smoking and impotence

Smoking not only harms your health but also has a huge impact on your sex life. The results of the study are unambiguous: smoking increases the risk of impotence by more than 50%.

1. Smoking vs. our knowledge of young people

It should be emphasized that cigarette smoking is the main

cause impotence young men. Among the elderly, additional risk factors are added, such as diabetes, lipid disorders, and medications taken (eg, antihypertensive drugs). Mere cigarette smoking in healthy men (without additional factors) increases the risk of impotence by almost 54% in the 30-49 age group. The greatest predisposition to impotence is shown by smokers aged 35-40 years - they are 3 times more prone to impotence disorders than their non-smoking peers.

Approximately 115 men in Poland aged 30-49 suffer from impotence directly related to their smoking. It is likely that this figure is an underestimate, as it does not include impotence in ex-smokers. It should be remembered that cigarette smoking intensifies and accelerates already existing potency disorders and ultimately is the cause of cardiovascular diseases that cause impotence at a later age.

Nicotine is a compound that is readily absorbed from the mouth and respiratory system and easily enters the brain. When smoking one cigarette, about 1-3 mg of nicotine is absorbed into the body of a smoker (one cigarette contains about 6-11 mg of nicotine). Small doses of nicotine stimulate the autonomic system, peripheral sensory receptors and the release of catecholamines from the adrenal glands (adrenaline, norepinephrine), causing eg. contraction of smooth muscles (such muscles consist, for example, of blood vessels).

Studies have unambiguously shown a clear relationship between smoking addiction and erectile disfunction. Although the causes are not fully understood, the effects of smoking are seen in the blood vessels (spasm, endothelial damage), which can reduce blood flow to the penis and lead to impotence. A properly functioning circulatory system in the penis is largely responsible for a proper erection. In smokers with impotence, there are numerous abnormalities, the occurrence of which is associated with the harmful effects of nicotine and other compounds contained in tobacco smoke:

• too low blood pressure in the vessels (caused by damage to the endothelium of the vessels by the components of tobacco smoke. The damaged endothelium does not produce enough nitric oxide - the compound responsible for vasodilation during erection) - as a result, the amount of blood flow to the penis decreases. The endothelium is damaged after prolonged smoking, and then atherosclerotic changes occur;
• limited arterial blood supply (arterial spasm) - as a result of irritation of the autonomic (nervous) system;
• rapid constriction of blood vessels in the penis, as a direct and immediate consequence of the fact that nicotine stimulates the brain, reduces the flow of arterial blood to the penis;
• outflow of blood (dilation of the veins) - the valve mechanism that keeps blood inside the penis is damaged by nicotine in the bloodstream (excessive outflow of blood from the penis can also be caused by other causes, such as nervous tension);
• an increase in the concentration of fibrinogen - increases the ability to aggregate (i.e., to form blood clots in small vessels, thereby complicating blood supply).

2. Cigarette smoking and sperm quality

It is also significantly more common in smokers. premature ejaculation and decreased sperm production. The average non-smoker between the ages of 30 and 50 produces about 3,5 ml of semen. In contrast, smokers in the same age group produce only 1,9 ml of semen on average, much less. This is what the average 60-70-year-old person produces, and the birth rate is correspondingly reduced.

Toxic components of tobacco smoke affect not only the amount, but also sperm quality. Sperm activity, vitality and ability to move are reduced. There is also an increase in the percentage of deformed spermatozoa and the number of spermatozoa, in the case of which the molecular study shows excessive DNA fragmentation. If DNA fragmentation is found in 15% of the sperm in the sample, the sperm is defined as perfect; Fragmentation from 15 to 30% is a good result.

In smokers, fragmentation often affects more than 30% of sperm - such sperm, even with otherwise normal sperm, is defined as substandard. When you reach for a cigarette, you must be aware of all the consequences of smoking. Young people are often unaware of the dangers of smoking and forget about its side effects. However, there is good news: after quitting smoking, you can quickly improve the quality of sperm and return to a full erection, provided that the endothelium was not damaged, and impotence arose due to an acute reaction of the body to nicotine (activation of the autonomic system and the release of adrenaline).

Do you need a doctor's consultation, e-issuance or e-prescription? Go to the website abcZdrowie Find a doctor and immediately arrange an inpatient appointment with specialists from all over Poland or teleportation.

Article reviewed by an expert:

Onion. Tomasz Szafarowski

Graduate of the Medical University of Warsaw, currently specializing in otolaryngology.