I bet you’re all glad you’re at home reading this. At Biohackr Health, we know these are hard discussions to have — but important ones. So, we are here to educate you on erectile dysfunction (ED), including its different categories, causes, and treatments.
Grades of Erectile Dysfunction
First, do you have ED? There’s a way to quantify your erection on a hardness score. Excuse the food metaphors here, but they are helpful:
- SEVERE ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION: Erection hardness score of 1 = penis is large but not hard, the equivalent of tofu.
- MODERATE ED: EHS score of 2. Penis is hard but not hard enough for penetration, equivalent of a peeled banana.
- SUBOPTIMAL ERECTION: EHS score of 3. Penis is hard enough for penetration, but not completely hard, equivalent of unpeeled banana.
- OPTIMAL: EHS score of 4. Penis hard and completely rigid. Think of it as a cucumber.
What Factors Affect Erectile Dysfunction?
Is your ED new or have you always had issues? If you have never had an erection that you could use with satisfaction, it may be associated with an abnormality or psychologic issues (i.e. fear of intimacy, depression, or anxiety). Most men have previously had erections but with time, have had more trouble obtaining or sustaining an erection. What causes secondary issues?
- Psyche. Poor past performance, anxiety, stress, depression, situational depression
- Health issues that impair blood flow, especially diabetes or heart issues
- Tobacco, vaping, or THC. Again, restricts blood flow.
- Overweight
- Hormonal issues
- Medical treatments such as surgery or radiation to the area, seen in prostate issues
- Injury
- Medications, including antidepressants, antihistamines, blood pressure medications, benzodiazepines
- Drug and alcohol use
- Age
What are Non-Invasive Ways to Treat Erectile Dysfunction?
First, you have to figure out the cause. If it is psychological issues, other medications, hormonal issues, or injury, those treatments are different. (NOTE: Biohackr Health can help with hormone pelleting for men to address imbalances).
If the cause is the most likely one — blood flow — then you have to do things to improve it:
- If you have diabetes, high blood pressure, or high cholesterol, treat it. The vascular blood flow issues and damage in your penis is representative for the rest of your body, including your heart and brain. Think of it as the canary in the coal mine. So improving those medical issues will not only make your erections better, they will make the blood flow to your heart, brain, kidneys, liver, and muscles — this makes everything better.
- Stop smoking, vaping, and using THC. These are all atherosclerotic and bad for blood flow.
- Take medications which can improve blood flow — think Viagra, Cialis, and the generics of those
- Do Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy, which is non-invasive and uses acoustic sound waves to break up tissue and improve blood flow (see the blog on it for specifics). We offer ECSWT at Biohackr Health.
Bottom line? Sexual health is important. It is important to have a robust, fulfilling sex life. And many of the treatments to improve blood flow to the penis will benefit blood flow to other important areas of your body, like your brain and heart.
As you age, this is an ongoing process. Sadly there is no magic treatment or pill that will fix it forever. But know there are things you can do.
Optimize yourself and your sex life.
