Erectile dysfunction is a prominent sexual disorder in males. It is described by the inability to obtain and maintain sufficient erection during sexual activity. The resultant declined sexual performance is often deemed as an issue of masculinity. Consequently, men hesitate to discuss this problem while bearing a socio-psychological burden. The medications offer little relief as they only alleviate symptoms and do not provide long-term treatment. Several factors, such as substance abuse, age, disease, etc., contribute to the development of erectile dysfunction. But the impact of adolescent sexual activities has been not been documented adequately. The internet-based information misguides the adolescents provoking them to take unnecessary risks. Thus, scientifically relevant information on the effects of sexual activity at an early age on the possible development of erectile dysfunction needs to be outlined.
Excessive sexual activities in adolescence on Erectile Dysfunction
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Common misconceptions about early sexual activities
Sexual exploration during the adolescent age (12-15 years) is a commonplace occurrence. Although sexual activity at this age is healthy, the lack of knowledge among teenagers generates concern. Adolescents are susceptible to excessive sexual activity and habits. Factors such as sexual abuse, dysfunctional family, and the overall life stress, have been the key reasons. The lack of proper sex education and avoidance of contraceptive use lead to unsafe intercourse. Adolescent sexual activities also exhibit increased incidence of sexually transmitted infections and undesired pregnancy, resulting in significant mortality and morbidity.
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Addiction like behavior and their impact on mental health and sexual functions
Stimulation by media, influence by peers, and stress provoke teens to indulge in excessive sexual activities. Such activities alter the mood and behavior, creating a reward pathway in the neural circuitry through dopaminergic turnover that enhances the dependence of adolescents on sexual activity. At this age, many adolescents also exploit the sexual acts as a tool for manipulating their partner, inflicting abuse, and gaining attention from others. The dependent individuals also have related psychological symptoms like depression, low self-esteem, and loneliness. They are also more inclined towards substance abuse, which adversely affects their sexual performance and reproductive functions.
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Addressing psychological factors like guilt or anxiety associated with early sexual activity.
Sexual activity is a taboo subject in most of the societies, resulting in inaccessibility to the relevant knowledge. In the absence of any alternative, people turn to the internet and media. These information channels spread misinformation and raise false standards. The young generation, especially in the early age group, are the most affected by such content. It is a sensitive time for them as they are undergoing transition. The additional burden of assumed adequate sexual activity led to performance anxiety. The societal beliefs around the subject and the peer pressure, along with the absence of informed counsel, incite guilt and shame in an individual. Individuals at this sensitive age are susceptible to substance abuse and suicide attempts. Early-age sexual activities and the accompanying relationship problems also cause depression.
Use of pills for enhanced effects: the potential risks and implications
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Overuse of performance enhancing pills
Performance enhancing drugs, also called anabolic-androgenic steroids, mimic steroid hormone testosterone. They improve athletic performance, increase muscle mass, and thus improve aesthetics. Originally, athletes enhanced their performance with these drugs, which made them illegal. In the modern world, people are chasing the false ideals of masculinity by boosting muscularity and sexual performance achievable by the performance enhancing steroids. Thereby, overuse of these steroids has been growing, especially among gym enthusiasts. Their side effects include disrupted development of reproductive organs affecting fertility and sexual performance.
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Risks associated with the overuse like psychological dependency and vascular damage
The easy availability of the performance enhancing drugs in the commercial market and their use without prescription has resulting in their excessive abuse. Individuals rely on internet and friends, instead of a trained clinician, to finalize the drug dosage. The accepted practice involves discontinuation of the medication after administering it for a few weeks to avoid dependency. But the drugs confer low sensitivity to risk taking, altered mood, aggressive demeanor, and enhanced sexual performance developing psychological dependency among its users. Discontinuation of drugs, in turn, lowers self-esteem and causes depression. The drugs elicit several pathologies for long-term use with vascular damage being the most severe. Abusers of these drugs suffer high blood pressure, changes in lipid metabolism like LDL increase and HDL decline, atherosclerosis, ventricular atrophy, thrombosis, cardiomyopathy, etc. putting them at a high risk of cardiovascular-related mortality.
