Can High Blood Pressure Cause Erectile Dysfunction?
Can High Blood Pressure Cause Erectile Dysfunction?
If you're dealing with high blood pressure, there's a one in four chance you're also experiencing erectile dysfunction. That's not a coincidence.
High blood pressure affects roughly 26% of UK adults, while ED impacts around half of men aged 40–70. These conditions often go hand in hand and understanding why can help you tackle both.
This guide will look at why blood pressure can cause erectile dysfunction, what medications you can and cannot take, and how you can treat your ED.
Three key takeaways
High blood pressure can damage the blood vessels that supply blood to the penis, making erections difficult to achieve or maintain.
ED medications like sildenafil and tadalafil are generally safe to take if you have high blood pressure.
Lifestyle changes such as exercise and a healthy diet can improve your blood pressure and prevent erectile dysfunction.
Why high blood pressure can cause erectile dysfunction?
When you’re sexually aroused, your brain sends signals to the nerves in and around the penis. This allows the tissue and blood vessels around the penis to relax, so that more blood can flow into the penis and making it hard.
High blood pressure can damage your blood vessels throughout the body, including the ones leading to the penis. This means that they can become too narrow, limiting the amount of blood that can flow through them and making it more difficult to get or maintain an erection.
“High blood pressure damages the blood vessels throughout the body, including the ones leading to your penis. When this happens it can restrict blood flow and makes erections difficult to achieve and maintain.
“Your heart health and sexual health are closely connected. If you're experiencing erectile dysfunction and have high blood pressure, managing your blood pressure through medication and lifestyle changes can often improve your erectile function.”
Does high blood pressure medication cause erectile dysfunction?
It’s not just high blood pressure itself that can cause ED. Some medications that treat high blood pressure may also cause erectile dysfunction. These include:
propranolol
atenolol (Tenormin)
metoprolol
spironolactone
chlorthalidone
However, other blood pressure drugs don’t tend to cause ED to the same extent. So, if you’re experiencing erectile dysfunction as a side effect of medication, your GP may change your medication or prescribe an ED treatment like Viagra or Cialis:
The blood pressure medications less likely to cause erectile dysfunction are:
Generally, these medicines are thought to be safe for men with controlled, asymptomatic high blood pressure who are otherwise in good health. However, they are not recommended for men with severe heart disease.
Other ways to treat high blood pressure and erectile dysfunction
You can try to lower your blood pressure and help your erectile dysfunction by making slight lifestyle modifications.
For high blood pressure, some of these are recommended if you are in the early stages of hypertension, before you are prescribed medication. However, they can still help alongside medication.
Lifestyle changes include:
keeping to a health weight
eating a healthy, balanced diet that includes lots of fruit, vegetables and whole grains
reducing the amount of salt you eat
getting plenty of potassium by eating foods like bananas, avocados and skin-on potatoes
doing regular exercise and relaxation therapies like yoga and meditation
limiting the amount of alcohol you drink
Frequently asked questions about high blood pressure and erectile dysfunction
Can lowering your blood pressure reverse erectile dysfunction?
Getting your high blood pressure under control can improve your ability to get an erection and, yes, can even reverse your erectile dysfunction.
At what age does erectile dysfunction usually start?
Erectile dysfunction isn’t tied to one specific age and can affect men at any age, however, its likelihood does increase as you get older. Roughly 50% of men between 40-70 experience ED to some degree.
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