Erectile dysfunction, commonly known as ED, is one of the most common sexual disorders that affects millions of men worldwide. A 2018 survey says that 5-10 percent of men under 40 have suffered from ED at least once in their lifetime. Experts predict that the number of men who have erectile dysfunction will reach 322 million by 2025. And there is an increasing amount of data demonstrating that EMF plays a significant role in this number.
In this post, we’ll look at the role EMF (electromagnetic radiationElectromagnetic radiation refers to the waves of the electromagnetic field, propagating through space, carrying electromagnetic radiant energy. It includes a wide range of electromagnetic waves, from very long radio waves... More from devices like cell phones, wireless routers, etc) plays in erectile dysfunction.
How Does EMF Exposure Lead to Erectile Dysfunction?
It has been long established and well documented that cell phones and WiFi can cause infertility in men. More recently, data has emerged that EMF can also cause erectile dysfunction.
Erectile dysfunction, or ED, is a sexual disorder that leaves men unable to keep an erection for long enough to have sexual intercourse. There are various emotional and physical factors that can contribute to ED. Some of those factors are aging, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, stress, depression, sleep disorders, drug use, over intake of alcohol — the list goes on.
Recent studies suggest that constant and heavy EMF exposure is also a contributing factor to erectile dysfunction.
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Years of research into the health effects of EMF have concluded that prolonged exposure can lead to a number of illnesses – including some of those I mentioned above. And therein lies the key: Even though EMF may not directly lead to ED, it can create the health conditions that induce it.
Now let’s take a look at some of the EMF-induced health conditions that can cause erectile dysfunction.
EMF Decreases Your Testosterone Levels
Healthy testosterone production triggers sexual urges and makes your erectile function robust. It’s normal for the body to decrease its testosterone production after 30, but now the age at which this happens is going down. Increasingly, younger men are suffering from this condition.
Some experts suspect that this is because of increasing EMF pollution in our environment.
The ill effect of EMF on male testosterone levels is not a recent hot topic. Scientists have been working on this for a long time, and as of now, a number of experiments have been conducted proving that EMF lowers testosterone production.
Several of these experiments were, however, conducted on mammals that share somewhat identical bodily functions to humans. This is because many ethical barriers prevent these kind of experiments from being performed on humans.
In one instance, a research group in Riyadh exposed male rats to cell phone EMF emissions 30 minutes a day for three months. After three months, they observed a significant decline in the subjects’ testosterone production.
A similar experiment with rabbits resulted in an identical scenario. When the researchers exposed the rabbits to EMF for a specific period, their bodies dramatically decreased testosterone production.
EMF Creates Sleep Disorders
Sleep disorders are common in adults nowadays. According to a survey, 30% of the United States population have trouble sleeping at night, and it is affecting their lives.
There are multiple reasons why sleep disorders like insomnia have affected so many people. Some of those reasons are stress, tech addiction, caffeine addiction, alcohol, and minimum physical activity. Even if these reasons don’t apply to you, you’ll still be exposed to EMF, which heavily interferes with your sleep.
The connection between EMF and sleep disorders is a well-researched area. Experts say that EMF pollution at home prevents you from having good quality REM sleep, which is mandatory for your body to function. I have a separate post covering this topic in detail, in which you’ll also find details on how you can improve your quality of sleep.
There is a strong connection between good sleep and healthy erectile function. Experts such as Robert Thayer, Ph.D. – a California State University professor of psychology and mood researcher – say that there is a direct link between poor sleep and decreased libido. An unhealthy libido can create problems with getting an erection.
Additionally, improper sleep affects your brain, nerves, and blood cells, and all of these body parts need to be working properly for healthy erectile function.
EMF Builds Mental Stress
Stress is your body’s way of warning you about potential dangers to your life. There are two types of stress, physical and emotional.
Physical stress, or you may know it as a fight-or-flight response, occurs when your brain senses a potential threat to your life. This process warns you and prepares you physically so you can remove yourself from the situation and keep yourself safe.
Emotional stress occurs when you are in an unfavorable situation that threatens your social positioning. When you are under this kind of stress, it forces you to solve the problem and make decisions in your favor.
