HEALTHY LIVING
Fading Love Life? Help for Erectile Dysfunction
A
ging takes its toll, and one of its most distressing side effects is a flagging love life. “Many adults — particularly men — become concerned with the waning of their virility
as they age,” neurosurgeon and wellness expert Dr. Russell Blaylock says. Many factors affect sexual function, including
stress and decreasing levels of testosterone. (Testosterone levels begin dropping after the age of 30 at about 1 percent each year.) Erectile dysfunction (ED) plagues aging men, but
it also can occur at any age. Some common causes include heart disease, clogged blood vessels, diabetes, and obesity. And while testosterone medications might seem to be the answer to erectile dysfunction, they come with risks. Prescription
testosterone can contribute to sleep apnea, acne, reduced sperm production, an enlarged prostate, and to slowing production of the body’s own testosterone. It can also spur the spread of prostate cancer. Fortunately, there are
supplements that can boost the production of testosterone and help cope with some of the most common causes of ED to give your love life a boost. They include: DHEA (dehydroepiandrosterone). This hormone,
which is produced by the adrenal glands, is broken down by the body into a hormone called androstenedione, which is then changed into testosterone and estrogen. “By age 60 a man possesses only one-third the level
he had as a young man,” says Blaylock, author of The Blaylock Wellness Report. He recommends everyone over age 50 have DHEA levels tested, and if they are low, to take 10 milligrams daily. Get retested in three weeks, and if levels are still low, add an additional 10 millgrams. Once levels are
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normal, discontinue. Vitamin D. Although it’s called a vitamin, vitamin D
is actually a hormone. A majority of Americans are deficient, especially seniors. A three-year study of older men published in Hormone and Metabolic Research found that men who had higher levels of vitamin D also had higher levels of free testosterone. Another study found that men with low testosterone who were given a vitamin D supplement (3,332 IU) every day for a year experienced a 20 percent rise in free testosterone. L-arginine. L-arginine is an amino acid that helps
fight ED by making nitric oxide in the body. Nitric oxide relaxes smooth muscles around blood vessels and dilates vessels, letting more oxygen-rich blood flow to the penis, which allows for an erection. A study published
HELP
AVAILABLE Supplements and lifestyle changes can improve men’s sexual health.
in the Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy found that when 1,700 milligrams of L-arginine were combined with 40 milligrams of pycnogenol (a form of pine bark that is also a nitric oxide booster), the success rate for helping erectile dysfunction was 80 percent. Folic Acid. A 2016 study
of 120 men found that males suffering from
erectile dysfunction had much lower levels of serum folic acid than the control group. The connection between low folic acid and ED also appeared in a 2018 study published in the journal The Aging Male. Researchers concluded that a folic acid deficit may directly impair a man’s sexual function. Lifestyle changes are also important for men
suffering from ED, according to experts. Physical fitness is a big factor, as is reducing anxiety and depression. In addition, men who smoke cigarettes should stop, as the toxins damage blood vessels. Excessive alcohol is also to be avoided because it is a depressant.
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