Is low libido in men a common problem? Am I just stressing too much over it?
Many questions come to a man’s mind when he encounters low libido for the first time.
Well, this curiosity is natural, and any guesses what accompanies this curiosity?
Let us tell you!
What comes with these curiosities is an embarrassment. Men feel embarrassed about asking these questions to their partners or even their best friends.
But now since you are here, it’s our responsibility to not let you down. So here we start with our blog on low libido in men to help you deal with it without getting much anxious.
We will try answering all your questions by following the blog!
Low Libido In Men – Everything You Must Know!
Before we take a dig at the causes, symptoms, and treatments of Low libido, you must understand the “Low Libido Meaning”
And for that, you must be clear about your concept of Libido!
So let us move to the first section of our blog which aims at explaining to you what libido is!
What is Libido?
Libido is simple terms is your sex drive. If we have to define it in one single line, it is your innate desire to make love to your partner and embrace sexual intimacy.
It has the same properties as female libido. Male libido has deep direct relations with the right balance of hormones like the male sex hormone.
To be more precise, 70% of the low libido cases in men and women have their root cause lying in hormonal imbalance.
As we mentioned above one of the major hormones responsible for maintaining sex drive is testosterone. But with growing age, testosterone production starts declining.
This imbalance leads to many sexual problems in men as they grow old. These problems can be sexual dysfunctions like:
- Erectile dysfunction
- Low libido
- Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder
Though you will find testosterone levels varying from person to person, the acceptable range of this hormone is between 280 to 1,100 nanograms per deciliter.
Moreover, if you have your testosterone levels below 263 nanograms per deciliter, it falls under the low testosterone category!
Even though women tend to face more sexual problems as compared to men, we must not ignore that men also bear some serious sexual dysfunctions.
Mostly these problems occur as premature ejaculation and erectile dysfunction. But low libido in men is the most common problem.
It is quite important to cure sexual dysfunctions along with low libido as it might lead to anxiety and stress which are enemies of good health.
But as we all know that prevention is better than cure, we must have an idea about what causes low libido in men!
This will give us an idea of how we can prevent it from happening.
Causes of Low Libido in men!
Low libido is looked upon as a serious problem in a relationship. It can lead to disputes between you and your partner and can also raise guilt within your mind causing mental problems.
But, there is nothing much to worry about as it can be easily treated.
Treating low libido in men is not a big deal if one knows its root cause. However, low libido can be caused because of multiple factors which makes it a little tricky to identify its root cause.
However, if your partner is ready to support you with good communication and loyalty, you can easily identify where the problem is.
Some of the major causes of low libido are:
- Low testosterone balance
- Hard medications
- Depression
- Chronic illness
- Stress and anxiety
- Sleep problems
- Aging issues
- Exercise patterns
- Lifestyle problems
Let us have a close look at each of these causes to help you identify what might be affecting your sexual health.
#1. Testosterone Imbalance
Testes produce one of the most vital hormones for men, which is testosterone. It is also famous as the male hormone.
It has got widespread functions in your body. Testosterone builds your muscles, keeps your bone strong, and also stimulates your sperm production.
But apart from this, Testosterone also has a key role in keeping your sex drive high!
Even though testosterone levels vary from person to person, we must have an eye for a healthy range.
If we talk about how one can identify whether he is suffering from low testosterone, then watch out!
Low testosterone levels mean your T levels fall below 300 nanograms per deciliter.
As you already know that testosterone has a role in keeping your sex drive high, declining T-levels bring a decline in your sex drive or libido.
However, declining T levels are a natural phenomenon. As you age, you tend to fall short of testosterone levels.
But if this decline rate is drastic, you end up suffering from low libido.
#2. Medicine
Medications act on your libido by making your testosterone levels go down. For example, some of the medicines that you take to lower down your blood pressure might cause erectile dysfunction.
Let us have a look at some of these medicines which might have a toll on your sex drive:
- Medications for cancer or radiation treatments
- Hormones prescribed in the treatment for prostate cancer
- Corticosteroids
- Pain relievers
- A medication called Cimetidine which is often used in heat burns
- Steroids used by athletes to amplify muscle mass
- Antidepressants
#3. Depression
We already learned above how antidepressants affect libido. But here we also need to understand why depression can be a threat!
Depression plays with the mind. And thus it causes one to lack interest in all those activities that once pleased him.
