"Saffron for Erectile Dysfunction"
The spice saffron has traditionally been considered an aphrodisiac.
It has been shown to improve Prozac-induced sexual dysfunction in women and men,
significantly improving erectile function.
If it works for drug-induced dysfunction,
might it work for just regular erectile dysfunction?
Why not just use pills like Viagra?
They can work, but many men stop using them due to, for example,
adverse side-effects.
Nearly half of men decide the cons outweigh the pros.
For men that don’t like drugs there’s always surgery,
the implantation of penile prosthetics.
Unbelievably, penile implant usage evidently dates back to the 16th century.
Early experiments involved transplanting a guy’s rib cartilage,
or their actual rib into their penis.
Thankfully space-age technologies in the 60s
allowed men to keep their ribcages intact.
Originally the implants left men in a permanently erect state,
but then the Flexirod was invented with a hinge in the middle
so the guy could like bend it down in half for improved concealment.
Of course, proper sizing is important.
If the implants are too small there can be drooping at the tip
leading to what’s called a “supersonic transport deformity.”
Why?
“Because of its resemblance to the nose of the Concorde” jet.
Whereas “overlong prostheses can also be a problem,
with the semi-rigid rods [eroding]” out of the penis.
Although they generally perforate into the urethra,
the rods can also extrude through the tip or the shaft.
Ouch.
Now there are inflatable devices, and perhaps one day
there will be “expandable foams that respond to external magnetic fields”
or metal mesh technology that could expand and retract in a cage-like fashion.
And you thought it was hard to get through airport security now.
There’s got to be a better way.
Twenty men with erectile dysfunction were followed for ten days
taking 200 mg of saffron a day— that’s about a quarter teaspoon—
but first they were brought into the RigiScan room,
where they were hooked up to a computer controlled, battery-powered system
for recording of penile tumescence, meaning swelling and rigidity.
You can hook men up and have them watch a VHS video tape,
though use of the device is controversial, described as an
“expensive, complicated, and time-consuming effort.”
But after the ten days of taking saffron there did appear to be a significant improvement
in tip and base rigidity and tumescence.
Whether it’s possible to replace Viagra-type drugs with this golden plant
will require "further research with a bigger sample size.”
But it’s not just size that matters, they didn’t use a control,
so this could have all just been one big placebo effect.
Finally, though, a head-to-head challenge—saffron versus Viagra.
Now normally there’s a third group—a placebo group, as well—
but evidently, they felt it would be unethical
to let men go 12 weeks without an effective treatment.
The saffron appeared safer, significantly fewer side-effects
like severe headaches, hot flushes, nasal congestion and nausea…
but not effective at all.
So that’s why I never did a video on the subject—it just doesn’t seem to help.
But maybe it’s because they made the mistake of taking the saffron orally,
as opposed to rubbing it on their penis.
The effects of topical saffron on erectile dysfunction.
About half of middle-aged men appear to suffer.
So how about a randomized double- blind placebo-controlled study.
A gel containing 1% saffron, or instead of saffron,
a gel containing a little golden yellow food coloring so they looked the same.
Though presumably, half the penises smelled like paella;
I guess they didn’t control for that.
“Both groups were trained to rub a pea-sized amount of the gel on their penis
half an hour before sexual intercourse” and then were re-assessed a month later.
And, compared to the food coloring gel, the saffron did lead to significant
improvements in function, and desire, and overall satisfaction.
They attribute the effects to a compound in saffron
that evidently enhances nitric oxide production in the arteries.
But if that’s the case, then probably better to treat the cause
and prevent the vascular dysfunction in the first place.