General pornography use is not associated with the development of erectile dysfunction (ED), but men who report problems with their pornography use might have trouble with erections, according to a recent study.
“Collectively, our data convey strong skepticism regarding the claim that mere pornography use is generally driving an epidemic of ED,” the authors wrote.
Some anti-pornography groups claim that Internet porn may cause male sexual dysfunction, especially ED, they said, adding that there is little academic research on the subject.
What counts as problematic pornography use? The authors described situations in which users who “report life-altering consequences” from their use as well as those who feel addicted or ashamed of their use.
Sustained pornography use may lead to relationship conflict, sexual difficulties, social problems, trouble with employment, and psychological issues. (Learn more here.)
The study involved three groups of sexually active men who acknowledged using pornography:
- 147 undergraduates, mean age 19.8
- 297 online survey participants, mean age 46.5 years
- 433 men in a convenience sample recruited from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, a crowdsourcing platform
Erectile function was assessed using the five-item International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5). Pornography use, self-reported problematic pornography use, moral incongruence, and religiousness were also evaluated with relevant assessment tools.
Overall, the men had “very high levels of erectile functioning,” the authors reported, adding, “In general, among sexually active pornography-using men, serious erectile problems seem rare, a finding that runs counter to a popular narrative suggesting that pornography use is driving an epidemic of ED.”
No association was found between mere pornography use and ED, but “a positive cross-sectional association” was discovered between self-reported problematic pornography use and ED.
The latter association was unlikely to be causal, the researchers said.
They recommended that future studies focus on pornography’s potential effects on other male sexual dysfunctions, such as premature ejaculation or anorgasmia, as well as female sexual problems.
The study was published in January 2019 in the Journal of Sexual Medicine.
Resources
International Society for Sexual Medicine
“What are some effects of sustained pornography use?”
https://www.issm.info/sexual-health-qa/what-are-some-effects-of-sustained-pornography-use/
The Journal of Sexual Medicine
Grubbs, Joshua B., PhD and Mateusz Gola, PhD
“Is Pornography Use Related to Erectile Functioning? Results From Cross-Sectional and Latent Growth Curve Analyses”
(Full-text. January 2019)
https://www.jsm.jsexmed.org/article/S1743-6095(18)31285-2/fulltext