Can Smoking Cigarettes Cause Impotence?

Erectile Dysfunction also called impotence, can be caused by a range of physical and psychological factors. Among them is cigarette smoking. It’s not surprising since smoking can damage your blood vessels, and ED is often a result of poor arterial blood supply to the penis. Fortunately, if you quit smoking, your vascular and sexual health and performance are likely to improve.

Smoking and your Blood Vessels

There are many health risks of smoking . Cigarette smoking can damage just about every part of your body. The chemicals in cigarette smoke injure the lining of your blood vessels and affect the way they function. Those chemicals can also harm your heart, brain, kidneys, and other tissues throughout the body.

The risk of smoking to your erectile health is due to the effects of cigarette chemicals on the blood vessels in the penis. An erection results when the arteries in the penis expand and fill with blood after receiving signals from nerves in the penis. The nerves respond to sexual arousal signals from the brain. Even if the nervous system is operating well, an erection might not be physically possible trusted source if the blood vessels are unhealthy due to smoking.

If you are a heavy smoker, research suggests the odds of developing ED are much higher. However, quitting smoking can improve ED symptoms. Your age, the severity of your ED before quitting smoking, and other major health problems may reduce the degree that healthy erectile function can return.