Erectile Dysfunction can have a profoundly negative impact on a man's life. But sometimes the cure for ED is all about not taking certain prescription or over-the-counter medications that disrupt blood flow. Or in finding the right combination of herbs to treat the problem. If you're not keen on taking Viagra for ED, there are a wide variety of powerful herbal remedies for ED to choose from.Introduction to Finding an Erectile Dysfunction Cure:
A number of pharmaceuticals today contribute to the so-called Sexual Dysfunctions that have been dubbed “psychological” in origin. In this article, we'll discuss some of those drugs first. Both men and women suffer needlessly, feeling like failures in bed or even in their relationship as a whole because of a simple reaction to very common drugs. Later in this article, we'll discuss cures for erectile dysfunction and how to use each one. UPDATE 2024: Intravenous EDTA chelation therapy is an excellent holistic treatment that opens and clears the blood vessels of calcium deposits throughout the body. If you are looking for a cure for ED, consider the possibility that heavy metal exposure is an underlying cause. Intravenous EDTA chelation therapy is an anti-aging treatment that has been used successfully by tens of thousands of patients to get rid of ED. Click here to learn more about intranveous EDTA.Drugs That Cause ED
Do Antihistamines Cause Erectile Dysfunction?
One such drug that causes sexual problems like erectile dysfunction (also known as “ED”) is Sudafed or pseudoephedrine (phenylephedrine and other drugs that end with -ine can cause erectile dysfunction too). When you have a cold or allergies, pseudoephedrine works by opening the bronchioles (the little tubes that lead into the lungs). Makes sense, but what a lot of men don’t realize is that pseudoephedrine/Sudafed and other related drugs are also vasoconstrictors. (Yikes!) You need good blood flow to have an erection. Any drug that constricts the blood vessels could be a cause for ED. Lots of men have a negative reaction to pseudoephedrine, Claritin, and meds that have an impact on blood flow but their doctors, and pharmaceutical ads don't educate patients about the possibility that this could happen. So men believe there’s something really wrong with them and either go to the doctor (where they receive a prescription for Viagra) or they just hope the problem will go away. Sometimes, if a man believes they have a psychological problem that's causing the ED and they don’t discover the actual origin, the ED problems could conceivably persist after the initial bout that was caused by pseudoephedrine.Several years ago, my husband went through a stressful period and had some inexplicable “difficulties” in bed. We blamed it on the stress, but he also had a cold and had been taking cold medications at the same time. The problem went away with the cold (at the time we didn’t notice the correlation), but returned very abruptly a year later around the same time (when he caught another cold). He didn’t go to a doctor for an ED diagnosis. He’s a healthy guy who jogs five miles a day and eats well. But we were both understandably concerned. He stayed up one night looking for causes of ED on the Internet. This was when he discovered the correlation between erectile dysfunction and Sudafed.
As a woman, I had noticed a change in vaginal lubrication when I took drugs like pseudoephedrine. That made sense to me because, having taken a physiology class in college as part of my pre-med curriculum, I knew that any drug meant to have a drying effect on mucus membranes in the body (like those in your nose and mouth) will impact all mucus membranes (including those in the vagina). So allergy medications that are geared at drying things out (like Guifenesin, for example) will dry everything out in a woman’s body. Men don’t have to worry about lubrication, but women who suffer with vaginal dryness may want to consider their allergy medications, over-the-counter and otherwise including pseudoephedrine as a possible cause. How many women who use KY Jelly actually just need a different allergy treatment option? (Consider acupuncture, for example…it works!)
Do Statin Drugs Cause Erectile Dysfunction?
Statin drugs cause impotence, erectile dysfunction, and loss of libido because they interfere with the production of CoEnzyme Q10. Below is a list of common statin drugs that cause ED:- Rosuvastatin calcium (Crestor)
- Simvastatin (Zocor)
- Fluvastatin (Lescol)
- Lovastatin (Altocor, Altoprev, Mevacor)
- Pitavastatin (Livalo)
- Pravastatin (Pravachol)
- Atorvastatin (Lipitor)
- Finasteride (Propecia) can cause a variety of problems for men including Post-Finasteride Syndrome, which can include a range of awful problems affecting the genitals.
