Erectile dysfunction refers to the situation when a man has difficulty in getting a firm erection or an erection, which is required to achieve sexual penetration. Several cases of erectile dysfunction can cause impotency in a man.

Causes
1. A problem in the blood flow, proper hormone secretion and nervous supply in the body may cause erectile dysfunction.
2. Erectile dysfunction also happens due to vascular causes along with neurological causes.
3. Arthrosclerosis is a disease which often leads to erectile dysfunction. This disease is commonly caused because of smoking and diabetes. The arteries to the penis become narrow and clogged and erectile dysfunction occurs.
4. Neuropathy caused due to diabetes, known as diabetic neuropathy, is a primary neurological cause of erectile dysfunction. Nerve damage on account of surgery around the pelvis area may also lead to erectile dysfunction.
5. High blood pressure or hypertension damages arteries all over the vascular system. Blood flow is impaired and proper erection is prohibited, which signifies erectile dysfunction.

Erectile dysfunction also happens due to physical causes such as:
1. High cholesterol and obesity
2. Parkinson's disease and multiple cases of sclerosis
3. Smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and substance abuse
4. Disorder in anatomy or structure of the penis
5. Surgical complications
6. Several prescribed medicines may also lead to erectile dysfunction because of reactions and side effects.

Erectile dysfunction may also result due to several psychological causes:
1. Depression makes a person uninterested in sex due to lower libido and may cause erectile dysfunction.
2. A large amount of stress, fear, tension or anxiety may also lead to erectile dysfunction.
3. Many men suffer from performance anxiety and feelings of sexual failure. This may result in erectile dysfunction.
4. Poor communication with a partner or pressure from partner regarding sex may also cause erectile dysfunction.

Homeopathic Remedies For Impotency (erectile dysfunction)
1. Agnus Castus: Homeopathic medicine Agnus Castus is used in cases where there is complete inability to attain penile erection during the sexual act. Homeopathic medicine Agnus Castus can be used in cases of erectile dysfunction and sexual weakness where the male has a mental aversion to indulge in sex, along with decreased physical strength.

2. Caladium: Homeopathic medicine Caladium is of great help for treatment of erectile dysfunction when the male is unable to have an erection despite having a sexual desire or urge.

3. Lycopodium: Homeopathic medicine Lycopodium is of great help for both young people and elderly people suffering from erectile dysfunction.

4. Tribulus Terrestris: The main indication for using Homeopathic medicine Tribulus Terrestris is the presence of urinary troubles along with erectile Dysfunction.

5. Nuphar Luteum: Homeopathic medicine Nuphar Luteum can be beneficial for all those males with erectile Dysfunction in whom the desire to indulge in sexual activity is totally absent. There is no sexual desire with relaxed genitalia.

Erectile dysfunction affects the self-esteem and confidence of a man as he is unable to have sex. Necessary measures should be taken to cure erectile dysfunction.

Homeopathic Treatment for Erectile Dysfunction - 5 Natural Remedies

Peyronie's disease is a problem predominantly found in 3-9% of adult men, especially after 40 years of age. In the disease, a scar tissue is formed in the outer layer of the penis called tunica albuginea. Scar tissue is a just plaque inside the penis.

Peyronie's disease causes the penis to bend sideways or upwards and can make sex become difficult due to deformity and erection may be a painful process. It is usually associated with erectile dysfunctions, severe anxiety and reduced testosterone levels. It is worth noting that there are treatments for peyronie's disease, however, the pain often goes away on its own, generally, in 6-18 months of onset, but the deformity stays.

Here is everything you need to know about this disease:

Causes
It is not known exactly what causes peyronie's disease, however, there are some factors, which make it more likely than others. Here are those factors:

1. Trauma: this is the most common factor which causes peyronie's disease. It is believed that when someone suffers from tiny bleeding of the penis, which is very common in patients of diabetes, the plaque starts to build up. The injury or trauma, which causes the bleeding may go unnoticed as well.
2. Genes: genes are also a possible cause of peyronie's disease.

Symptoms
The symptoms of peyronie's disease vary, such as:
1. Pain on erection: there is usually pain in erection during the initial phase.
2. Bent penis: when the penis becomes hard before sex, it may bend downwards or sideways by more than 15 degree, so the vaginal entry becomes impossible or is painful for the partner.
3. Scars: tissue may form on other parts of the body, as well including the hand and feet. In fact, it has been said that men who have scarring in the hand, which affect the fingers are more likely to contract the disease as well.
One may see extensive scarring in hands in a disease called dupuytren's contracture. 

