Why is it hard for man to maintain a full erection after a big meal or if they drink too much alcohol?
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Your body needs blood to do just about everything. This includes maintaining an erection; blood is actually sequestered in the penis, which is what causes it to grow and harden. Your body also needs blood to transport oxygen and energy so that your body can do work. After you eat a big meal, your stomach and intestines and other organs are actually doing a lot of work, breaking down and processing foods into a form your body can use. The energy that is required for this diverts blood flow from other places, including the penis.
Alcohol causes problems through a different mechanism. It’s a depressant, which causes your brain and nervous system to work less well, which can inhibit the signals that cause and maintain an erection. Alcohol also makes you pee more, and in general is pretty good at dehydrating you. Dehydration reduces blood volume, which reduces the amount of blood available for erections (and everything else). Finally, it triggers some hormones that may be associated with erectile issues.
Alcohol is a vasodilator. What that means is that it causes your blood vessels to enlarge, causing your heart to work harder to keep blood pumping to your organs. Organs like your penis are non-essential organs, and won’t get the same amount of support from the heart. That’s why you shouldn’t go into a hottub or have a hot bath after drinking alcohol. Both the alcohol and the hot water are vasodilators, making your heart work several times harder than normal. Your heart can give out to exhaustion and you die. Eating a big meal has similar effects.
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