ED More Common With Diabetes
If you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes, the odds are high you’ll also face erection problems earlier than men who do not have diabetes – probably 10 to 15 years sooner.
And if your diabetes is Type 2 – the sort diagnosed later in life and often related to other health issues like weight and exercise levels – you’ll be more likely to also have to deal with ED.
That’s because erectile dysfunction is more common among men with type 2 diabetes (about 46 percent have ED) than among those with type 1 (32 percent).
Diabetes and Low Testosterone
Getting a regular strong erection depends on healthy blood vessels, a responsive nerve network, good testosterone levels and a healthy sex drive.
Diabetes can cause damage in all of these inter-related health systems. Even if your testosterone levels and sex drive are strong, your body may not be able to respond suitably.
However it seems as if testosterone levels are affected by Type 2 diabetes.
New research shows men with Type 2 diabetes are also a third more likely to have low testosterone - and that this drop seems to have difference causes than the normal ageing process.
Testosterone helps reduce body fat and improves the way their bodies handle insulin, so low testosterone introduces a new complication for men who suffer type 2 diabetes, because it’s not just ED and high blood sugar levels that can result.
As Web MD reports, one-third of men with diabetes are also at risk of high fat mass, low muscle mass, low bone density, and depression.
Diabetes and Lack of Sleep
Many men with Type 2 diabetes find their sleep disturbed because high blood sugar levels cause more frequent urination – and they will find themselves up and down to the bathroom during the night.
Then you’re feeling tired the next day so you have a high sugar snack to give yourself an energy boost – and reinforce the spiking blood sugar levels.
Combine that with research that shows lack of sleep also reduces testosterone levels and you can see why many health educators are describing diabetes as a disorder related to lifestyle choice rather than a “disease.”
And it’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation, because lack of sleep can also put the body into a “pre-diabetic state.” Lack of sleep can also kill a man’s sex drive.
How Diabetic Men Can Improve ED Problems
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Control blood sugar levels through regular exercise (about 30mins of moderate exercise 3 to 5 days a week) and diet
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Lose even small amounts of weight
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Regularly get 7 hours of sleep per night
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Limit alcohol consumption
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Stop smoking
