Erectile dysfunction isn’t just a blow to your sexual health, but also the wellbeing of your marriage. This is according to a new study which has dubbed impotence to be an emerging major cause of divorce in India. Researchers from the Alpha One Andrology Group, an association of doctors dealing in sex-related problems in men, noted that 20-30% of Indian marriages are breaking up for want of satisfaction in sexual life.
The study discovered that erectile dysfunction affects 50% of men over the age of 40 and 10% percent of men below 40. According to the studies findings, this is the most poorly understood and mismanaged of all medical disorders and results in marriages breaking up. Anup Dhir, a reconstruction surgeon and andrologist, reported, ‘The analysis revealed that of the 2,500 men suffering from erectile dysfunction, one in five were divorced while the marriages of one in 10 were on the verge of breaking over their physical health.’
He continued, ‘Maintaining a healthy marriage requires time, effort and compromise from both spouses. When one or both spouses find a marriage to be unsatisfactory, it is likely because of problems that arise due to issues with communication, expectations or sexual dissatisfaction.’ On average, married couples have sex 58 times a year, or slightly more than once a week the study found. Dhir explained, ‘If the number lacks, it means there is a problem with a partner. Sexual impotence is becoming a common problem among couples in major cities due to sedentary lifestyles, hypertension and busy schedules.’
However, sexual dysfunction could be a sign that there’s a problem with other aspects of your wellness. The study found that diabetes was the leading cause of erectile dysfunction followed by hypertension. The study highlighted, ‘As many as 48% of patients above the age of 40 were diabetic while 45% with hypertension have severe erectile dysfunction. Men who have diabetes are found to develop erectile dysfunction nearly 10 to 15 years earlier than men who do not suffer from the disease.’
C.M. Batra, an endocrinologist with Apollo Hospital, noted that diabetes medications may be to blame. ‘These drugs not only affect and at times suppress the central nervous system but can also cause serious damage to the blood vessels, resulting in permanent erectile dysfunction,’ Batra said. Dhir added that seeking medical help for erectile dysfunction remains a stigma among Indian men, which is why many marriages break up. ‘Men have an ego problem in accepting the fact and most of them remain secretive about their sexual health, which leads to delayed treatment,’ he said.
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