Can Porn Cause Erectile Dysfunction?

Ask any doctor who specializes in erectile dysfunction (ED) if they think there could be a link between too much porn and erectile dysfunction and they’ll likely answer, “Absolutely.”

The link between free porn and erectile dysfunction

Part of the reason the men worry that their excessive porn habits are causing their erectile dysfunction is because the proliferation of free online porn has made it more accessible 24/7.

Increased accessibility means increased frequency of masturbation and exposure to fetish and kinky porn that raises the level of stimulation needed to get an erection. In other words, real-life sex can become too boring compared to online porn, causing erectile dysfunction in the bedroom.

Translation: Masturbation doesn’t necessarily cause erectile dysfunction, but too much kinky porn might.

Can porn help erectile dysfunction?

Now that we’ve taken masturbation itself off the table as a cause of erectile dysfunction, we can ask if it can help erectile dysfunction.

For men that are experiencing erectile dysfunction due to psychological reasons, such as stress, depression or performance anxiety, porn (or more specifically, masturbating to porn) might help.

While masturbation can help fight stress and depression directly, it can also help you indirectly by increasing the quality and quantity of your sleep. Both sleep apnea and inadequate sleep have been associated with erectile dysfunction.

For men ED caused by physiological conditions

The majority of the causes of erectile dysfunction isn’t psychological, but rather is physical. Smoking, being overweight, having diabetes or heart disease can all contribute to erectile dysfunction and increasing or decreasing your porn intake (and masturbation frequency) isn’t going to affect it.

Instead, these men should talk to their doctor about the types of erectile dysfunction treatments that might be best for them, such as penis pumps, penile implants or ED medications.

For most men, simply taking one of the more common erectile dysfunction drugs, such as Viagra, Cialis or Levitra, will be enough to help them get and maintain an erection.