Also note that today, many staple food products like corn, wheat, and soy are GMO. This means that these plants no longer go through the shikimate pathway to produce nutrients like methylfolate / vitamin B9, menaquinone-7 / vitamin K2, and coenzyme Q10 to name just a few. People are becoming deficient in these essential nutrients because they no longer exist in foods that we eat regularly and often. Indeed, the organophosphates on the GMO food products contribute to the death of bacterial flora in the gut that once produced vitamin K2 for us which has devastating health consequences, including the buildup of calcium deposits in blood vessels which is one major cause of erectile dysfunction. Click here to read more about the removal of vitamin K2 from the food supply.
Click here to read more about health problems caused by vitamin K2 deficiency.
Other Drugs That Cause ED
In addition to those mentioned above, drugs in the following classes may also cause ED:- Parkinson's Disease Medications
- Antidepressants
- Antihypertensives (high blood pressure medications)
- Diuretics (medications that increase the production of urine)
- Antiarrhythmics (medications that treat irregular heartbeats)
- Muscle relaxants
- Blood thinners (coumarins and other blood thinners antagonize vitamin K2, which causes a buildup of calcium plaques in the blood vessels and soft tissues of the body--we discuss this in greater depth below.)
- Tranquilizers
Nitric Oxide Nitric oxide is a high blood pressure supplement to open the blood vessels. This supplement will help you open the blood vessels that supply the penis, making it easier to get and maintain an erection, but Nitric Oxide isn't the best choice for Erectile Dysfunction. In fact, Nitric Oxide significantly LOWERS testosterone levels in the body. In other words, Nitric Oxide provides a short-term fix for ED, but over the long-term, it can cause erectile dysfunction problems to worsen. Erectile Dysfunction can be indicative of high blood pressure or calcium deposits in the blood vessels so you should visit our page about natural alternatives to high blood pressure medications to learn how to treat high blood pressure and how to deal with ED. Also note that if you get rid of your vitamin D supplement and instead take vitamin K2 supplementation at a dose of 200 micrograms daily, it will take 6 weeks for calcium deposits in the blood vessels to reduce by about half. Click here to read more about how to remove calcium from the blood vessels and put it in the bone tissues instead using vitamin K2 / MK-7.
Click here to buy vitamin K2 / MK-7.
Increase Testosterone Levels by AVOIDING Nitric Oxide
Nitric oxide plays an important role in the body, but it can be toxic in certain situations. Rather than working with nitric oxide for erectile dysfunction, there are a number of herbs and nutrients that work much better and that generally improve health. These include vitamin K2 (see above), Lugol's iodine, Safed Musli, Mucuna pruriens, magnesium glycinate, and more.Safed Musli and Mucuna Pruriens (also known as Kapikkachu)
Safed Musli is an Ayurvedic medicine that can be used to balance hormones in men. It is also used to detox from anabolic steroid use. White musli can be used to increase blood flow to the penis. This herb can also help maintain an erection longer. Take 1-2 Tablespoons per day. It can be hard to digest Safed Musli if the dose is too high, so take the lowest possible dose to keep your digestive system in top-notch condition.Safed Musli also works to combat premature ejaculation. It modulates the immune system and improves sperm count too, so men can take this medicine along with Mucuna pruriens to enhance male fertility. Safed Musli used in combination with Mucuna pruriens is even more powerful. Mucuna is a male fertility and libido booster. This miracle bean (which is also known as velvet bean) is generally beneficial for men. It increases levels of circulating growth hormone and as such, it boosts testosterone levels in the body. It works by increasing levels of dopamine so don't be surprised if you suddenly feel less depressed, less anxious and more focused too. Take 6000 mg of Mucuna per day in four divided doses (1500 mg taken in the morning, at noon, in the mid-afternoon, and at bedtime).
