World No Tobacco Day 2018: How Smoking Causes Impotence and Destroys Your Sex Life

Looking for motivation to kick your smoking habit for good? What if we tell you that your addiction comes at the cost of your sex life? Tobacco addiction is one of the pressing health problems, widely responsible for a large number of diseases and is one of the leading causes of mortality. The effects of tobacco smoking on the lungs and heart are well known, and the world needs no introduction to the carcinogenic qualities of smoking.

But apart from wrecking your health and reducing your lifespan, tobacco smoking may be destroying your sex lives too! Smoking has been associated with a laundry list of sexual dysfunctions, putting your conjugal and love relationships under tremendous strain. On World No Tobacco Day 2018, we look at how tobacco smoking can your sexual functions and performance.

Erectile Dysfunction

For sexual arousal to happen and for a man to achieve an erection, blood flow to the genital region is necessary. On receiving the signals from the brain, the male genitalia becomes engorged in blood, causing an erection. But since nicotine in the tobacco constricts the arteries, blood flow to the genital area becomes scarce, causing erectile dysfunction. Smoking also decreases the amount of nitric oxide in the body, which relaxes the small muscles in the blood vessels, directing more blood flow into the penis.

Peyronie’s Disease

Peyronie’s disease is a painful condition in which the scar tissues develop inside the penis, causing curved, painful erections. This can prevent men from achieving an erection and having sex normally. It is known to increase stress, worsening their performance anxiety. One of the risk factors for this painful condition is cigarette smoking.

Decreased Libido in Women

Nicotine in the tobacco affects women in the same way it does men. By constricting the arteries, tobacco limits the blood flow to the female genitalia. In women, the effect translates to less engorgement of the clitoris during sexual arousal. The spongy erectile tissue in front of the G-spot also gets less blood flow, making the area less receptive to sensations and reducing sexual pleasure.

Decreased Lubrication

Decreased blood flow to the genitals also results in less lubrication, which can make sexual activity painful for the woman. As the smoking habit continues, these effects keep getting worse until the woman loses interest in sex.

These effects of tobacco and nicotine point towards a clear link between smoking and decreased sexual functions. The effects of cigarette smoking go beyond just performance problems. It can also impair sperm quality in men and decrease fertility in women. But the good news is that these effects are not permanent and can be reversed by making smart lifestyle choices and quitting smoking.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 29, 2018 03:16 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).