But the fact is, your brain is not so good at differentiating between physical and emotional stress. So, most of the time, even if you face a situation where emotional stress should have been activated, the fight-or-flight response gets triggered instead. This is primarily because modern society is relatively new in comparison to the evolutionary scale and so our physiologies have not had sufficient time to acclimate to all of these environmental changes which we regularly encounter.
For instance, if you have a mountain of bills to pay or you’re unable to meet a work deadline, this should activate your emotional stress system. But, in reality, your body reacts as if it’s facing a life-threatening situation. The more the fight-or-flight response is activated, the easier it becomes for it to be triggered and the harder it is for you to shut it down.
EMF has been identified as one of the stress triggers in humans. A 2018 study with industry workers revealed that if you are exposed to EMF for a long period, you can develop stress, depression, and anxiety over time.
For this particular study, they gathered 132 power"Power" in a scientific context refers to the rate at which work is done or energy is transferred. In simpler terms, it's how fast something is using energy. For example,... More plant workers (Group A) who were exposed to EMF on a daily basis at work. They also added 143 workers (Group B) to the group who were not as exposed as the previous 132 workers.
In conclusion, the researchers said, “increased exposure to EMF had a direct and significant relation with increased stress, depression, and anxiety.”
This is true even at the cellular level as my father, Dr. Martin BlankDr. Martin Blank, born in 1933, was a distinguished scientist and a leading expert in the field of electromagnetic fields (EMF). His groundbreaking research and advocacy made significant contributions to... More, first demonstrated in 1994 that exposure to EMF triggers the cellular stress response. And I would underscore that the levels he measured were within safety limits of devices like cell phones.
Now, how does EMF-induced stress result in declined erectile function?
Mental stresses suppress your brain’s signals and prevent them from reaching the correct part of your body. There are three types of erections, reflexive (physical stimulation), psychogenic (visual and mental associations), and nocturnal (during sleep).
Many systems in your body activate predestined processes to make your blood flow towards your genitals. This is a super complex process, and disturbance to any of these processes by suppressed brain signals can result in temporary ED.
EMF Induces Oxidative Stress
Your body produces something called free radicalsThe concept of "free radicals" in relation to oxidation and EMF (electromagnetic field) exposure is an area of ongoing research and debate within the scientific community. Free radicals are atoms,... More, which are responsible for natural aging. Free radicals contain oxygen, which can create a large chain of chemical reactions in your body. To prevent this, your body also makes antioxidants, which stop the free radicals from creating chemical reactions and potentially damaging your vital organs.
For your body to operate healthily, there should be a balance between free radicals and antioxidants. And there’s no need for you to do anything about this – your body does a good job balancing these molecules unless something from outside disturbs its natural process. If the number of free radicals and antioxidants are out of balance in your body, it creates a condition known as oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress occurs when the body produces more free radicals or antioxidants than required. The effects of oxidative stress range from diabetes and heart diseases to sexual disorders like erectile dysfunction.
The Swiss Expert Group BERENIS did a research study in 2021 to understand the correlation between heavy EMF exposure and oxidative stress. They published the study in their recent newsletter in which they said, “The majority of the animal and more than half of the cell studies provided evidence of increased oxidative stress caused by RF-EMF or ELF-MF.”
EMF Interferes with Your Reproductive Endocrine System
The endocrine system is crucial to healthy body function. This system releases necessary hormones in your body so that you can function properly in your day-to-day life. If your endocrine system is working fine, you won’t feel any uneasiness in your body. But, if it’s disrupted, you’ll start noticing problems such as diabetes, unnecessary weight gain or loss, and suppressed growth.
I have already written a detailed post on how EMF disrupts your endocrine system.
A study by the International Journal of Impotence Research shows how an inefficient endocrine system results in erectile dysfunction. They have identified three ED-causing conditions that can result from a disruption to the endocrine system. Those conditions are diabetes mellitus, hypogonadism, and hyperprolactinemia.
Diabetes mellites — Commonly known as diabetes, this is one of the main causes of erectile dysfunction. When you have diabetes, poor long-term blood sugar control damages your nerves and blood vessels, resulting in impaired erectile function.