Click here to buy Safed Musli.
Iodine
Most Americans are deficient in iodine. You need a combination of both potassium iodide and molecular iodine to feed your reproductive organs and your thyroid gland. If you have just one type of iodine or the other, you may notice changes in libido, inexplicable weight gain, foggy-headedness, depression, anxiety, and a host of other serious health issues. Most Americans are deficient in iodine because 1) the fluoride in the water supply competes with iodine in the body and 2) the bromine in insecticide, citrus drinks, bread products, furnishings (as a fire retardant), pajamas (also as a fire retardant), and in swimming pools (as a water purification agent) is an endocrine disruptor that pushes iodine out of the body. There's really no way to avoid bromine or fluorine in the environment in the United States, but if you take Lugol's Iodine or Iodoral, you can protect yourself from exposure to fluorine and bromine.Note that iodine and vitamin K2 work together in the body. If you take Lugol's iodine but you don't take vitamin K2 / MK-7, then your body may have too much calcium circulating in the blood supply and be unable to absorb the iodine. Also note that it is VITAL that you get an iodine product that contains both potassium iodide and molecular iodine. Many people buy Nascent iodine thinking that it's the same thing, but it is not. You need both forms of iodine to feed both the thyroid gland and the reproductive organs. Lugol's iodine is best.
Click here to buy Lugol's Iodine 2%.
If you're using Lugol's Iodine 2% (which is not the same as Betadine or other brand names of Povidone Iodine that you can buy at the pharmacy, by the way), you should start by putting 5 drops on your skin or in your water each day. If you're struggling with Erectile Dysfunction, consider putting the iodine directly on your scrotum. Slowly work up to 20 drops per day and be aware that at first, taking iodine may cause you to break out in a rash. THE RASH IS NOT CAUSED BY THE IODINE! If you go to a doctor, they'll tell you that the rash is caused by iodine, but in fact, the rash is caused by bromine leaving the body as iodine takes its rightful position in your thyroid, prostate gland, and testicles. It is extremely rare for a person to have an actual allergy to iodine (though many people have an allergy to radioactive iodine, which is logical, but medical doctors have not been taught to differentiate between radioactive iodine and Lugol's iodine). So the rash may happen every time you take iodine for a few days or even a week or longer until your body has purged bromine.
Iodine has a strong impact on libido and a lot of men find that their Erectile Dysfunction symptoms are alleviated by using Lugol's Iodine or Iodoral every day. Iodoral comes in two strengths: 12.5 mg and 50 mg. Take the low dose Iodoral at first and work up to the 50 mg dose over the course of a few months. Otherwise, you'll have severe fluorine and bromine detoxification symptoms.
Also, you should know that if you supplement daily with Lugol's iodine or Iodoral, your risk of prostate cancer will be significantly diminished.
Click here to buy The Iodine Bible.
Magnesium
Magnesium is another common deficiency in the United States (and other countries too for that matter). Having too little magnesium can lead to blood circulation issues, which would, of course, cause sexual problems for both men and women. Doctors who work regularly with patients who have Erectile Dysfunction, say that ED is a sign of circulation issues. But before you start taking high blood pressure medications or any other kind of pharmaceutical, consider taking high-dose magnesium instead.Taking Magnesium and Iodine together will like transform your whole life, not just your sex life!
Click here to buy Magnesium Glycinate.
The Mucuna pruriens and Supportive Supplements ED Cure
Have you lost your zest for life? Does your wife complain that you seem tuned out or do you just put off dating because you get so sucked into Facebook or video games that you can't pull yourself away to actually have a sex life? Mucuna can help! Take 1000 to 6000 mg per day of this bean for results that will change your WHOLE life, not just your sex life.
Click here to buy Mucuna pruriens tincture.
