if a different type of medication is available.

Psychological problems

Erections are not only a product of physical stimulation, but of mental stimulation as well. Many different types of psychological problems can end of leading to impotence including relationship problems, stress, and depression. Erectile dysfunction can be a recurring problem because it happened before and you are constantly worried that it will happen again therefore thinking yourself out of a lasting erection.

ED Treatments

Keeping on top of the physical and physiological factors that can lead to ED is the best way to address the problem. This can be done with regular medical checkups and perhaps therapy to address any psychological issues. There are also many types of medications available on the market to today that can help a man achieve a long last erection.

Perhaps the best known treatment for ED (thanks in part to Senator Bob Dole) is siledenafil which is commonly known as Viagra. Viagra works as a PDE5 inhibitor, which causes the smooth muscle in the penis to relax and fill with blood. Since the arrival of the little blue wonder pill (Viagra) other prescription drugs including Levitra and Cialis have also made to the market. Of course, the problem with ED is that most men do not like to talk about it, even with a medical professional, and thus fail to get treatment for it.

Natural Treatments

Erectile Dysfunction has been around long before the advent of oral prescription pills, so it should come as little surprise that there are many natural treatments out there that have been used for centuries to treat this particular problem. While many natural cures are nothing more than a placebo effect (which may work if the problem happens to be psychological), there many others that now have the research to back them up.

These include:

• Ginseng: Shown to help increase sex hormone levels
• Epimedium (horny goat weed): Shown to increase penile blood pressure
• Cordyceps Extract : A powerful aphrodisiac
• Cnidium Monnier: A natural Nitric Oxide Booster
• Saw Palmetto: Used for centuries by Native Americans

Many of these natural ingredients that are proven to help a man achieve an erection can be found as supplements in many health food stores. Another way to benefit from them is to use Zenerect: an all natural sexual enhancer pill that uses a unique combination of natural ingredients to increase sexual potency.