Viagra Question
Although I have sex with my girlfriend on a regular basis, I also masturbate frequently when I’m at home alone. Lately, I have been having difficulty achieving an erection. Could frequent masturbation be causing my erection problems and would Viagra help?
Answer
Although it’s been widely circulated, the theory that masturbation — even very frequent masturbation — can cause ED is a pure myth. Actually, masturbation is a form of exercise for the penis and helps to keep the male reproductive system in tip-top shape.
One saying that is not a myth is “use it or lose it.” So you need have little fear that masturbation will wear out your penis. While masturbation in and of itself won’t lead to ED, overexposure to pornography — particularly hard-core porn — can have a deleterious effect on male sexual function.
Some men who masturbate to pornography become highly aroused by the idealized bodies of the porn actors and the extreme sexual activities that are depicted.
So much so that plain old vanilla sexual activity with their regular partner no longer is enough to arouse them as much as it once did. For that reason, a steady diet of hard porn can desensitize the male libido, which may eventually demand ever more sensational imagery and action to get fully aroused.