Will Smoking Affect My Penis?

Smoking and Erectile Dysfunction

The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) highlights some of the effects smoking can have on male reproductive health:

Smoking might damage the DNA in men’s sperm that might lead to infertility

Smoking might damage the DNA in men’s sperm that might lead to miscarriage

Smoking may be associated with an increased risk of erectile dysfunction

Smoking may affect the amount of semen and sperm production

Smoking may affect sperm quality

Studies suggest males who had or currently smoke are about 30% more likely to suffer from impotence (erectile dysfunction).

1) Smoking and sexual dysfunction in Chinese males: findings from men’s health survey.
Int J Impot Res. 2006 Jul-Aug;18(4):364-9. Epub 2005 Dec 15. Department of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.

Abstract

To describe the prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) and its association with smoking among the Chinese in Hong Kong, we conducted a cross-sectional study among 819 men (aged 31-60 years) who were randomly selected among the Hong Kong residents and interviewed by trained interviewers. A structured questionnaire was used for data collection. We found that current smokers who smoked 20 cigarettes or more daily had more dissatisfaction, erection difficulty and ED than never smokers. The prevalence of dissatisfaction, difficulty in erection and ED increased significantly (P

2) Cigarette Smoking and Erectile Dysfunton among Chinese Men without Clinical Vascular Disease.
Am. J. Epidemiol. (2007) 166 (7):803-809
Abstract

The authors examined the association between cigarette smoking and risk of erectile dysfunction among 7,684 Chinese men aged 35–74 years without clinical vascular disease. Cigarette smoking and erectile dysfunction were assessed by questionnaire. Vascular risk factors were measured according to standard methods. After adjustment for age, education, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, diabetes, hypertension, overweight, and hypercholesterolemia, the odds ratio of erectile dysfunction was 1.41 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.09, 1.81) for cigarette smokers compared with never smokers. There was a statistically significant dose-response relation between cigarette smoking and risk of erectile dysfunction (ptrend = 0.005). Multivariate-adjusted odds ratios of erectile dysfunction were 1.27 (95% CI: 0.91, 1.77), 1.45 (95% CI: 1.08, 1.95), and 1.65 (95% CI: 1.08, 2.50) for those who smoked 1–10, 11–20, and more than 20 cigarettes per day, respectively, compared with never smokers. The association was stronger in participants with diabetes (odds ratio = 3.29, 95% CI: 1.49, 7.27) than in participants without diabetes (odds ratio = 1.33, 95% CI: 1.03, 1.73). If the association is causal, an estimated 22.7% of erectile dysfunction cases (11.8 million cases) among Chinese men are attributable to cigarette smoking. This 2000–2001 study of Chinese men documented an independent and dose-response relation between cigarette smoking and risk of erectile dysfunction.

Although smoking may not affect your penis immediately, there is a good chance it will curtail its performance in the future.

Even worse, it is well-known that smoking increases the risk of early death (i.e. before the age of 70) from heart and stroke disease. In addition to contributing to erectile dysfunction, cigarettes can also lead to chest pain (ischemic heart disease), shortness of breath (emphysema), cancers (lung and oral) and tooth decay.

Smoking is more than a drug addiction. The act of smoking thousands of cigarettes creates a strong desire in your brain to want to continue the habit, not just get a drug. This is part of the make up of the human brain – it loves routine! Imagine sitting through class and flipping your pencil in the air every 5 seconds. That would be 3,600 times a day. Now do that for 200 days – 720,000 pencil flips! The moment you forget your pencil, or the teacher tells you to stop annoying everyone, you will get really really irritated…or rather, your brain is irritated – where’s my routine! This might be a bigger reason than the nicotine it is hard to quit smoking.

Consider someone who smokes 20 cigarettes a day for 10 years

20 cigarettes x 365 days/year x 10 years = 73,000 cigarettes

Now, consider that person smoking 20 cigarettes a day for 20 years

20 cigarettes x 365 days/year x 20 years = 146,000 cigarettes

Now, consider that person smoking 20 cigarrettes a day for 30 years

20 cigarettes x 365 days/year x 30 years = 219,000 cigarettes

Successful smoking cessation (stopping) is more related to understanding how engrained a habit it becomes than about dealing with a nicotine addiction. There are many therapies available through your doctor that can help you quit! Talk to your friends, family and your doctor, there is help.

Check out WebMD’s quick tips:

http://www.webmd.com/smoking-cessation/ss/slideshow-13-best-quit-smoking-tips-ever
http://www.webmd.com/smoking-cessation/quit-smoking

http://www.thepredicktor.com/predicktor/smoking/