What is obesity?
According to the World health organization, obesity is defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation in the body that presents a risk to your health. Obesity among adults in the developed world is defined as a body mass index (BMI) over 30 kg m−2, and morbid obesity constitutes a BMI of 40 or higher. On the basis of existing measured weights and heights, almost a third of adults in the United States are still obese.
Obesity is complex because it is associated with consequences for bad mental health and diminished quality of life. The leading causes of death in the United States and globally are diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain forms of cancer, which are also linked with obesity.
Scientific evidence suggests that being overweight should be considered an independent risk factor for impotence. This risk increases as your BMI increases.
How Obesity affects Erectile dysfunction?
Erectile Dysfunction is the inability to achieve or maintain an erection sufficient enough for sex. ED is caused by a number of things, however, it’s almost always caused by the brain’s inability to send the right signals to the body. This results in a lack of blood flow to the penis.
In an obese man the excess weight, particularly when it is around our mid-section, may affect his ability to have sex in various ways. The most common concern is that obesity can interfere with the ability of our body to supply the penis with blood that causes erectile dysfunction. This is usually brought about by excessive fat that builds up and blocks the blood vessels causing a decreased flow of blood through the veins in the penis. The lack of blood circulation also starves the organ of the necessary nourishment, hormones, and oxygen to stimulate an erection. All these results from the excess fat that is not burned out by the body clogging the blood vessels
Obesity reduces the testosterone levels in the body as the cervical fat converts testosterone into estrogen, damages the blood vessels, and creates a common inflammatory condition in the body. This can lead to vascular damage, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, hyperglycemia, and inflammation.
It has been widely studied and recognized that being overweight often leads to diabetes and hypertension due to atherosclerosis and heart disease, resulting in Erectile dysfunction. The Excess weight damages the vascular membrane (endothelium), and when that membrane is damaged, the penis does not receive enough blood flow to form and repair it.
Another cause for obesity erectile dysfunction is the inability of obese people to release nitric oxide due to epithelium damage. Nitric oxide is a necessary chemical that causes the penile muscles to relax and allow blood flow to enter and achieve an erection. In people suffering from obesity erectile dysfunction, the epithelial layer of the heart that stimulates erection is unable to release nitric oxide because of excessive damage resulting from excessive insulin production for metabolizing bad cholesterol.
Treating ED that is caused due to obesity
- Reduce weight
The best way to treat erectile dysfunction that is caused due to obesity is to lose weight. Losing weight may help increase blood flow throughout the body and may even affect testosterone by improving levels of this much-needed hormone rather than decreasing them.
Try walking half-hour a day as it can reduce risk of the erectile dysfunction by 41%, according to a Harvard study. Other research suggests that moderate exercise may restore sexual function in obese older men with erectile dysfunction.
- Kegel Exercises
Kegel exercises are also known as pelvic floor muscles that are usually performed to strengthen pelvic floor muscles. These exercises will help treat Erectile dysfunction by regulating better blood flow into the penis and also for people who are suffering from premature ejaculation. One of the main benefits of this exercise is that it makes orgasms stronger during sexual intercourse. One can perform pelvic floor exercises at any time of the day and by any person who is suffering from conditions such as erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, and weak orgasms.
- Healthy diet
Eating a diet rich in natural foods like fruit, vegetables, whole grains, and fish with fewer red and processed meat and refined grains decreased the likelihood of ED.
- Oral medication
Oral medications like sildenafil, Cialis can help in treating Erectile dysfunction. These pills can help ease blood flow to your penis, making it easier to get and keep an erection. Check with your doctor to see whether one of these medications is a safe choice for you.
Conclusion
Being sexually active and confident is important in our relationships with our partners and ourselves, and ED can get in the way of that. Both weight and ED can be hard to talk about, but the more we openly discuss the causes and treatment options for men living with erectile dysfunction, the sooner everyone can get back to having a happy, healthy sex life. One of the best ways to get rid of these conditions is to reduce weight and to exercise regularly.