Treatment
1. Wait &amp; watch: it is worth noting the acute phase with pain is treated by wait and watch, controlling contributory factors like diabetes, low testosterone and psychogenic factors. Antioxidants are useful. Large number of cases are relieved of the pain in 1 to 1.5 years.
2. Intralesional injection: if the bend is significant enough to interfere in sexual functioning, it can be treated by injecting medicines in the plaque. The medicine, xiaflex is currently not available in india and other medicines given are not very effective.
3. Surgery: this is a last option when peyronie's disease has not gone on it's own and medicines are not helping either. The two most common procedures performed are removing the plaque and putting a tissue graft in its place and also removing the tissue opposite the plaque to counter the bending effect. The results are fairly good.

Going for a penile implant is the last option, which is a permanent solution and is commonly done in india. And, the success rate for penile implant is also very high.

Peyronie's Disease: About Bent Penis

Zinc and erectile dysfunction

Zinc is a naturally occurring metallic element. Certain types of vegetable, meats and seafood are rich in zinc.

Erectile dysfunction is a man's inability to achieve a penetrable erection. It is one of the most common sexual problems faced by men of all ages. Zinc helps the body to produce testosterone and thus the levels of zinc in a person's body may affect erectile dysfunction.

A host of factors ranging from nutritional deficiency to clinical depression can lead to the condition. In recent years, deficiency of zinc has been found to be the cause of ed. Apart from producing testosterone, zinc is used for metabolism purposes, DNA and protein production and cell division.

Most studies related to male infertility show a clear concise relationship between zinc and ed. During a study some young men were given a diet which included very little amounts of zinc and thus they developed a zinc deficiency. When testosterone levels were measured after 20 weeks of low-zinc diet it was found that the level of the hormone had drastically reduced. The study also found that in elderly men, with an increase in the uptake of zinc, testosterone levels nearly doubled.

Research on animals established the fact that relationship rats who were given 5 milligrams of zinc supplement a day, were found to be sexually active to a greater extent. It concluded that zinc had an impact in the arousal and maintaining of an erection in men.

Zinc deficiency can also reduce the sense of smell in person. A sense of smell is vital to libido, especially more in young men. Thus, it can cause a person to lose the ability to detect certain chemicals that stimulate arousal.

If you would like to consult with me privately, please click on 'consult'.
Related Tip: Knowing Erectile Dysfunction. PART 2: Management and Treatment

Zinc and Erectile Dysfunction - How is it related?

Erectile dysfunction (ed) occurs when the man is unable to achieve or maintain his erection of penis to meet his or his partner's sexual satisfaction. 
The problem is often faced by newly married men. Fortunately with experience, most of them are able to overcome this problem. Again it is increasingly common with increased age. 

So, what are the causes. In some male, it is psychological, caused by anxiety, depression, stress, marital disharmony etc. Use of alcohol and smoking will aggravate the problem. Psychological causes can happen at any age but more common at younger age. But in some cases, it is associated with serious diseases, especially at old age. It has been seen that in apparently healthy male ed is the first sign of heart disease. So, if you have ed, make sure that i's not caused by your heart problem. Again diabetes is another important cause. Excessive weight gain will also cause hormonal imbalance and thus problems in erection. Some hormone may also cause ed like thyroid, prolactin and even testosterone (male sex hormone). If you have chronic diseases like liver or kidney disease, it may also lead to ed. Diseases of nerves and spines should also be kept in mind. Sometimes, infections or tumour in private parts (prostate, testis etc) will also add to ed. Other diseases of penis like abnormalities in blood vessels can also be responsible, especially in young guys. Apart from these, some surgeries in abdomen and some drugs (like drugs to lower blood pressure, antidepressants, hormonal drugs etc) will also cause ed.

Now, what you can do? if you want to suffer silently, you will land up in other problems like problem in sexual life, problem in family relationships, depression and even inability to make your partner pregnant. But do all men with ed have to go to doctor? initially, the men should try life style modifications like avoiding smoking and alcohol; avoiding stress and anxiety; making good understanding with partner and also reducing weight. The partner should also have sympathetic attitude to the husband who is having ed.

But if still the issue is not resolved you have to consult doctor. It's not a mater of hesitation or embarrassment, as you may think. Rather it is needed to ensure that you are healthy. So, your doctor will talk to you, will check you and try to find out if any cause is there or not (like heart disease, diabetes, hormones etc). He may order some basic tests to ensure that everything is alright. After that he will advise you the treatment. If the cause is found, treatment of the cause (like diabetes) may cure ed. Even if no cause is found, ed can be treated by various ways.

