Size Does Matter – overweight men and impotence – impotence, – Brief Article
Jessica Rogers
For nearly 30 million men in the United States, impotence is a big fat problem–literally, Hew research suggests that overweight men have an increased risk of developing impotence, a disorder that affects up to 15 million American men.
In a study presented recently at the American Urological Association’s annual meeting, researchers found that men with waistlines of 42 inches were twice as likely to have erectile dysfunction (ED)as men with 32-inch waistlines. The study of nearly 2,000 men aged 51 to 88, conducted by Eric Rimm, Ph.D., an associate professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health, indicated that more than a third of the participants suffered moderate to severe erectile dysfunction. In addition to weighing more, these men were also likely to be less active and suffer from associated health conditions such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
“Certain lifestyle factors may impede blood flow to the genital area,” explains Rimm, “much like factors leading to atherosclerosis [arterial hardening caused by the buildup of fatty substances], or factors that impede blood flow to the heart.”
While little research has been done on how lifestyle affects ED, Rimm hopes his findings will refocus impotent men in a new direction–one with a healthy diet and plenty of exercise–now that their sex lives are at stake.
COPYRIGHT 2000 Sussex Publishers, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group
