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Australian researchers have made an interesting discovery: Consuming alcohol improves, rather than damages, men’s performance in the bedroom.
Dr Kew-Kim Chew, of Western Australia’s Keogh Institute for Medical Research, studied 1,580 Australian men and found that drinkers reported up to 30 percent fewer problems than teetotallers.
The finding, due to be published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine and presented to an international conference in April, should reassure men who worry that drinking might cause a type of erectile dysfunction known as “Brewer’s droop”.
More surprisingly, the research found that binge drinkers had lower rates of erectile dysfunction than those who never drank (although it’s important to note that this type of drinking can cause other health problems).
Lead author Dr Kew-Kim Chew said men who drank within safe guidelines appeared to have the best erectile function:
We found that, compared to those who have never touched alcohol, many people do benefit from some alcohol, including some people who drink outside the guidelines.
Even after other risk factors were excluded, Weekend drinkers, High-risk drinkers and those who exceeded alcohol-intake guidelines had lower rates of erectile dysfunction than those who drank one day a week or less. However, ex-drinkers had the highest risk.
Dr Chew said:
These findings suggest a favourable association between low-risk alcohol drinking and [positive] erectile function.
According to Australian National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines, low-risk drinking for men is defined as up to four drinks a day, for up to five days a week.
Dr Chew noted that he had patients with erectile dysfunction who had been previously been told to stop drinking completely, and commented that the latest finding should prevent them compounding their problem by feeling “guilty and stressed” about present or past drinking.
He concludes there is “no justification” to advise men with erectile dysfunction and who drink moderately, to stop or reduce their drinking. However, earlier parts of the study, did confirm that men who smoked or suffered heart disease were at higher risk of erectile dysfunction.
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