Benefits and risks of cycling
Cycling is a fun sport that everyone, young and old, enjoys. It can be a low-impact activity if you cycle slowly or moderately, or it can become intense if you accept a challenge from your cycling partner (ensuring cycling in a traffic-free environment such as a park).
It also has a number of health benefits, including improved cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, flexibility, stronger bones, and lower body fat levels.
Being sedentary is linked to erectile dysfunction, so cycling as a form of activity could reduce that risk. However, at the same time, cycling could also be putting your erections at risk.
What happens in erectile dysfunction?
Erectile dysfunction, also known as impotence, is the inability to get and keep an erection firm enough for sex. Having erection trouble sometimes isn’t necessarily a cause for concern. However, if erectile dysfunction is an ongoing issue, it can increase your stress, affect your confidence and lead to relationship problems. It can also negatively affect your sexual desire.
Cycling and erectile dysfunction
Cycling may cause erectile dysfunction because sitting on the saddle can crush your private parts, putting pressure on the nerves of your private parts. This can lead to erectile dysfunction and is bad for your fertility health.
The seat puts constant pressure on the perineum, the area between the genitals and the anus, while cycling. This pressure can cause nerve damage and temporarily slow blood flow. This can result in tingling or numbness in the penis, as well as erectile dysfunction.
What research says
According to research from Wroclaw Medical University in Poland, male cyclists should stand up while biking on a regular basis to avoid erectile dysfunction. According to the research, they should stand on the pedals every ten minutes. In addition to private parts being crushed on the saddle, the study explains that genital numbness can be caused by poor riding technique or the wrong type of bike.
Bike riding, according to a Harvard Special Health Report, can also damage nerves and compress arteries in the penis, leading to erectile dysfunction. The study discovered that men who cycled for more than three hours per week were at the greatest risk.
Should you stop cycling?
This information is not intended to discourage men from cycling, and there are steps you can take to ensure that you continue cycling safely and without developing erectile dysfunction.
Standing up on a regular basis to get some movement and fresh air down there can help to relieve genital pressure.
Make sure the saddle is wide and well-padded to absorb the impact of the ride and relieve pressure on the lower back. To improve comfort, you can also add a gel-filled seat cover. According to one study published in European Urology, narrow cycle seats reduced oxygen supply to the penis by 82.4 percent, while narrow seats with a V-shape in the saddle nose reduced oxygen supply by 72.4%
The handlebar height can also help to prevent any risks. A study in The Journal of Urology found that if the handlebar height is parallel or higher than the saddle, then it can increase your risk of erectile dysfunction compared with handlebars at a height lower than the saddle’s height.
Other risk factors for erectile dysfunction
Aside from cycling, there are a number of other risk factors that can lead to erectile dysfunction. These include medical conditions such as diabetes or heart disease; smoking, which restricts blood flow; obesity; medical treatments such as prostate surgery or cancer radiation treatment; medications such as antidepressants; stress, anxiety, or depression; and heavy or regular drug and/or alcohol consumption.
