Studies have shown that alcohol affects your sexual life negatively by causing premature ejaculation and erectile dysfunction.
It is a popular belief that alcohol is an aphrodisiac, that enough of it can make you last longer in bed and ensure you have a spectacular performance also.
This belief, however, is not backed up by science. While alcohol does help to overcome sexual anxieties, excessive alcohol has a negative physiological effect on the penis.
Adebayo Williams (not real name) tells Pulse he noticed a decline in his sexual drive during the period he was drinking a lot of alcohol.
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“I noticed when having sex with my partner, I find it hard to last long and it keeps affecting my sex life. But as soon as I stopped for a while, I saw changes and I was able to perform better.�
Another alcohol consumer, Udeme Udo (not real name) believes that taking excessive alcohol can make anyone useless and hinder your sexual performance but in small quantity can help get rid of your inhibitions.
“If you take excessive alcohol, you will be useless and wonâ€
t be able to perform at all. But if you take little quantity for liquid courage, you can still get into action.�
Speaking to Pulse about the negative effect of alcohol, Dr Joshua Abayomi of Hopewell Clinic says that alcohol reduces the brainâ€s capacity to sense sensual stimulation.
“Extreme intake of alcohol is a constant cause of erectile dysfunction and as the volume of alcohol in the blood rises, the alcohol reduces the brainâ€s capacity to sense sensual stimulation.
"Also as a depressant, alcohol instantly affects the penis by conflicting with parts of the nervous system that are necessary for sexual arousal and orgasm, including respiration, circulation, and sensitivity of nerve endings."
Alcohol makes the blood vessels to expand, which changes the way the blood progresses in and out of the penis. However, a good bloodstream controls the relaxation and shortening of the penis, so it can get and maintain an erection.
According to a 2009 study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, the study found less volume of liquid in the body in conjunction with a depressed nervous system, led to a struggle with sexual performance.
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This is because alcohol can dehydrate the body, decreasing blood volume while increasing the hormone associated with erectile dysfunction angiotensin.
Alcohol abuse also affects hormone levels. It lowers testosterone levels, which diminishes sexual drive and function.
For women, dehydration caused by alcohol consumption can result in vaginal dryness and for men, it has also been linked to premature ejaculation.
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In 2007, Indian Journal of Psychiatry published a study that linked premature ejaculation to a high consumption of alcohol.
According to the study "Seventy-two percent had one or more sexual dysfunction, the most common being premature ejaculation, low sexual desire, and erectile dysfunction. The amount of alcohol consumed appeared to be the most significant predictor of developing sexual dysfunction."
Speaking to Pulse, Ayodele Noah (not real name) says alcohol makes men ejaculate faster. “Excessive alcohol may get you really horny, but you ejaculate faster which is the last thing you want. Alcohol gets you really excited and triggers the sex hormones. But you would be done in less than a minute or two. It's a killjoy.�
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It is not a bad idea to have a glass or two of wine before sex but just like everything else, alcohol shouldn't be consumed in excess. Moderate drinking is advised before lovemaking.
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism defines moderate drinking as no more than two drinks a day for men and one drink a day for women.
The liver can only process one ounce of liquor (0.0295735296875 litres) or one standard drink in one hour.
Consuming more than this will lead the system to become saturated, where extra alcohol will increase in the blood and body tissues until the liver is ready to metabolize it again.
Until then, high blood alcohol concentration will last for several hours and affect you physiologically.
According to Dr Kunle Adeleke of Hope Center, you should replace alcohol with water instead.
"If you do drink before having sex, you should exchange a second alcoholic drink for a glass of water, in order to fight the effects of dehydration."
The body is able to work at optimal capacity by staying hydrated since major biological activities and functions utilize water molecules.
So guys, if you want to have a good performance in bed, alcohol is not the way to go. You can take a little sip to get rid of the nerves but if you want to keep it up all night, there are better techniques to try.
Here is how alcohol affects your sexual performance
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