Viagra and Other Erectile Dysfunction Pills Can Damage Your Sex Life

Study examines recreational ED drug usage

Study: Misuse of ED Drugs Can Impact Sex Life

While miracle medicines like Viagra and other erectile dysfunction drugs have earned rave reviews, a new study suggests that young men taking ED drugs recreationally may be doing damage to their sex lives.

Apparently, college-age guys are taking ED drugs recreationally without a prescription to enhance their sexual experiences.

They may just have the opposite effect.

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The study, published this month in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, showed that nearly 6 percent of sexually active college men taking part in the study reported they took ED drugs recreationally.

Further, the study notes, the more ED pills they took, the less confident they felt about their ability to get and maintain an erection without help, with lead author Christopher Harte noting, "Using ED drugs recreationally has the potential to negatively influence one's confidence."

Also? The ED drugs weren't doing anything to enhance sex, with the men using the pills recreationally reporting the same level of physical sexual functioning as non-users, but overall they were less satisfied with their sex lives.

Harte explained that "One needs to be careful when they are frequently using these medications. It can set you up to have unreasonable expectations" about your sex life.

Harte's study involving 1,200 college-age men across the U.S. didn't uncover a precise link between the ED drug usage and the users' confidence, though he noted the usage could lead to anxiety.

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Cleveland Clinic urologist Dr. Drogo Montague explained that the study's findings show how misuse of ED drugs may impact users: "We understand how they work, and I don't think there's any lasting physical harm for a young man who doesn't need them, or for an older man who does. But it does sometimes create these psychological problems -- and they stick around."