In this episode of The Diary Of A CEO, Mohit Khera joins Steven Bartlett to explore the concept of "sexspan" - optimizing sexual health across one's lifespan. The discussion covers causes and treatments for male and female sexual dysfunction, including erectile dysfunction, hormonal imbalances, and psychological factors. Khera emphasizes lifestyle factors like diet, exercise, and sleep in maintaining sexual function.
The conversation delves into improving intimacy and communication, touching on the benefits of experimentation and open dialogue between partners. Khera also shares insights on emerging regenerative treatments and implants for severe sexual dysfunctions. Throughout, he underscores the importance of aligning sexual health with overall healthspan and lifespan.
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Mohit Khera introduces the concept of "sexspan" - the ability to engage in satisfactory sexual activity across one's lifespan. He emphasizes aligning sexspan with healthspan and lifespan by optimizing hormones, addressing medical conditions, and focusing on diet, exercise, sleep, and stress management.
Khera states that ED often signals underlying cardiovascular issues. Obesity, diabetes, low [restricted term], and psychological factors like depression and anxiety contribute to ED. Treatment involves lifestyle changes, medications, injections, and implants as a long-term solution.
Contributing factors include hormonal changes, lower [restricted term], psychological factors, neurotransmitter imbalances, and certain medications. Limited treatment options include medications, local estrogen therapy, and sex therapy.
Khera links obesity, diabetes, and metabolic conditions to reduced sexual function. He advocates for a balanced diet like the Mediterranean diet, regular exercise, and sufficient sleep to raise [restricted term] and enhance sexual health. Mental health issues like stress and depression also play a role.
Excessive pornography can set unrealistic expectations leading to sexual dysfunction, especially among youth. Increased technology use may impact socialization and in-person relationships.
Open communication is key to resolving sexual issues, though couples often struggle due to embarrassment. Sex therapy can facilitate important conversations.
Introducing novelty through toys, new activities, and non-sexual intimacy can sustain a healthy sex life. Mohit Khera and Steven Bartlett discuss the benefits of experimentation.
Regenerative therapies like shockwave, stem cells, and radiofrequency aim to cure ED by repairing damaged tissues causing it.
Penile implants remain a reliable last resort for severe ED, offering over 92% satisfaction rates when other options fail, as per Khera.
1-Page Summary
Mohit Khera provides insights into the concept of sexspan and the factors that influence sexual health and satisfaction throughout one's life.
Sexspan is characterized by a person's ability to engage in satisfying sexual activity over the course of their life. As Khera explains, most people hope their sexspan will correlate with their lifespan.
Khera points out that while the average lifespan in the U.S. is 77 years old, the average healthspan is about 67 years old, suggesting a period of 10-15 years where individuals might live with some form of disability. The goal is to have one's sexspan coincide with both healthspan and lifespan, eliminating that discrepancy.
Diet, exercise, sleep, and stress reduction are identified by Khera as key factors in extending a person's sexspan, healthspan, and lifespan. These elements are deemed more impactful than any pill on the market for improving sexual health. Furthermore, Khera underscores the significance of hormone supplementation, particularly [restricted term], in both men and women for enhancing sexual function.
Khera divides the solution into t ...
Understanding and Defining Sexual Health and Dysfunction
Sexual dysfunction is a common issue that can arise with aging, but there are effective treatments available. Mohit Khera urges those suffering to seek therapy and not to suffer in silence.
Erectile dysfunction (ED) can be the first sign of more serious health conditions, such as a heart attack or stroke. It's linked bi-directionally to cardiac function, where improving one can improve the other. Obesity, diabetes, low [restricted term], and psychological factors like depression and anxiety significantly contribute to ED. Men with ED are more likely to have undiagnosed diabetes, and those with low [restricted term] levels are at a greater risk of heart attacks.
Khera discusses various treatments, emphasizing the importance of addressing the underlying causes such as obesity and low [restricted term] through lifestyle modifications like diet, exercise, and improving sleep. Medications like daily Cialis can help reverse ED by strengthening the penile smooth muscle and protecting the endothelium. Topical lidocaine sprays are used to decrease sensitivity for longer sexual activity. Satisfaction rates for treatments vary, with the highest for implants. For young men with low [restricted term], medication is preferred over [restricted term] therapy to avoid affecting fertility.
Female sexual dysfunction encompasses low libido, arousal issues, orgasmic dysfunction, and pain during intercourse. It can be caused by hormonal changes, lower [restricted term] levels, and psychological factors like trauma. Neurotransmitter imbalances and certain medications can also impact libido and sexual function.
Treatme ...
Causes and Treatments for Sexual Dysfunction
Lifestyle, mental health, and modern technology have significant and intricate roles in determining sexual function—a topic thoroughly explored by Mohit Khera and other professionals in the field.