Hypogonadism — This is a condition in which your body doesn’t produce enough testosterone necessary for your masculine growth. ED among men with hypogonadism is a common occurrence.
Hyperprolactinemia, or high prolactin — A condition in which prolactin production is excessive in your body. Excessive production of prolactin is not suitable for men, as it is primarily a hormone that helps women produce breast milk after childbirth. When prolactin production exceeds the required amount in men, the patient may suffer decreased sex drive, erectile dysfunction, and breast enlargement.
EMF Progresses Atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis is a rare disease in which plaque built from the combination of fat, cholesterol, calcium, and other substances found in your blood stacks up in your arteries. Over time the plaque hardens, narrowing your arteries and suppressing oxygen-rich blood flow to your organs.
Atherosclerosis is also one of the main reasons for heart attacks in both men and women. And, research studies have found that constant exposure to EMF can rapidly progress atherosclerosis.
When you get an erection, the blood flows to your penile region. Atherosclerosis tries to stop that flow midway resulting in an incomplete erection.
The American Heart Association (AHA) says that impotence, or erectile dysfunction, can be an early sign of atherosclerosis, which can change into a massive heart attack within 3-5 years. They also suggest that if you are diagnosed with ED, it may also prove beneficial to have your heart checked.
Direct Link Between Prolonged EMF Exposure and ED
We’ve all heard that carrying cell phones in pockets can cause infertility and even erectile dysfunction. But most people disregard this because of the convenience of carrying their cell phone in their pocket. Also, since EMF radiation"Radiation" in the context of Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) refers to the process by which energy is emitted and transmitted through space or a material medium in the form of electromagnetic... More is invisible to the naked eye, it’s harder for people to take it seriously as a threat.
But this kind of carelessness has unfavorable consequences. The Central European Journal of Urology, in 2013, proved that this advice needs to be taken seriously.
For their study, they gathered 20 men diagnosed with ED and compared them to 10 men without ED.
They examined everything, from medical history to daily habits. There was no significant difference among the 30 men regarding their age, height, testosterone production, and daily habits. The only difference they found was that men with erectile dysfunction carried their cell phones in their pockets significantly more than men without ED.
Besides ED…
Erectile dysfunction isn’t the only sexual health-related problem that prolonged EMF exposure causes.
A study published in the International Journal of Impotence Research says that exposure to EMF from cellphones can cause a significant decrease in sexual stamina and difficulties reaching climax.
The researchers collected 18 male rabbits for this study and divided them into two groups.
They exposed the first group to cell phone radiation for eight hours every day for 12 weeks. The second was the control group.
During the experiment, the researchers noted that the exposed male rabbits ejaculated less frequently and were significantly more aggressive towards the female rabbits. They also noticed reduced sexual stamina in the subjects.
They concluded the study by saying, “We could show for the first time that exposure to the pulsed radiofrequency emitted by a conventional MP [mobile phone], which was kept on a standby position, could affect the sexual behavior in the rabbit.”
Now, even though this experiment was done on rabbits instead of humans for ethical reasons, experts say that we’re all affected similarly as biological organisms. So, there’s a high chance that the effects observed on rabbits could be similar or possibly identical in the human population.
Survey Says EMF Decreases Sex Drive
Another study published in 2002 says that prolonged EMF exposure causes a significant reduction in sex drive.
For this study, the researchers surveyed 530 individuals, including 270 men and 260 women. Some of the subjects lived near a cell phone tower or a base station. Upon surveying, they found that people who lived near a cell phone tower had significantly lower sex drive than the rest of the group.
Also, this effect was more prevalent in the male population, affecting 18% of the male subjects compared to 12% of the female subjects.
Final Thoughts
Scientists have named Erectile Dysfunction, or ED, a hidden epidemic. This is a severe condition, and the rise of technology isn’t doing it any favors.
There’s a wealth of scientific evidence showing that electromagnetic fields cause health issues – ED among them. That’s why it’s important that you reduce your EMF exposure as much as possible.
The first step you can take is to minimize your tech use and maximize your distance from EMF-emitting gadgets. That’s why I always tell people the best EMF protection is free—and you can start right now.
