Erections occur when a man is sexually excited and as a result, his brain sends signals to the nerves in his penis to increase the blood flow. This causes the penile tissue to expand as well as harden. Erectile dysfunction is characterized by persistent inability to achieve and maintain erections.
Therefore, anything that interferes with the blood circulation and the nervous system might lead to erectile dysfunction. Keep reading to identify the major causes of this condition.
Psychological causes
There are various emotional conditions that affect your ability to get erections such as relationship problems. The main psychological causes are anxiety and depression. When combined with conditions such as diabetes, they worsen an episode of erectile dysfunction.
Vasculogenic conditions
These are conditions that affect your heart and its ability to pump blood leading to erectile dysfunction. Cardiovascular diseases that affect the blood vessels, high blood pressure, and diabetes, which are conditions that affects the nerve endings and blood supply in your penis.
Endocrine conditions
These are conditions that affect the production of hormones that regulate your sexual function, mood, reproduction etc. by the endocrine system. It can be as a result of having an overactive or underactive thyroid gland thus affecting the production of thyroid hormones. Also, hypogonadism, a condition that affects the production of testosterone hormone can be a cause of the condition.
Neurogenic conditions
They are nerve conditions that affect your brain’s ability to communicate with your reproductive system. Some of the conditions are multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, spinal disorder, or stroke, which arises due to disruption of blood supply to your brain.
Medicines
There are various medications that increase your risk of acquiring erectile dysfunction by affecting your blood flow. Some of them are anti-depressants, diuretics, fibrates, H-2-antagonists, and cytotoxics. It is important to consider the side effects of a drug and avoid those with negative impacts where possible.
Conclusion
It is important to know that erectile dysfunction is a common problem that happens more often especially to men above the age of 40 years. It is necessary to know the causes of this condition. This will help you to prevent as well as treat erectile dysfunction to restore your health.