Mucuna pruriens is a bean plant that people eat as a part of their daily diet in certain Central American countries. Sounds pretty mundane, doesn't it, but as it turns out, M. pruriens contains high levels of L-Dopa, a dopamine precursor. This amazing bean helps people overcome addictions, depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues, but Mucuna is also beneficial as a cure for ED. When you raise dopamine levels, you automatically lower cortisol levels in the body. Cortisol in known as "the stress hormone", so M. pruriens can help you lower you stress levels and improve your mood, but it also lowers the level of oxidative stress going on in penile tissue that can cause collagen deposits to build up and cause fibrosis of erectile tissue. Mucuna, in other words, can help you keep the structure of your penis healthy, while simultaneously improving your mood!
Click here to buy vitamin B100 complex.
The Vitamin K2 or Nattokinase Cure for Erectile Dysfunction
In addition to taking Mucuna pruriens and supportive supplements like vitamin B complex, magnesium, and zinc, vitamin K2 or Nattokinase can have miraculous effects not just as a cure for ED, but also as a cure for atherosclerosis, osteoporosis, and a variety of other diseases that are caused by the calcification of soft tissues in the body. Vitamin K2 has only been studied recently, in the past 20 years and many of the scientific discoveries about vitamin K2 have not reached the mainstream yet. While vitamin D3 is essential in order for the body to absorb calcium, vitamin K2 is tells the body where to put that calcium. If a person takes vitamin D3 without taking vitamin K2 (or nattokinase, which contains a high amount of vitamin K2), the body will put calcium in the blood vessels and in the organs (soft tissues) rather than putting the calcium into the bones and the teeth.
Note that most people do NOT need to take vitamin D3 as a supplement during the sunny months of the year in higher latitudes if they do not wear sunscreen. Taking a small dose of vitamin D3 during the winter months when sun exposure is more limited may be necessary, but be sure to always take vitamin D3 with vitamin K2.
Vitamin K2 deficiency is extremely common these days. Unless you eat animal fats from animals that graze on grass, you are not getting enough of it from your diet. Maybe you have a lot of cavities or even bone fractures. If you wore braces when you were a kid because your teeth were crooked, you have a vitamin K2 deficiency (vitamin K2 plays an important role in adolescent development when the upper jaw bone is broadening---a deficiency leads to crowding of the teeth). If you had a vitamin K2 deficiency as a child, chances are you still have a vitamin K2 deficiency. Correcting this deficiency will change your life, especially your sex life.
It takes about 6 weeks of vitamin K2 supplementation with either nattokinase or a vitamin D3/vitamin K2 supplement to remove half of the plaque deposits in the blood vessels that are causing Erectile Dysfunction. Your overall health will be substantially improved with vitamin K2 supplements, but note that if you eat trans fats (read your product labels and ask to see ingredients at restaurants if you don't know whether you're eating trans fats), they interfere with vitamin K2 absorption. Various anti-coagulation drugs like coumarins also interfere with vitamin K2 absorption too. Many people who believe they need blood thinners are actually in need of vitamin K2.
The supplement we recommend below includes vitamin K2 / MK-7 (the MK-4 form of vitamin K2 is synthetic and it does nothing in the body) to promote calcium absorption into the bones and teeth. Vitamin K2 will remove calcium deposits from the soft tissues of the body. Don't take a calcium supplement if you have ED. Avoid vitamin D3 supplements (HINT: Read your multivitamin label -- most people get too much vitamin D and calcium and too little vitamin K2). Avoid trans fats and seek out alternatives to prescription blood thinners (consider lumbrokinase as a natural blood thinner that's safe and beneficial for men with ED).
Click here to buy vitamin K2 / MK-7.
