If you need Viagra to operate sexually, shouldn't this be something you talk over with your doctor? Or is this too touchy of a subject so you just take care of it on your own? Yes, men have a bad reputation for not asking for directions and not being open with their doctors, if they even visit them at all. Compounding all of that and then adding the issue of "I'm not performing in the bedroom," the conversation may not happen at all.
Taking the matter of Erectile Dysfunction into your own hands may not be the best thing. Men's Health compiled the reasons why handling this issue on your own with herbal Viagra is not the best solution. Here are excerpts from their story.
Back in October, former NBA star Lamar Odom was found unconscious in a brothel in Las Vegas. The alleged culprit? A multi-day binge that included over-the-counter sexual performance enhancer drugs, known informally as “herbal Viagra.” Unlike the real Viagra, you don’t need a prescription for these pills—you can pick them up at your local drugstore, gas station, or even online.
Sure, these supplements are often cheaper than what your doctor can order up, and you don’t have to talk to him or her about your sex life to procure them. But you’re putting your health at risk if you take them, says Landon Trost, M.D., a urologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Here’s why.
Sketchy Ingredients
Unlike prescription drugs or OTC medications, herbal supplements don’t have to be tested or approved ahead of time by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In fact, the agency released a statement warning consumers against using herbal Viagra products early in October, even before Odom’s event occurred. Plus, back in 2013, the FDA advised consumers not to purchase Reload, the supplement he reportedly took. (Want to find out what the FDA thinks of a supplement? Stay up to date by checking out FDA.gov/ForConsumers.)
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Serious Side Effects
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Prescription oral ED drugs perform their magic by relaxing your blood vessels, so blood can flow into your penis to make you hard. So herbal Viagra supplements that secretly contain some of the active ingredients in these prescription drugs work in the same way, too. “But they don’t only dilate blood vessels to the penis—they can dilate the blood vessels in other parts of the body,” Dr. Werthman says.
Lax vessels mean less blood flows to critical organs like your brain and heart. Your blood pressure can drop dangerously low, causing you to pass out—or, if it drops so much that your brain gets no oxygen at all, you could even die within four or five minutes, Dr. Werthman says.
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Mixing natural ED pills with alcohol or other recreational drugs—as Odom reportedly did—is an even worse idea. Depressants and stimulants can affect your heart and blood vessel function, adding to the risk of low blood pressure and other heart problems.
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What You Should Do if You Have Erectile Dysfunction
First of all, avoid these prescription-free supplements that promise you “natural sexual enhancement.”
Next, focus on your overall health, taking steps such as losing weight and cutting back on booze, Dr. Trost says (Find out how these lifestyle tweaks—and others—can Protect Your Penis and boost your erections).
If you tried making lifestyle modifications and still can’t get an erection, see your doctor. Even in younger guys, ED can signal larger health problems, including diabetes or heart disease, Dr. Trost says.
But it’s more likely that temporary stress or lackluster sex has left you with performance anxiety. A short course of treatment with prescription ED drugs or psychotherapy can get you back in action, says Dr. Trost.
“All we have to do is break patients out of that cycle to where they get reliable erections for a period of time,” he says. “Then they often can go back to not needing any therapy.” – menshealth.com
The title of the Men's Health article is "Why You Shouldn’t Take Herbal Viagra." We at Instinct are not doctors and don't play one on tv. What you do with your bodies is your choice, but we thought we would share what people are saying about herbal Viagra.
The above information were excerpts from the full Men's Health article. The "…" signify where chunks of the article were left out for brevity. For all the info, go over to menshealth.com.
Have you dabbled with herbal Viagra?
Do herbal options work differently for you than the real "Blue Pill?"