Before Reaching For The Blue Pill, Reach For Red Fruits: Flavonoid-Rich Foods Found To Be Powerful Weapon Against Erectile Dysfunction
Those weird, creepy commercials featuring silver-haired couples lovingly gazing at each other while basking in a glorious sunset and sitting side by side in separate outdoor bathtubs for some reason may never be the same.
It turns out that Mother Nature may already have a powerful weapon to battle erectile dysfunction, one that older men should be taking advantage of anyway for the other health benefits it holds.
A new study looked at the benefits of eating fruit and specifically flavonoid-rich fruits in middle-aged men and how such a diet affected their ability to get and maintain an erection, and the results were stunning.
Researchers followed a cohort of 25,000 middle-aged, healthy men for two decades, and found that the men who are more fruit of all kinds had a reduced risk of erectile dysfunction. But when it came to men who ate more flavonoid-rich foods, the results were even more stark.
“We already knew that intake of certain foods high in flavonoids may reduce the risk of
conditions including diabetes and cardiovascular disease,” said lead author Aedin Cassidy, a nutrition professor at the University of East Angelia. “This is the first study to look at the association between flavonoids and erectile dysfunction, which affects up to half of all middle-aged and older men.”
And the results held up even after the study’s authors adjusted for factors like smoking, caffeine intake, weight and physical activity.
Three particular flavonoids seemed to have the biggest positive effects: anthocyanins, flavanones, and flavones. Anthocyanins are a big part of what gives certain fruits and vegetables a deep red hue, and are found in blueberries, radishes, blackberries, cherries and black currant. The other two types are found in citrus fruit.
And a side note: while the consumption of flavonoids was found to be a solid indicator of reduced trouble with erectile dysfunction, the researchers also found that walking at a brisk pace for five hours a week had a beneficial effect.
So if you see lots more middle-aged men quickly walking through your local park while voraciously munching handfuls of cherries and radishes, you’ll know why.
Just make sure you maintain eye contact. You might be shocked by what you see going on downstairs!
http://naturalsociety.com/few-servings-flavonoid-rich-foods-cut-mens-ed-risk-6132/