Men’s Health: Why is there Such a Limp Response? (And How high frequency, low intensity sound waves Can Shock Men Awake)
A note from Dr. Evans:
It has been my experience that it is very hard to get men enthusiastic about their own health. It is no secret that most wellness activities, whether in retreats, yoga centers, and online, attract far more women than men. In my opinion, men are just far less likely to get a physical exam, a colonoscopy, or a heart or sleep evaluation. What might be the salvation for attracting men into the wellness world? I am afraid to say the health of their penises is the most likely route of success (surprised?). By focusing on erectile dysfunction (ED) as a clue to poor health and clogged arteries, the chance to reach many men with a complete health evaluation is increased greatly. The statistics are frightening with roughly 40% of men at age 40, 50% at age 50, 60% at age 60 and so on complaining of ED. Overall, about 40 million men in the USA are estimated to suffer from ED.
A Few Facts about ED
1. Why the connection between healthy arteries and satisfactory erections?
The inner lining of every artery, including the penile arteries, is a single layer of cells called the endothelium. An appreciation of the endothelium won three researchers the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1998. They figured out that when this wallpaper-like lining was healthy, it produced the gas nitric oxide (NO), which resists plaque, clotting, or constriction of arteries.
A good endothelium leads to good, sustained erections, just as it leads to good heart artery flow. Endothelial dysfunction (also ED) leads to a poor blood flow response throughout the body and poor maintenance of the penis when it is needed to create and sustain an erection.
2. What harms the endothelium?
Lifestyle factors are known to harm the endothelium and the production of nitric oxide. Poor lifestyle choices leading to hypertension, diabetes, elevated lipids and obesity produce erectile and endothelial dysfunction. Smoking may be the worst factor of all.
The standard American diet (high in processed foods packed with chemicals, fat, sugar and salt) combined with a sedentary lifestyle, poorly managed stress, environmental toxins, and poor sleep or sleep apnea are among the factors that produce ED. Diets emphasizing plant-powered rainbow diets low in trans- and saturated fats and rich in minerals, vitamins, and phytonutrients promote arterial health and erectile success.
3. How powerful a heart predictor is ED?
ED is an amazing predictor of future coronary artery disease events. For example, if you live in Olmsted County, Minnesota near the Mayo clinic, and you are a man between the ages of 40 and 49 without known heart disease but with ED, you have up to a 50-fold higher incidence (compared to men the same age without ED) of eventually having new heart events. Rarely in medicine is there ever a risk factor this powerful. (To compare: smoking, for example, may raise the risk of similar events 3-fold.)
4. What do you need checked if you have ED?
My advice is to see a physician, perhaps a cardiologist, interested in advanced detection and prevention of clogged arteries. In my office, patients with ED and no known heart issues are going to receive instructions to address their diet, exercise, and stress management, guiding them to an artery healthy lifestyle that promotes both strong arteries and erections. The “numbers” that matter will be measured, i.e. blood pressure, weight, waist circumference, blood sugar, cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, hs-CRP, homocysteine and lp(a). An EKG will be performed.
There are now ways to directly measure the health of the endothelium, which are used in my office on patients with ED and other risk factors. These include measurements of arterial age and the use of ultrasounds of the patient’s arteries.
5. What is the Newest Therapy for ED?
After a discussion of test results (heart and hormones), lifestyle modifications (greens, beets, pomegranates, watermelon, exercise, weight loss, and smoking cessation), I offer men high frequency low-intensity shock wave therapy (LIST). I perform this safe procedure in my office. High frequency, low intensity sound waves is an extracorporeal shockwave therapy for ED, performed by a network of highly-trained medical providers across the country. Treatment is all-natural and clinically proven using high-frequency shockwaves to enhance male sexual function, performance, and overall health. It is the only non-invasive procedure that treats the root cause of erectile dysfunction in men by increasing blood flow, releasing growth factors in the tissue forming new blood vessels, and breaking down micro-plaque in the penis.
High frequency, low intensity sound waves is a clinically proven, non-invasive therapy that was specifically developed for men seeking an erectile dysfunction treatment that would improve their sexual performance. The pulsating acoustic waves of high frequency, low intensity sound improves blood flow to the penis by dissolving plaque build-up and stimulating the growth of new blood vessels. The improvement results in stronger, harder, and more sustainable erections. The pulsating waves also trigger a healing response that “wakes-up” dormant stem cells and growth factors in the penis for an overall rejuvenation of male erectile tissue.
With this alternative ED treatment, there are no expensive prescriptions to remember to take or refill and no penile implants or surgery. There are none of the harmful side effects found in oral drugs. High frequency, low intensity sound waves therapy is effective and safe for men who cannot take oral ED medicine, such as those with heart disease, diabetes, or high blood pressure.
The roots of high frequency, low intensity sound waves therapy for ED come from a long experience using “high-intensity” shock wave therapy for kidney stones. More recently, LIST has been used outside the USA to treat patients with advanced heart disease and clogged arteries. The results are hopeful. Only in the last decade has there been clinical experience using LIST for ED, but there are now over 50 research studies indicating a response rate of over 75% in properly selected patients. In my clinic, I combine LIST with lifestyle education, nitric oxide boosting foods and supplements, and, when needed, generic PDE5 inhibitors like sildenafil (aka Viagra) for success and satisfaction.
6. Can We Save Men?
Heart disease remains the number one cause of death in men, and the drop in tragic events has stalled. Up to 2,000 people a day die in the USA of cardiovascular disease, and it is estimated that up to 80% are preventable. While the response of men to wellness, and often to sexual stimulation, is distressingly limp, it is my hope that ED, and the success of high frequency, low intensity sound waves therapy, will be the key that unlocks this puzzle, saves some lives and restores joy.
Call us today at 936-699-5433 and ask for a high frequency, low intensity sound waves consultation.
