Going bald is a serious problem for many men, affecting their emotional wellness and wellbeing through self confidence and self esteem. But is it a sexual problem?
Many men are devastated when their hair starts falling out, and this can occur in their 20s, as well as later in life. It can be a big worry for men, who fear that if they go bald, they will not have any luck in the romance department.
There are drugs available to treat male pattern baldness, such as Propecia. Most people tolerate the drug fairly well but there are side effects and they are unpleasant – including a slow and intermittent decline is sex drive. Men report that as well as feeling a lack of interest in sex, they actually feel almost revulsion towards the idea of having sex. In addition to this, when men feel that they are ready to come off the drug (usually when they become more secure, later in life) they may find that their libido vanishes altogether and that they may also lose sensation in the penis.
The risk to taking Propecia is mild – there are only 50 known sufferers of the side effects of treatment, and these sufferers also find that their side effects wear off after a period of time, or at least lessen. The pharmaceutical manufacturers of Propecia are keen to point out that the drug is extremely safe and that there are very few known side effects. It works by fighting against male pattern baldness, where a hormones related to testosterone starts shutting down genetically vulnerable hair follicles.
Researchers have known for a while that there could be sexual adverse effects to a small number of men who take the drug. However, many trials have shown that these adverse effects, whilst rare, can be quite debilitating, including problems with libido and erectile dysfunction.
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