If we talk about anti-depressants, reducing dosage might come to your help sometimes but not for long.
#4. Chronic illness
Health leads one to keep sex as the second on their list. Several chronic diseases like chronic pain leave men to find sex less interesting.
Many diseases like cancer reduce the sperm count of a man.
Some other chronic diseases that might affect libido are:
- Diabetes
- Obesity
- High blood pressure
- Chronic organ failure
#5. Stress and anxiety
Any situation that leads you to stress makes you lose your sex drive. You must be wondering how?
Stress causes hormonal imbalance. In fact, all your arteries tend to narrow up their lumens during stress.
This causes blockage in blood circulation to the penis and might cause erectile dysfunction too.
To be more precise, a study that was published in Scientific Research and Essays points towards stress having direct control over your libido.
Stress could be from anything, be it a failing relationship, divorce, death of kin, or busy workdays. But the question is how to fight back stress?
Well, it’s easy, just go for a stress management class or talk it out to someone whom you trust.
In fact, a study conducted on men with newly erectile dysfunction diagnosis showed improvements in their condition after their stress management classes.
#6. Sleep patterns
According to the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, a study showed that nonobese men suffering from obstructive sleep apnea had a low level of testosterone. In fact, they also had serious effects on libido.
This study highlighted that almost one-third of men who had sleep apnea had low levels of testosterone.
If we look at an example of another study, it showed that young men who were sleep-deprived for around 5 hours every night, showed a decrease in T-levels by almost 15%.
Thus, we can see that lack of sleep can be one reason behind low libido.
#7. Relationship with age
As we already mentioned, hormones, especially testosterone, start declining with age. Once you grow old, you might find it difficult to orgasm, ejaculate, or have hard erections.
But medicines and many libido boosters for men can reverse these signs.
#8. Exercising patterns
Low sex drive can be caused by your irregular exercise regime. Too less of it or too much of it might cause a sexual problem
But, regular and maintained exercise can keep you away from low libido by keeping your chances of acquiring a chronic illness, less.
Moderate exercises will help you out in handling your stress levels and thus boost your sex drive.
Though, over-exercise can cause some issues in your sexual health. According to a study, if one continued doing high chronic exercises and longer endurance training, the chances of decreased libido are high.
#9. Lifestyle problems
Here, we mainly focus on your alcohol and drugs habit. Heavy alcohol consumption, or to be a little precise more than 14 drinks over the week can land you in trouble.
There are many health hazards of alcohol. But if you ignore our warning and continue consuming it the same way, you will end up getting low libido and other sexual problems.
#10. Drugs
Apart from alcohol, there are many kinds of stuff like marijuana and drugs that you should stay away from for your goodness.
It not only affects your sex drive but will also lead to infertility as your sperm rate starts going down.
With that being said, let’s move towards the fact check. Here we will try clearing away all the misconceptions that men have about libido.
Fact Check – Common misconceptions about Low libido!
Men should have a clear idea about what they are dealing with. However, some misconceptions start brewing up in their mind.
One of them is how men confuse low libido with erectile dysfunction!
Often we see men associating erectile dysfunction with low libido.
But there is a line that separates these two sexual problems!
Low libido is a case where you can still have “ERECTIONS” when sexually aroused. However, this might take some time and might not satisfy you much.
But you are still getting erections!
Erectile dysfunction is when you don’t have erections at all even after you are sexually aroused.
With that being said, let us move towards the most important section of our blog which is, “How to increase Male libido”.
Treatment For Low Libido In Males
Low libido is a common problem for men. Moreover, it is treatable if you know the underlying causes.
There are many different ways with which you can treat your sexual problem. Some of you must be wondering if you will have to undergo “Drugs To Increase Libido In Males”.
Let us clear you with that!
There are different ways in which people can treat themselves. If you feel you cannot wait for long, medicines and some therapies are what you need. But then, some people might not wish to come under any chemical treatment.
And for them, there are many natural ways too!
Low libido can be treated in three different ways, exercises, natural adaptations, and medications.
Here, below we have laid a short overview of all these three ways to help you choose the plan that suits you the best.
Let us start with the Natural ways first!
Best natural ways to boost your libido
#1. Take control over your anxiety
As we already mentioned above, stress and anxiety are the root causes of low libido. People with high responsibilities, be it in their workspace or at home, suffer from high anxiety and stress attacks making them less inclined towards sex.
