The Viagra alternatives: helping men rise to the occasion - naturally

Vegetarian Times, Oct, 1998 by Kevin Haynes

Two million American men can't be wrong--or can they? Last spring, when Viagra's popularity reached its climax, medical authorities estimated some 300,000 prescriptions for the new anti-impotency drug were being written every week. The media was full of success stories and tales of doctors not being able to keep up with the demand.

But not all the news was good. First, we learned about the side effects, followed by the lawsuits as septuagenarians became "active" again, left their longtime spouses and were sued for abandonment. Then came the claims of the 30 or so deaths believed to be related to Viagra. "Two and a half million men are guinea pigs for this drug," fumes Earl Mindell, R.Ph., Ph.D., a Beverly Hills-based nutritionist and author of Earl Mindell's Supplement Bible (Fireside, 1998). "Sixteen to 20 percent experience side effects, including nasal congestion, diarrhea, a blinding headache I call a Vigraine, a blue tint to vision that lasts for hours, and priapism, a sustained erection that can lead to gangrene. And if used with [the heart medication] nitroglycerine, Viagra can be a death sentence."

Our society is always looking for a magic bullet, and boy did we think we hit the jackpot with this one. Approximately 10 million to 15 million American men experience impotence, according to the Bethesda, Md.-based National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. About 70 percent of cases are related to illness, and the agency reports another 10 to 20 percent of cases are linked to psychological factors like stress or anxiety.

It's true that Viagra has helped thousands of men who simply experienced technical difficulties resulting from medications for depression, ulcers and blood pressure or conditions such as diabetes, vascular problems or kidney disease. But impotence has many underlying causes. One key failing of Viagra is that it does nothing to resolve factors like poor diet, stress and fatigue or deeper psychological issues, such as sexual shyness, performance anxiety and childhood abuse.

"It's a travesty that people have mythologized this drug so much," says Judy Kuriansky, M.D., a clinical psychologist, certified sex therapist and host of the nationally syndicated radio show Love Phones. "If men have a psychological reason for their erection problems, it has to be confronted. There's no point in giving them a pill if the real causes are going to be shoved under the carpet. Men should not just be given a prescription; they should be screened by a psychologist. I don't deny that for people with serious medical conditions Viagra is a miracle cure. But even they need counseling to enjoy functioning."

Sexual dysfunction of any type should be evaluated by a trained practitioner. But before men roll the dice on Viagra, Mindell urges them to investigate the scores of natural things they can do to enhance their performance. These include eating more meatless meals, taking supplements and learning to relax. "I would try anything before using synthetic drugs," says Mindell. "We don't know the long-term effects [of Viagra], but we do know this: This is the first country in the world to have Viagra on the market. Usually it takes drugs two to five years for the appropriate testing. What is it that after only three months Viagra is already available? It's definitely been rushed."

DIET OF CHAMPIONS

When it came to sexual prowess, ancient Greeks and Romans swore by the power of artichokes. The Chinese favored apricots. The Egyptians loved onions. In fact, a great majority of foods that have figured in sexual lore for centuries come straight from the garden. But more than just putting you in the mood for love, healthful foods, like fruits and vegetables, can do much to keep a man's equipment in working order.

"Lining up for broccoli is more important than lining up for Viagra," quips Nell Barnard, M.D., president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C., and author of Foods That Fight Pain (Harmony Books, 1998). "Every urologist knows that impotence is largely due to blocked blood flow."

It should come as no surprise, then, that the same high-fat, high-cholesterol foods that clog the heart arteries and contribute to cardiovascular disease also clog the arteries leading to the penis. In the Massachusetts Male Aging Study of 1,290 men aged 40 to 70, conducted by the Boston University School of Medicine, those who were being treated for heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes were up to four times more likely to develop impotence later in life than men without these conditions. Trading meat and dairy products--the top sources of saturated fat in the American diet--for plant-based fare that's light on the saturated fat and cholesterol and heavy on the produce and whole grains helps keep arteries free of the plaque that chokes blood flow to the heart--and the penis.

Avoiding cigarettes and cigars, which increase plaque formation and damage arteries; caffeine, which constricts blood vessels; and alcohol, which inhibits testosterone production, also keeps flags flying at full mast. "As Dr. Dean Ornish showed, a vegetarian diet, no smoking and regular physical activity opens arteries up again," Barnard says. "It works for the heart in 82 percent of patients, and we have every reason to believe that it works elsewhere in the body too."