But should you try the drugs shown in television or newspaper? remember, drugs used in ed have important side effects and we advise drugs only when it is absolutely necessary. In most cases simple measures like stress reduction, exercise help. Sex counseling of both the partners helps a lot. And if still ed persists, we advise drugs. There are variety of drugs, all are having own advantages and disadvantages. Particularly sildenafil group of drugs can affect heart and retina. So, we always practice caution before prescribing such drugs. And when patients are advised such drugs we advise to inform us when he feels eye problems, chest pain, fainting or even painful persistent erection of penis (" priapism").

There are other drugs that can be applied directly over penis. Testosterone group of drugs are prescribed only in selective cases as they have serious side effects and even they can reduce the size of your testes. In some cases where drugs cannot be given or drugs fail, we advise penile implants or artiificial pump to maintain erection. Finally in very few cases, where blood vessels of penis is blocked, we can cure it by some operations. 

So, if you feel ed, don't get depressed. At the same time don't feel embarrassed to take medical help. Today's embarrassment may harm you in future. So, get cured and enjoy your personal life.

Erectile Dysfunction

Erectile dysfunction is a disorder where the person affected is unable to maintain or achieve an erection during sexual intercourse. As diabetes is a disorder that affects blood supply to organs, so the ability to achieve or maintain erections are impaired, as erections are dependent on proper blood supply to the penis. Fortunately, there are treatments for these symptoms and they are:

1. Injection therapy and oral medications

Some medications are directly injected to the penis in order to facilitate erection, while certain other oral drugs are administered to treat symptoms of erectile dysfunction which have a higher success rate in treating people who are diabetic than those who are not.

2. Regular exercise and a healthy diet

Exercising on a regular basis combined with a healthy diet can reduce the symptoms of both diabetes as well as erectile dysfunction.

3. Reviewing medications

Some medications used to treat blood pressure and depression can often cause erectile dysfunction. So, the medications should be reviewed by a doctor and, if necessary, should be changed.

4. Usage of vacuum constriction devices

These devices are used to create a pump in the penis which facilitate the ability to maintain an erection and engage in sexual intercourse. It is reported to work in 80% of the cases.

5. Penile implants

It is a surgical procedure where a penis implant is used to treat this disorder.

6. Intraurethral therapy

In this treatment, the medicine is placed in the urethra of the penis in the form of suppository by an applicator. These medicines improve blood flow and thus facilitate a normal erection.

How To Deal With Erectile Dysfunction If You Are A Diabetic?

There are a lot of health conditions people do not want to talk about publicly, as they find it shameful or fear it can point questions at them. However, not talking about them leads to many myths and misconceptions, which hold no truth.

Of these, common is Erectile Dysfunction in men. Most men, at some point of time, experience Erectile Dysfunction. Erectile Dysfunction is a condition, whereby the person concerned is unable to get an erection. Even if he gets one, he fails to keep it. Erectile Dysfunction often goes untreated because most men find the condition embarrassing enough to be discussed. This lack of awareness has given rise to many unreasonable and illogical myths and misconceptions.

Myths and misconceptions about ED that needs to be busted:
Erectile Dysfunction is nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, timely medication can greatly improve the condition. For proper awareness, it is necessary to get the facts right.

Myth: Erectile Dysfunction is nothing serious, self-medication will help

Fact: Really? Your grey matter must be working overtime to bless you with such amazing ideas. Erectile Dysfunction, at times, can be an indication of something as big and serious as Diabetes, Parkinson's disease, Hypertension or Atherosclerosis. Reason enough to shed your inhibitions and consult a physician at the earliest.

Myth: Erectile Dysfunction is an old age problem

Fact: These illogical misconceptions will do you no good. Get this baseless myth out of your system. Though Erectile Dysfunction is common amongst the older folks, the younger lot are not spared either.

Erectile Dysfunction can affect men of all age groups.
Myth: Erectile Dysfunction can be due to a cold partner, who fails to attract and excite you

Fact: Lack of interest in your partner seldom results in Erectile Dysfunction. There can be many underlying factors that can interfere with the erection. Certain medications, depression, obesity or lifestyle habits (smoking and street drug abuse) can affect one's performance greatly.

Myth: Any erection problem is Erection Dysfunction

Fact: This myth is as absurd and irrational as the saying; all tumors are benign. Before drawing any conclusion, it is important to get to the root cause. A person going through an intense emotional turmoil or stress might not get an erection. There will be days when a man will not be able to keep an erection. There is nothing to raise a hue and cry over it. It is just a phase and will pass off soon.

Myth: Erectile Dysfunction results in low or no libido at all

Fact: In males, low libido often results from a significant drop in the testosterone level. It is an outcome of the hormonal changes taking place within the body. Erectile Dysfunction has little to do with low libido.

Myths and Misconceptions about Erectile Dysfunction

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