7 Shocking Ways Men Sabotage Their Sexual Health

10 Minute Read | 1 Minute Video

Has anyone ever told you that your daily activities like eating food on-the-go or using mouthwash might be hurting your sexual health? You heard us right, Brother. These are the 7 surprising ways that your daily habits may be sabotaging your manhood. Luckily, we have simple tips to help you avoid these daily pitfalls.

1. Mouthwash

This may raise an eyebrow or two. How can minty-fresh breath have any impact on my sexual health? We'll break down the science for you on this one. You have bacteria in your mouth that are essential for producing nitric oxide (NO) in your body. Nitric oxide acts as the messenger for directing blood flow to sustain erections (1). Mouthwash works by killing off bacteria that contributes to bad breath. Although we'd like to imagine that mouthwash operates like a trained sniper carefully taking out only bad bacteria in the mouth. In reality, it blindly kills all the bacteria in its path— including the important ones that your body requires to produce nitric oxide. So if your mouthwash is constantly kill off these messengers, how will your soldier get the memo that it's time to salute when you're in the bedroom?

Solution: Toss out antiseptic mouthwash. If you can't live without mouthwash, make your own all natural solution (mix baking soda, water, salt) or use alternative oral hygiene practices like oil pulling (with coconut oil, neem oil, etc.). Bad breath is often a sign that something in your body is out of balance. Author of The Dental Diet says, Dr. Steven Lin advises us to "run far, far away" from mouthwash, and instead treat the underlying causes of bad breath by managing your gut microbiomes (2).

2. Plastic eating utensils

How many of you have eaten take out with plastic utensils? Or have plastic cups and plates in your cupboard right now? The modern world is set up to regularly expose us to plasticware. And unfortunately, even though there are companies working hard to promote BPA-free plastic, the reality is that BPAs are still all up in those plastic forks. BPA stands for bisphenol A chemicals, which are powerful endocrine disrupters. These conniving little buggers can mimic hormones in the body and clog up your hormone receptors. In other words, they "catfish" your soldier into using BPA chemicals instead of natural testosterone to fuel erections. No wonder things are going south.

Solution:  Avoid using plastic utensils if you can, and limit eating or drinking out of plastic containers. Unless you have the time to constantly check plasticware for "BPA-free" stamps, it's quicker to just avoid them all together. Swap out the plastic plates at home for ceramic. Use a tried-and-true metal fork whenever you can.

3. Paper receipts

Next time you grab a cup of coffee or pay at a gas station, think twice before taking the receipt on your way out. Thermal paper receipts are covered in BPA chemicals. Environmental studies have reported that receipts contain 250x - 1000x more BPAs than the amount found in packaged foods (3). So if you get coffee in a plastic cup, and you clench the receipt on your way out, you're giving yourself a double whammy.

Solution: Opt for an e-receipt, no receipt, or politely ask the cashier to toss the receipt for you. Our friends at Home Depot tell us they wish more customers enroll at check out for emailed receipts, but the vast majority of folks still stick to paper. Kick this small habit, and you'll be on your way to restoring and the environment.

4. Putting cellphone in front pocket

We've all done this from time to time. How does your phone react when you receive a text, alert, call? It buzzes, rings, lights up, etc. All of that transmits electromagnetic waves and radiation right next to your pecker. And now they're coming at you with 5G speeds! Just take a second and think about how many times a day your phone goes off. Would you feel safe strapping your cell phone to the top of your head and expose your brain to that amount of daily phone alerts? So why risk doing that to your other head?

Popular Podcast Host and neuroscientist Andrew Huberman affirms the impact of cell phones on sperm count. Check out this video clip:

Solution: Put your phone somewhere else. Seriously. Put the phone on a corner of your desk, or inside a drawer at your desk if you don't want to be distracted. Put it on the console when you're in the car, put it in the locker when you're at the gym. Try out one those "man letter" fanny pack things if you feel hip. Or if you absolutely must put your phone in your pocket, stick it in your back pocket.

5. Sitting for long periods of time

Some men have jobs that require them to sit at a desk all day, or stay seated to operate machinery or a motor vehicle. Being stationary causes energy to stagnate and can deprive cells the ability to intake quality levels of oxygen. What happens to a car if don't drive it and leave it sitting in place for too long? The battery dies. It's the same with your body, brother. If you don't take quick breaks, walk around, stretch you may be draining your internal battery. Studies have even shown that small activities like fidgeting (yes, fidgeting your fingers or tapping your toes) can increase your calorie burn and improve overall health (4). CNN reports that fidgeting may even contribute to healthy weight management. So keep that blood flowing and your mojo going.

Solution: Set an alarm on your phone to take at least a 1 minute break every hour (even if it's just to walk to the bathroom, do jumping jacks in place, etc). Look into getting a standing desk if you work at a desk. Get a stress ball or silly gadget you can fidget with at work. Even just keeping a pet rock in your pocket can make a difference— seriously!

6. Sitting near a WiFi router

Believe it or not, WiFi routers do a doozy on our cellular membranes. If you work in an area that is situated near a router, you might be damaging your troops. Being close to the router may get you marginally higher speeds on devices, but at the cost of lower speeds in your body. Studies have shown that exposure to WiFi emissions can cause apoptosis (when cells self-destruct) and even force DNA strands in sperm to break apart (5). This can lead to defective cellular responses such as weak erections, not to mention low sperm count and male infertility.

Solution: Avoid sitting close to Wifi routers, for starters. If it's not feasible for you to make that adjustment due to limited space, then invest in EMF blocking clothing. Yes, this stuff exists. Try LessEMF or a just a quick browse on Amazon for EMF protective wear. Investing in EMF clothing is much more affordable than refilling prescription blue pills or IVF treatments down the line.

7. Over-stimulating videos (including video games)

Watching porn and playing high-action video games won't physically damage your sexual health, but what it can do is impact your psychological health. When you stimulate your brain with rapid dopamine hits through these hobbies, real life activities become less stimulating to the brain as a result. It's like if you're racing at 100 mph then drop to 70 mph, suddenly 70 mph will feel slow in comparison. But if you're operating at 50 mph, then getting in the bedroom and revving up to 70 mph will feel stimulating again.

Solution: We know willpower alone sometimes isn't enough to withstand digital dopamine highs, so set yourself up for success by leveraging tools to limit your access to on-screen stimulants. Utilize parental controls, set up screen time locks (and have someone else program the password so you can't unlock), or use apps like Focus to limit your use of specific websites and games. Slowly your brain will adjust back to regular stimulus levels. We promise you it'll be worth it to break this habit, and all the other ones on this list. Stay potent, Brother. Get Stamen Now.

 

Footnotes:

1. Burnett AL. The Role of Nitric Oxide in Erectile Dysfunction: Implications For Medical Therapy, 2006. [PubMed]

2. Lin, Steven. Book: The Dental Diet: The Surprising Link Between Your Teeth, Real Food, and Life-Changing Natural Health.

3. Environmental Working Group (EWG) [Insight from December 2020]

4. Johannsen DL, Ravussin E. Spontaneous physical activity: relationship between fidgeting and body weight control. Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2008 Oct;15(5):409-15 [PubMed]

5. Saeed Shokri, Ph.D, Aiob Soltani, M.Sc, [...], and Farshid Babapoor Mofrad, Ph.D. Effects of WiFi (2.45GHz) Exposure on Apoptosis, Sperm Parameters and Testicular Histomorphometry, 2015. [PubMed]