So what can be done to have control over it?
Here are some tips to manage your anxiety:
- Work on your quality sleep
- Indulge in your favorite pastime
- Exercises
- Have a healthy diet
- Work on improving your relationship with your partner if it’s stressful
- Seek a therapist
#2. Relationships
Relationships see a point where one of the partners feels less excited about sexual intimacy. This happens if you are with someone for a long time or maybe because you feel something is wrong in this relationship.
Thus, to maintain your high libido, you must work on your relationship.
You can go to the following tips:
- Go for dates
- Spend time out of the bedroom
- Communicate with each other
- Make some quality moments
#3. Foreplay
Sex without foreplay is boring! If you bring in something exciting during foreplay it might boost your partner’s libido!
You can try bringing in some quirky sexual toys in your bedroom or try touching your partner at different places to bring out his inner beast!
#4. Quality sleep
Sleeping makes you feel relaxed, refreshed, and also enhances your mood. Moreover, if you get the quality sleep you also boost your testosterone and libido!
#5. Healthy diet
Good blood circulation and a healthy heart, work well for your penis! So go for a diet rich with foods that boost your libido.
Make sure you take in a healthy balanced diet and try keeping all the diseases that hamper libido out of your life.
#6. Herbal remedies
A study conducted back in 2015 shows that there are some remedies which might get you high on the bed:
- Maca
- Tribulus
- Ginkgo
- Ginseng
These herbal remedies are also available in leading testosterone boosters. Thus, you can also go for them if you wish to!
Apart from the above ways, you must also follow some important tips:
- Try maintaining a healthy weight to keep your sex drive high
- You can go for sex therapy if you feel these ways are not helping you out
- Make sure you follow some good libido-boosting exercises
In case you have no clue which exercises will boost your libido levels, have a look below.
Exercises are good for your libido!
High libido means better and long-lasting sex. So here are a few exercises which will help you out in keeping your libido high. You can also try them out to boost your low libido:
#1. Weight Lifting
Your doctor must have suggested you go for strength training for a better sex life. Any guesses why?
Let us tell you!
When you go for weight lifting, your body produces more testosterone and you already know that testosterone controls your sex drive.
Moreover, many studies show that intense exercises like weight lifting boost libido.
Thus, for boosting your sex life, try going for intense exercises like push-ups, sit-ups, and crunches.
#2. Kegels
Kegels can help you get better at sex by boosting your strength and endurance.
This exercise tones your pubococcygeus muscles.
These muscles are the ones that you sometimes use to control your urine flow.
Kegels also strengthens your pelvic floor that helps in better sex and ejaculation.
All that you have to do is, control your PC muscles by trying to stop the flow of your urine.
Once you know how to do so, you just have to squeeze your PC muscles for 10 seconds whenever you feel like doing so!
#3. Yoga
Positions have a major role in helping you reach climax. Yoga is one such exercise that helps you master different postures. It will help you get flexible which will be helpful in better sex.
You can also go for the Bow pose, Peacock pose, and shoulder stand poses of yoga for strengthening your pelvic muscles.
#4. Fast walking
A study conducted at Harvard showed that aerobic exercises lower the chances of encountering ED by 30%.
Moreover, another study also pointed towards aerobic activities being capable of burning 200 calories a day that lowers ED.
Aerobic activities like fast walking and running can have a positive impact on your sex life as they improve circulation in your body.
#5. Swimming
According to a study conducted on 160 male and female swimmers at Harvard, those who were about 60 years old had better sex lives than nonswimmers aging around 40.
You must be wondering how this is possible?
Sex is all about stamina and endurance, long-distance swimming can be effective in training both powers.
Swimming for around 30 minutes thrice a week has amazing effects on your endurance.
With that being said, let us have a look at the medical treatments and medications that you can take for boosting libido.
Medication for boosting libido!
Conclusion
Low libido is a common problem in men. But most of the men fail to open up about it.
Through our above blog, we aim at answering all their questions.
We have curated an overall guide for the men who are suffering from low libido.
Apart from this, we suggest our readers make sure that your partner or you take this problem seriously.
If you don’t find any natural remedies or exercises useful, consult your doctor!
You can also talk to a therapist if an old trauma has been causing sexual problems in your body.
With this, we come to the end of your blog. We hope that you find this blog useful.
