Erectile dysfunction is on rise in young men for worrying reason

A doctor has warned that rates of erectile dysfunction were rising in younger men aged between 18 and 40, and explained how it impacted the body both mentally and physically.

Writing for the Daily Mail, Dr Philippa Kaye said there were several aspects to the rise in young men struggling with erectile dysfunction, saying it affected around a quarter of them.

She wrote that when older patients got it she checked them for signs of dangerous health conditions like high blood pressure or diabetes as they can narrow blood vessels and make it tougher to get an erection.

However, for younger men the doctor said many who were entirely physically healthy were being affected.

Dr Kaye said men, just like women, had been sold an unrealistic standard of what they ought to look like and social media platforms were part of the issue, showing them content from 'steroid-taking bodybuilding influencers who claim that their physiques are easily attainable'.

If yours looks exactly like this then you should definitely see a doctor (Getty Stock Photo)

The doctor also said porn was part of the issue as it too showed an unrealistic expectation of what people should look like, despite the artificial devices men in porn used to sustain themselves.

She said it all added up to performance anxiety, which put the body into survival mode where 'it floods with stress hormones and actively redirects blood away from the genitals'.

"So the very worry about not getting an erection makes one physiologically less likely," Dr Kaye said.

"Which then confirms the original worry. Which makes the next attempt worse. It is a vicious, self-reinforcing cycle – and it is biological, not imaginary."

Her advice to men struggling with erectile dysfunction was to try and talk about what was going on to actually tackle the anxiety at the root cause of it, and to cut back on high porn consumption.

The doctor's advice was to address what was happening, otherwise the anxiety was winning (Getty Stock Photo)

She said: "There is good evidence now that overconsumption of porn desensitises the body to sexual stimulation – meaning that physical intimacy with a partner may not be enough to arouse them."

Other doctors have warned about 'porn-induced erectile dysfunction' and how it affects a significant number of men.

A study by MedExpress found that 82 percent of men in the UK consume porn, and 64 percent said they thought porn had caused them to experience some form of erectile dysfunction.

14 percent even said it was the main reason.

There is something you can do to try and counteract erectile dysfunction beyond Dr Kaye's advice, and that's do your best to stay hydrated.

Get those fluids down you and those electrolytes in you to give your body the best chance of doing its best.