Take vitamin K2 as a nutrient supplement for ED at a dose of up to 1500 mg per day to remove calcium deposits from the blood vessels feeding the penis.The Nitric Oxide Supplement MYTH: What You Need to Know
Nitric oxide is said to help the muscles in the penis relax so that the spongy tissues can become engorged with blood and it also widens blood vessels throughout the body to accomplish the same goal. Indeed, Viagra, Cialis, and Levitra all work by stimulating the production of nitric oxide. In the short term, nitric oxide has a positive effect on Erectile Dysfunction. It creates a favorable physiological situation conducive to erections. BUT, there's a down side. Nitric oxide diminishes testosterone levels in the body which means that, over time, you will have more and more problems with erections if you use nitric oxide as a short-term fix. Nitric oxide for Erectile Dysfunction creates a downward spiral that ultimately leads to dependency on nitric oxide and slowly, an inability to achieve an erection using the other, health-building options listed above. We talk more about Nitric Oxide above and how to use Nitric Oxide INHIBITORS to prevent the body from over-producing this toxic free radical.
Click here to learn more and subscribe to the Living Database now.
The Beetroot Juice MYTH
One glass of beetroot juice increases nitric oxide levels in the blood. In fact, one glass of beetroot juice daily can significantly lower your blood pressure, which can help you treat ED naturally. Unfortunately, however, though increased levels of nitric oxide (which is made from the beetroot juice) may help you achieve an erection in the short term, in the long-term, nitric oxide diminishes testosterone levels, which is obviously a bad thing if you're suffering from Erectile Dysfunction.Amino Acids for Erectile Dysfunction: What You Need to Know There are two amino acids that raise nitric oxide levels in the body to increase blood flow and muscular relaxation in the penis:
- L-citrulline
- L-arginine (be aware that L-arginine can cause herpes flare ups if you have this type of infection.)
The Pycnogenol Protocol: Erectile Dysfunction Cure
Erectile dysfunction is closely related to cardiovascular health. Pycnogenol specifically works with not just Erectile Dysfunction, but the general health of blood vessels. Additionally, this herbal supplement (which is derived from the French Maritime pine tree), promotes fertility in men with low sperm count. The Pycnogenol Protocol involves taking 100 mg of Pycnogenol with amino acids and roburins such as French Oak Wood Extract / Robuvit. The Pycnogenol enhances cardiovascular functioning, opening blood vessels, while the Robuvit promotes general energy and vitality in a big way (triathletes report significantly better performance when taking Robuvit, for example). Amino acids likely help the brain produce the various neurotransmitters necessary for the body to work in a synchronized manner. Men who follow this protocol should expect to see an enhancement of erectile function of about 33% after taking these supplements for approximately 30 days. Sperm count enhancement averaged at about 79% in studies compared to no treatment at all. UPDATE 2022: Andrographolides from the plant Andrographis paniculata in combination with 5% DMSO have been shown to increase testosterone levels and reactivity to norepinephrine in animal models. The product below contains the whole plant Andrographis paniculata as well as andrographolides. In animal studies, scientists combined 50 mg/kg body weight andrographolides with 5% Dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO - dilute it down to the proper concentration by combining 5 drops of 99% DMSO with 95 drops of clean filtered water) as an herbal remedy for ED. Be aware the Andrographis paniculata is an herb with a broad spectrum of action against a variety of diseases and disorders. And also be aware the DMSO is an FDA approved medicine with the broadest medicinal effects currently on the books. Learn a bit about DMSO and Andrographis paniculata before attempting to use these at-home remedies for ED.Other Herbal Remedies for ED:
Believe it or not, there are some powerful herbal remedies for Erectile Dysfunction that can help you keep your libido high and your sex life alive. Don't diss plant medicines as a possible for cure for ED! Below are common plants that have been used for centuries to cure ED:- Tribulus terrestris
- Maca
- Horny Goat Weed
- Tongkat Ali
- Gingko biloba
- Panax ginseng
- Rhodiola rosea
- Pycnogenol- this is a plant extract from the pine tree that also boosts nitric oxide levels in the blood.
