"Pistachio Nuts for Erectile Dysfunction"
Erectile dysfunction is considered an important cause
of decreased quality of life in men,
in fact, so much so that one early theory suggested
that this may explain the link
between impotence and heart attacks.
Depression is a risk factor for coronary heart disease,
and the thought was that men who couldn't get it up
become so depressed that they like "die" of a broken heart.
But now we know that erectile dysfunction and heart disease
can be two different manifestations
of the exact same root problem,
DISEASED ARTERIES—
inflamed, oxidized, cholesterol-clogged blood vessels.
So, no wonder a diet chock full of anti-inflammatory,
antioxidant, cholesterol- lowering plant foods
would improve sexual functioning
in both men and women
as well as reduce risk of heart disease.
But why go LOW risk when you can shoot for NO risk?
A totally plant-based diet
can even stop and reverse our number one killer.
Of all the plant foods individually examined so far,
nuts are among those most tied to longevity.
Just two handfuls a week may extend a woman's life
as much as jogging 4 hours a week.
So, if nuts reduce the risk of heart disease,
might they also help with sexual function?
Well, men eating 3 to 4 handfuls of pistachios a day
for just 3 weeks experienced a significant improvement
in blood flow through the penis
accompanied by significantly firmer erections.
This may not be surprising.
Remember how antioxidant-rich foods
have a Viagra-like effect
of boosting nitric oxide production?
Well, pistachios are certainly rich sources of antioxidants.
And remember how the citruline in watermelons
helped with erection firmness
by boosting arginine,
which is what our body makes nitric oxide out of?
Well, pistachios have a bunch of arginine,
which may help explain the improvement in blood flow.
And we know that cholesterol is an important predictor
of sexual dysfunction in both men and women,
and after just 3 weeks on all those pistachios
there were significant improvements in cholesterol.
And like other studies that piled on
hundreds of calories of nuts a day there was no weight gain.
Conclusion: just 3 weeks of pistachios
resulted in a significant improvement in erectile function
with additional improvement in cholesterol
without any side effects.
Note the 2 important differences
between diet and drugs.
Just taking drugs like Viagra to poison this enzyme
and artificially boost nitric oxide signaling
is just covering up the symptoms
of the underlying problem: UNHEALTHY ARTERIES.
Whereas eating whole healthy plant foods like nuts
actually helps attack the root cause—
cholesterol, oxidation, and inflammation—
and only has good side effects.
This enzyme that Viagra-like drugs muck with
is primarily found in 2 places in the body:
the erectile tissue of the penis
and the retina of the eye.
That's why the FDA encourages people
to stop taking drugs like viagra,
and call a doctor right away
if you experience sudden loss of vision,
if of course you can still find your phone.
Though the harms tend to be self-limited and reversible,
such as cyanopsia in which your vision
suddenly becomes tinted blue.
Why risk side-effects at all,
when the problem can be reversed, cured in the first place,
improving the quality and quantity of our lives?
"Improvement of sexual function in men (and women)"
"should be added to the growing list of clinical benefits"
"brought about by healthy lifestyles in human beings."