Smoking can narrow blood vessels, and quitting smoking can improve erectile health.

For example, circulation problems that accompany coronary disease and diabetes often cause erection problems. Lifestyle factors like obesity, smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, use of legal or illicit drugs, lack of exercise, and poor diet can also affect erections. And one intriguing new study has raised the question of whether insufficient levels of vitamin D contribute to erection problems. Fortunately, doctors today have a better understanding of erection problems than ever, and men have more options for addressing these problems than ever.

What a Recent Study Found

Researchers at San Paolo Hospital of the University of Milan in Milan, Italy conducted a study that linked vitamin D deficiency to erection problems, based on a phenomenon called endothelial dysfunction. For their research, which was published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, they evaluated 143 men with erectile dysfunction for blood levels of vitamin D.

Nearly half of the men in the study were found to be deficient in vitamin D, and only 20% of the study participants had optimal levels of this vital nutrient. Furthermore, researchers found that the men with the most severe erection problems had levels of vitamin D that were 24% lower than the levels of men with the least severe erection problems.

The researchers also used penile echo-color Doppler ultrasound to assess blood vessel health and determine if there was a link between vitamin D levels and so-called arteriogenic erectile dysfunction, which is caused by atherosclerosis. There was. Men who were deficient in vitamin D were more likely to have arteriogenic erection problems than men who had blood vitamin D levels of at least 20 ng/dL.

Theories About Vitamin D and Erection Problems

Why might insufficient levels of vitamin D result in erection problems? The researchers say that insufficient vitamin D levels may cause the production of “superoxide ions,†which are a type of free radical. Free radicals are typically short-lived, highly reactive uncharged molecules that have an unpaired valence electron. Proper function of the body’s systems requires a balance between free radicals and antioxidants. Too many free radicals overwhelm the body’s ability to regulate them and cause oxidative stress, which can adversely affect the body’s lipids, proteins, and DNA.

Superoxide ions caused by low levels of vitamin D deplete nitric oxide, which is essential to helping blood vessels function properly. And when blood vessels cannot function properly, erection problems can result. Larry Lipshultz, MD, tells Men’s Health, “Nitric oxide causes the blood vessels to relax, which increases the blood flow and causes an erection under normal circumstances.†If there’s not enough nitric oxide, blood vessels can’t relax enough to allow an erection.

The optimal vitamin D level in the blood is 30 ng/mL or greater, so men who experience erection problems should consider having their physicians check vitamin D levels. Supplementation can be used if necessary to bring levels back up. The researchers in the study referenced above are currently studying whether supplementation with vitamin D could help prevent erection problems.

Lack of Vitamin D Can Cause Many Problems

The body can actually make vitamin D when you’re exposed to sunlight, but many people are not exposed to enough sunlight on a regular basis (particularly during winter) to keep vitamin D levels optimal. Vitamin D is essential for bone health because it helps bones absorb calcium. Without enough vitamin D, people can develop rickets and other bone diseases. It also is believed to keep blood pressure regulated, reduce bodily inflammation and boost immune function.

By some estimates, more than half of adults in the US are deficient in vitamin D, and the deficiency is more common among those of African and Hispanic descent. Those who spend the majority of their time indoors (such as elderly or homebound people) and people with dark skin (which doesn’t absorb sunlight as readily) are at greater risk of vitamin D deficiency.

Though exactly how vitamin D affects many bodily processes is not fully known, receptors for vitamin D are found in pancreatic cells that manufacture insulin. Additionally, more heart attacks occur in winter, when people are exposed to less sunlight and would be expected to have lower vitamin D levels. With erection problems, the depletion of nitric oxide that occurs in men with lower vitamin D levels appears to be at fault.

Sunlight and dairy products are major sources of vitamin D.

Depending on further research on the link between vitamin D levels and erection problems, vitamin D deficiency could eventually be added to the laundry list of lifestyle factors that affect erectile function. But when vitamin D levels get too high (over 100 ng/mL), there can also be problems, like muscle pain, mood disorders, and kidney stones, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Taking a vitamin D3 supplement to ensure you consume the recommended daily allowance of 600 IU can, however, help ensure a deficiency doesn’t occur. Testing of vitamin D levels by a physician is the only way to be sure whether your levels are adequate.

Conclusion

Erection problems are usually due to vascular function, which is affected by countless health and lifestyle factors. Medications like Viagra work by allowing the blood vessels in the penis to relax so that blood flow is adequate when sexual stimulation is present. New research indicates that deficiency of vitamin D – a fairly common deficiency – could also lead to depletion of nitric oxide, which can increase the chances of erection problems.

One of the most common lifestyle changes recommended for men with erection problems (whether or not they take medications for erectile dysfunction) is to consume a balanced, healthy diet, and the possible link between vitamin D deficiency and erection problems won’t change this. Taking care of overall health is one of the best things men of any age can do to help ensure sexual health.

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