Premature ejaculation
Premature ejaculation is experienced when someone ejaculate within 5 minutes of sexual intercourse
No one is sure why some guys rush the end zone, but it's an issue for about 40 percent of all sexually active men. That's a lot of red-faced fellas. While psychological factors (performance anxiety, associations with early sexual experiences) are assumed to be part of the problem, researchers believe there is a strong physiological link. Sometimes premature ejaculation flags an explicit biological problem that needs to be addressed, especially when the condition arises suddenly.
Possible indications:
- Inflammation of the prostate
- Inflammation of the urethra
- Nerve damage from a physical trauma
What to do:
- Get examined by a urologist
- Ask about treatment with SSRI's
- Consider talk therapy or sex therapy
Viagra works really well on men who don't need it," says Dr. Harry Fisch, director of the Male Reproductive Center at Columbia University and author of
The Male Biological Clock. It sounds oxymoronic, but Fisch's meaning is that erectile dysfunction (ED) drugs are most effective in raising the bar for men with psychological rather than physical obstacles to sexual function. Though men will fixate, understandably, on a problem between their legs, ED may be symptomatic of a more serious health crisis. "If you think you need Viagra, you may actually have a heart condition or diabetes," Fisch says.
Doctors who hand out ED prescriptions without conducting a full physical are doing their patients a grave disservice. A campaign by
Men's Health Network (MHN) sought to raise awareness of the
link between ED and high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes. Says MHN's Scott Williams, "Cardiovascular disease is the leading killer of men, and erectile dysfunction can actually be a precursor. We're suggesting to physicians that when a man comes in with symptoms of ED, they should really use that as an opportunity to find out what's going on with his body."
The group also found that nearly half of all men surveyed were more willing to visit a doctor about ED knowing their issue could be related to cardiovascular disease. Maybe it's just easier to tell the doc you're there about your heart.
Possible indications:
- Hypertension
- High cholesterol
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- Depression
What to do:
- Get a complete physical
- Maintain a healthy diet
- Exercise
- Quit smoking
- Drink less alcohol
Infertility
More than ever before, men are recognizing that their role in impregnation doesn't end when they zip up. In fact, for couples having trouble conceiving, the problem resides exclusively with the male 40 percent of the time. While there are several
ways to increase your sperm's count and vitality, it's important to be mindful of medical conditions that can lead to male infertility-especially those with broader health implications.
Possible indications:
- Obesity
- Sexually transmitted diseases (STD's) including chlamydia and gonorrhea
- Kallmann syndrome (a disorder of the brain which causes the pituitary gland to malfunction)
- Drug abuse
- Cysts or blockage in reproductive ducts
What to do:
- Consult a urologist and fertility specialist
- Get tested for STDs
- Diet and exercise
The pharmaceutical market has boomed with its capability to address issues around men's sexual health. Several medicinal quick-fixes offer relief and get the blood flowing back into men's sex lives, but sometimes the meds mask a serious condition. If your doctor is writing prescriptions, he should also be recommending a healthy lifestyle. It's important to pay attention to your sex life-but you might want to put your life before the sex.