Alcohol And Substance Abuse - Causes Of Erectile Dysfunction: Mens Sexual Health
Content provided by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School
Alcohol and substance abuse
Some men with erectile dysfunction find that having a drink helps them relax. In fact, light to moderate drinkers (men who average one to two drinks a day) are 33% less likely to have erectile dysfunction than nondrinkers, according to the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. But heavy drinking can make matters worse. For one thing, it can inhibit sexual reflexes by dulling the central nervous system. Drinking large amounts of alcohol over a long period of time can also damage the liver, leading to a hormonal imbalance (in this case, raising levels of estrogen, a female sex hormone normally present in small amounts in men). For good health, in general, limit yourself to two drinks or fewer per day. Illegal drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, barbiturates, and amphetamines can trigger problems by acting on the central nervous system in the same way that alcohol does.
| Last updated: | September 05, 2008 |
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Medical content reviewed by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School. Harvard Health Publications, Copyright © 2007 by President and Fellows of Harvard College. All rights reserved. Used with permission of StayWell.
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