Nicotine Use and ED

According to The Truth Initiative, nicotine not only causes low libido and infertility, but it also can cause Erectile Dysfunction! The American Urological Association states that the top causes of ED are “vascular disease, tobacco use, neurologic disease, endocrinopathies, and medication-related side effects.”

Smoking cigarettes is damaging to your vascular system and circulation, which can cause a lot of health problems, including ED. An erection is basically a matrix of blood vessels in the penis enlarging and filling the penile tissue with blood. So, a healthy cardiovascular system is paramount to attaining and maintaining a firm erection. 

According to the National Library of Medicine, “Evidence that long-term cigarette smoking is an independent risk factor for introducing impotence is robust.” But smoking cigarettes isn’t the only way nicotine can be consumed. The NLM study’s conclusions found, “Isolated nicotine can significantly attenuate physiological sexual arousal in healthy nonsmoking men.” This study was done with nicotine gum. So consuming nicotine in any form - smoking, vaping, gum, etc. - can impact your sexual and overall health.

According to University Hospitals:

“[N]icotine causes blood vessels to constrict, reducing blood flow to all the organs, including the penis. Therefore, men who smoke or vape, are at higher risk for experiencing erectile dysfunction (ED).”

We know smoking is a very difficult habit to quit, but there is good news! Very Well Health cites an Andrologia study that says that just like many other things, the effects of nicotine are “dose-dependent,” meaning that decreasing your smoking or vaping can also help improve your performance. At RinoWave, we encourage any and all of our patients to cease their use of nicotine for many, many health beneficial reasons.

If you would like help to quit smoking, please check out the resources below:

https://www.verywellhealth.com/quit-smoking-a2-915018

https://truthinitiative.org/what-we-do/quit-smoking-tools

Blog info sources:

• https://www.uhhospitals.org/
• https://www.verywellhealth.com/
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2864030/
• https://truthinitiative.org/