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Potential long-term complications associated
People sensitive to the withdrawal symptoms of the drug resume their drug usage and develop dependency. Moreover, individuals also continue self-administration of drugs to keep the effects of old age in check. The use of these drugs for extended periods of time manifests as erectile dysfunction and decreased libido after discontinuation. The hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadal axis regulated the natural production of testosterone by a negative feedback loop. Thus, the administration of exogenous testosterone in these drugs suppresses the axis and natural testosterone production. The effects are especially pronounced after stopping the drug intake. The loss of sexual function also has associated psychological and sociological judgments.
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Role of recreational drug use in sexual performance
Sildenafil, popular by the common name Viagra, treats erectile dysfunction and the associated premature ejaculation. It inhibits cGMP-degrading enzyme phosphodiesterase-5. cGMP activates protein kinase G, required for vascular smooth muscle relaxation and vasodilation. This increases blood flow to penis, thus aiding in erection. But the use of drugs for recreational purposes to achieve enhanced sexual performance occurs without adequate knowledge and proper prescription. The complications arising by the unchecked drug use range from temporary headache, flushing, low blood pressure, etc., to long-term vision impairment, hearing loss, and priapism (a condition where an erection continues for several hours). Moreover, it can cause severe adverse effects for people suffering from heart diseases and taking certain medications.
Scientific justification and Evidence-Based Insights
A longitudinal study by L.F. O’Sullivan and the team showed erectile dysfunction and low sexual desire in adolescent males engaging in sexual activity. The study suggested low self-esteem, dysfunctional beliefs, and high alcohol consumption as the principal reasons. The causative factors of erectile dysfunction include emotional issues, certain diseases, and medications, in addition to nervous and vascular damage. Although no direct evidence has linked sexual activity in adolescents to erectile dysfunction, the underlying emotional distress might cause erectile dysfunction.
Preventive measures and healthy practices
The risks associated with early-age sexual activities deems proper preventive measures necessary. The root causes are the lack of knowledge and absence of proper counseling when required. Therefore, schools should organize information campaigns to provide the relevant knowledge on the topic. Parents should establish open communication with adolescents for clarification of doubts and offering help in emergencies. They can also monitor their kids and their internet access to regulate the information flow and prevent misguidance. Clinicians should also become a source of reliable information and provide proper counsel when the early-age youth approach them.
Precision medicine for treating ED
Pharmacological medications for erectile dysfunction only provide relief from the symptoms and are linked to adverse events. With their tissue regenerative abilities, stem cell therapies for erectile dysfunction have provided favorable outcomes in the cases. Among the stem cells, MSCs derived from bone marrow, umbilical cord blood, and adipose tissue offered significant improvement in erectile function and patient satisfaction. Studies have demonstrated that MSCs exhibit effects via paracrine signaling, instead of differentiating into tissue cells. Their anti-apoptotic property induces smooth muscle proliferation, improves endothelial function, and elicits neurotropic response in penis, restoring cellular function in the tissue. Anti-inflammatory effects of MSCs prevent further tissue damage. Tom Flue has detailed the studies employing MSCs for erectile dysfunction with positive results.
Erectile Dysfunction Patient Success Stories
Conclusion
Dealing with erectile dysfunction is challenging, especially in social contexts. Sexual activity at an early age can be linked to erectile dysfunction via emotional distress. Medications can only provide short-term relief from symptoms. But stem cell therapy has demonstrated satisfactory results and can be employed for long-term treatment of erectile dysfunction. Advancells deliver umbilical cord blood MSCs for stem cell therapy with ensured quality.
FAQs
Is stem cell therapy required for erectile dysfunction?
Erectile dysfunction is generally treatable by medications but only provide short-term relief from symptoms. For lasting results, stem cell therapy has been recommended.
What kind of stem cells can be used for erectile dysfunction?
Embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells have shown positive results for erectile dysfunction, but are linked to a higher risk of tumor formation. MSCs have been considered safe without any toxic effects and thus are the preferred stem cells for treating erectile dysfunction.
Where do I get the stem cells?
Advancells has been a pioneer in stem cell manufacturing. Their team isolate MSCs from umbilical cord blood under stringent GMP-compliant processes to deliver high-quality stem cells.
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