Man using an e-cigarette.
Vaping is associated with ahost of health problems, from nicotine addiction tolung cancertoa higher risk of COVID-19. And a new study points to another potential issue for men: erectile dysfunction.
According to a studypublished in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, healthy men aged 20 and older who vaped nicotine daily were more than twice as likely to deal with erectile dysfunction (ED) than those who don’t vape.
“We excluded people with high cholesterol, diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease, which is a big reason for ED, and we excluded those with a history of smoking,” Dr. Omar El Shahawy, the study author and an assistant professor at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine,told CNN. “Our analysis accounted for the cigarette smoking history of participants, including those who were never cigarette smokers to begin with.”
“We adjusted for all that and still we found a very strong and significant association between vaping and ED,” he said.
Smoking traditional cigarettes is also associated with erectile dysfunction, El Shahawy said, due to the nicotine. With both traditional and e-cigarettes, themore that men smoked, the more likely they are to experience ED.
“The risk increased for daily vaping, rather than vaping in general,” he said. “More exposure is what increases the risk for ED.”
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And El Shahawy noted thatnewer versions of e-cigarettesdeliver more nicotine, with some adding even more than traditional cigarettes.
“So it stands to reason that if you vape a lot then you will have the sexual side effects of nicotine,” he said.
El Shahawy said that further research is needed to see if regular e-cigarette use causes long-term ED.
“Is erectile dysfunction something that’s going to just go away if somebody stops vaping, or this is something that could have residual effects in the future? We need better studies to be able to evaluate the short- and long-term impact,” he said.
For those who are concerned about erectile dysfunction, El Shahawy noted that regular exercise was associated with a lower risk of ED. And he encouraged people to avoid or quit using all cigarettes.
“If you don’t smoke anything, don’t start. There is no point in vaping as it’s not safe on its own,” he said. “But if you’re already smoking cigarettes and you want to stop, then ration your use of vapes. Keep vaping to a minimal level, just enough to get over your cravings, and then stop.”
source: people.com