- DHEA
- Yohimbine
Psychological Remedies for ED:
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
Erectile dysfunction is sometimes caused by more than one physical issue that is, perhaps compounded by emotional issues. Most men don't really like thinking about or talking about emotional issues that might be causing a sexual problem, so thankfully there are powerful therapies available to work through these issues without a lot of talk. One of these therapies is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). EMDR is a type of therapy that addresses any kind of trauma or high stress that might cause sexual dysfunction or other types of health problems. This therapy can be done online at home using a special tool that helps you target thoughts or feelings that seem to be associated with sexual dysfunction while then taking you through a series of eye movements. The eye movements mimic the movement of the eyes during REM sleep. REM sleep is when the body and the mind normally release stress and trauma, but stress and trauma can build up in the autonomic nervous system which can cause insomnia, an inability to go into REM sleep, as well as sexual dysfunctions and other health issues. EMDR eye movements actually pull on the skull bones to readjust them and bring them into position so that the bones don't "pinch" the cranial nerves where they exit the skull to go down into the body. The adjustment of cranial bones is very small, but it makes a big difference in terms of the body-mind's ability to release stress and trauma in a normal way. Click here to do a free trial of EMDR at home.
Click here to do a free trial of EMDR online.
The DreamLight.app Guided Meditation and Brain Entrainment Tool
Guided meditation and brain entrainment can also be extremely useful as a tool for overcoming sexual dysfunction of any kind. If your body is physically healthy then guided meditation with brain entrainment can help you access the unconscious mind to figure out what is holding you back from being the best you can be. The DreamLight.app is a tool that allows you to choose a guided meditation to do at home on yourself to work directly at the core of what's causing the sexual dysfunction.
Click here to learn more about the DreamLight.app, a guided meditation and brain-entrainment tool.
Psilocybin Microdosing
Microdosing psilocybin for sexual dysfunctions is relatively new, but powerful in that psilocybin can help you sort through relationship issues as well as deeply buried emotional issues that might be affecting your sexual performance.
Click here to buy psilocybin microdosing capsules.
Lydian and I both did a 6 month psilocybin dieta in Mexico using several different species of psilocybin mushrooms in full doses every 3-4 days along with microdosing in between full dosing. We did this to learn more about psilocybin from a shamanic perspective to treat trauma, relationship issues, and emotional issues of all kinds. There are different ways to work with psilocybin and depending on your intention, the effects vary. Psilocybin is a powerful medicine, but taken as a microdose, you can work with it at your pace at home. Note that Lydian and I can help you get started with psilocybin microdosing for erectile dysfunction and develop a customized protocol of supplements, herbs, and a psilocybin schedule along with integrative psychotherapy sessions in addition to health coaching for men who are ready to restore sexual function naturally. We also have a small facility near Mexico City where we offer other sacred medicines such as Sapito, Ayahuasca, Sananga, and Kambo to treat a variety of health issues including sexual dysfunction. Contact us at [email protected] for more information.
Click here to buy The Men's Hormone Handbook: A Complete Guide to Male Fertility, Sexual Health, and Hormonal Balance.
Health Coaching for Erectile Dysfunction and Sexual Health
We work with clients who suffer from a variety of different sexual dysfunctions. If you are struggling to find answers as to why you are having problems with some aspect of sexual health, contact us to set up a health coaching session. We work with both men and women as well as couples to overcome issues related to sexual health. For questions regarding health coaching for sexual dysfunction, contact us at [email protected].
Click here to schedule a health coaching session with us.
Resources:
http://www.livestrong.com/article/181360-long-term-side-effects-of-viagra/#ixzz2NLa7d87chttp://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_pseudoephedrine_or_ibuprofen_effect_erections_in_a_manhttp://www.ehealthme.com/ds/sudafed+12+hour/erectile+dysfunction Rohdewald, P. (2015). Update on the Clinical Pharmacology of Pycnogenol. Retrieved January 3, 2022 from file:///Users/jennifershipp/Downloads/183-1-1093-1-10-20150807%20(1).pdf Sattayasai, J. et al. (2010). Effects of andrographolide on sexual functions, vascular reactivity and serum testosterone level in rodents. Retrieved May 4, 2022 from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20435079/
