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Monday, September 12, 2005
The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak
By Henrylito D. Tacio
Health 101
SURE, it's a night you'll never forget -- for all the wrong reasons.
It had been a hectic week. You'd been working hard on that proposal, and never once made it home before midnight. Tonight, you were going to make it up to your beautiful wife. For a start, you bought red roses. For her part, she uncorked your favorite wine. After dinner, when you took the phone off the hook, she slipped behind you, kissing your neck in that way of hers that always drives you crazy.
Everything seemed to unfold according to plan. Everything, that is, except a certain part of your anatomy - a certain crucial part. And that left you to wonder: what in the heck is going on? Is this going to happen the next time?
In the Philippines, impotence affects the lives of more Filipino men and their partners than we dare to admit. Also called erectile dysfunction (ED) in medical parlance, impotence is a condition in which a man is unable to attain an erect penis that is rigid enough for sexual penetration or sexual satisfaction.
Impotence should not be confused with premature ejaculation, loss of libido, or absence of orgasm; in all of these cases, satisfactory erection may be obtained. Impotence can occur at any age, although it's more common in older men. In the past, impotence was a taboo subject, but attitudes are changing. Today, more and more men are seeking help, particularly as large segments of the population age. In addition, physicians now have a better understanding of causes of impotence.
"If men are honest, every one of them will tell you they've sustained an impotence episode at one time in their lives," says Dr. Neil Baum, director of the New Orleans chapter of the Male Infertility Clinic and an assistant professor of urology at Tulane University School of Medicine. "Not every incident is a ten".
Impotence is classified as either primary or secondary. Primary impotence is expressed early in adolescence as a fundamental inability to achieve erection; secondary impotence is more common and consists of an onset of erectile inability during adulthood, after a period of normal erectile ability.
Science tells us that when a man becomes sexually aroused, his penis normally increases in size, becoming erect and rigid, enabling sexual penetration. An average penis is between three inches and four inches long; when it is erect it increases in length to between five inches and about seven inches. An erection occurs when the penis fills with blood. An erect penis contains six or seven times the blood volume of a flaccid penis. During erection, the rate of blood flow into the penis is greater than the rate at which the blood drains out, which leads to an accumulation of blood within the cavernous spaces of the organ.
There are various causes of impotence. In primary impotence, the genitals themselves may be faulty. In secondary impotence, functional causes such as psychological problems and side effects of drugs taken for other disorders account for the greatest number of cases.
The most common psychological factors contributing to impotence are stress in a man's life or difficulties in his sexual relationships. For example, if a man has suddenly lost his job, his feeling of failure may lead to temporary impotence. It is possible to tell if the cause of a man's impotence is solely psychological; if he still experiences normal erections during the time he is sleeping, there is unlikely to be any physical reason for his impotence when conscious. However, in some cases a physical condition that is not severe enough to produce impotence on its own may make a man more likely to develop impotence if minor psychological factors are also present.
Drugs that doctors may have prescribed might be at the root of the problem. Or it might be those over-the-counter antihistamines, diuretics, or sedatives. More than 200 drugs have been identified as problematic. Drug-induced impotence is most common in men over 50, says Dr. Baum.
Dr. Richard E. Berger, author of BioPotency: A Guide to Sexual Success, considers recreational drugs like cocaine, marijuana, opiates, heroin, morphine, amphetamines, and barbiturates as "sex troublemakers."
Alcohol and cigarettes also decrease sexual drive. Alcohol, a nervous-system depressant, inhibits reflexes, creating a state that is opposite of arousal. Nicotine found in tobacco can be a blood vessel constrictor. A study showed that inhalation of cigarette smoke "blocks erection by inhibiting the smooth muscle relaxation of the erectile tissue".
Other causes of impotence have to do with physical conditions, disease, or trauma. Chronic diseases of the lungs, liver, kidneys, heart, nerves, arteries, or veins can lead to impotence. Atherosclerosis, or "hardening of the arteries" can also prevent adequate blood from entering the penis.
In some men, low levels of hormone testosterone may cause impotence. Men suffering from diabetes are most likely to develop impotence. Impotence may also result from an injury to the pelvic area or spine. Surgery, such as that done for cancer of the prostate, bladder or rectum, can also result in impotence. For comments, write me at tasyo2002@yahoo.com
(September 12, 2005 issue)
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