According to a recent study carried out in the States, more young men than ever are taking treatment for erectile dysfunction (ED) and there is a strong relationship between drinking and smoking and suffering from the condition.
The research was carried out at the Children’s Memorial Hospital, Chicago and revealed that almost 13% of college-aged young men experienced ED on occasion. Among those who drank regularly, the percentage increased.
95% of the men were heterosexual and two thirds of them were white. 13% of the men reported problems with getting or maintaining an erection at some point in their lives and 25% of them reported losing their erections while putting on a condom.
More young men are turning to treatments like Viagra, Cialis and Levitra- 6% of the participants had taken one of these three PDE5 inhibitors at some stage to treat ED. When surveyed the young men admitted that they thought their problems might be associated with alcohol and recreational drug abuse.
The researchers suggest that young men who suffer the condition should seek counselling as the stress of this condition can lead to psychological problems down the line even if there is a medical cause for the condition. Dealing with ED is a much more traumatic experience for young men considering that approximately 50% of men who are over the age of 40 years suffer with ED; the condition is more commonplace among the older generations.
The results of this study accord with our own clinical experience. We are seeing more and more young men present with erectile dysfunction than ever before. Given that drugs such as Viagra and Cialis are relatively new, it may be the incidence of erectile dysfunction in young men is the same as it has always been but more people are coming forward in the knowledge that treatments are available.