Obesity, marked by an excess in fat cell production, leads to a decrease in [restricted term] levels, affecting sexual function in both men and women, according to Mohit Khera. He explains this correlation by pointing out that fat cells have aromatase, an enzyme that converts [restricted term] to estrogen, while also secreting cortisol and leptin, which shut down natural [restricted term] production. Khera emphasizes the need for lifestyle changes to raise [restricted term] levels, as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease—which all lower [restricted term]—can lead to reduced libido. Diabetes, in particular, makes individuals four times more likely to suffer from erectile dysfunction.
Khera suggests that to improve sexual function, one should adopt a healthier lifestyle that includes a balanced diet and regular exercise. He cites a study of women with coronary artery stenosis, showing that those who underwent a cardiac rehab program improved their sexual function fourfold. In addition, he links declining [restricted term] levels over the years to unhealthy lifestyle choices like eating processed foods high in fructose and carbohydrates.
Furthermore, Khera discusses diet-specific impacts, naming the Mediterranean diet as beneficial to sexual health due to its anti-inflammatory properties. Exercise is also crucial, with 160 minutes per week of moderate to vigorous activity recommended for improved erectile function. Importantly, sleep taxes sexual health, with seven to eight hours nightly being the optimal quantity for maintaining sexual function.
Mental health and its relationship with sexual function cannot be overstated. Psychological factors, such as stress and depression, contribute significantly to erectile dysfunction. Khera notes the importance of reducing anxiety related to sex and treating psychogenic ED. Other conditions like low [restricted term] are linked to depression, and treatments aimed at addressing these issues have shown to improve mental health and, consequently, sexual health.
Khera addresses the negative impacts of excessive pornography consumption on sexual fu ...
Role of Health and Lifestyle in Sexual Function
Mohit Khera and Steven Bartlett discuss ways couples can address sexual issues and strengthen their relationships through open communication and the introduction of new activities.
Khera points out that treating sexual dysfunction should see the couple as a unit and stresses communication as critical. Open discussions about bedroom issues, including the anxiety they cause, are beneficial. However, many couples struggle with these discussions due to embarrassment or the fear of placing blame or making a partner feel unattractive. Only 44% of men who start developing erectile dysfunction tell their partners, often avoiding sex instead. Communication with a partner is critical, particularly when tackling issues such as erectile dysfunction, which can be misinterpreted as a lack of attraction.
Sex therapy is suggested as a beneficial method for addressing sexual issues, especially when they are tied to mental health. Khera emphasizes that regular sexual activity has significant physical and emotional benefits, improving the relationship's quality and the individuals' happiness. Consulting a sex therapist is advised as it can facilitate important conversations and is a cure rather than a temporary fix for conditions like premature ejaculation. The first step, as discussed in a relevant book, is to focus on communication.
Khera alludes to the concept of a 'sex span', which includes the desire to engage in satisfying sexual activity beyond just penetrative sex. Introducing vibrators and toys can enhance a relationship by facilitating communication about pleasure. Bartlett sha ...
Improving Communication and Intimacy in Intimate Relationships
The world is seeing advances in the treatment of sexual dysfunction, offering new hope to those affected by this delicate issue. With therapies addressing the root causes and reliable devices serving as a last resort, patients have an array of options to regain sexual function.
Khera brings forth optimism in new regenerative therapies being explored to cure erectile dysfunction (ED), such as stem cells, platelet-rich plasma (PRP), shockwave therapy, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and radio frequency. These treatments aim to repair and rejuvenate the damaged tissues that cause ED.
For example, shockwave therapy involves delivering shocks to penile tissue, potentially improving blood flow and sexual function through a process called neoangiogenesis. The method has been in use for about five years and promises to target the underlying health issue rather than just offering a temporary fix. Similarly, radio frequency treatment uses heat within tissue to boost sexual function, while hyperbaric oxygen therapy and stem cells present additional possibilities that target the root causes of ED.
These regenerative therapies focus on the underlying causes of erectile dysfunction, improving erectile function significantly in ways that are not just symptomatic treatment but curative in nature. The improvements these therapies offer underscore a major inroad into addressing the core physiological issues at hand.
When other interventions fail, penile implants emerge as a trustworthy final measure. Invented over 51 years ago, this device consists of balloons or cylinders inserted into the penile tissue, connected to a pump in the scrotum and a saline-holding reservoir behind the pubic bone. Upon activation, the pump sends saline into the cylinders to enable an erection, which can be released by a button that drains the saline back.
This device is incredibly effective, mirroring prosthetic solutions for other body parts, and is said to be a game-changer in the treatment of ED. It carries patient and partner satisfaction rates of greater than 92%. In the case of serious Peyronie's disease, which affects 9% of men causing significant penile curvature and psychological distres ...
New and Emerging Treatment Options for Sexual Dysfunction
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