SEXUAL HEALTH: Weight loss is great for the bedroom

If you want to get the most out of your home-based business, you have to act like you are in an office.

PHOTO| FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The health and wellbeing of sex organs is highly dependent on the health of blood vessels.
  • When cholesterol and triglycerides have damaged blood vessels in the sex organs, getting erections becomes a problem.
  • “But doctor, What exactly led to this?” James asked anxiously, “I have friends who eat meat too but they are not obese.”

Under normal circumstances, it is the sick person who goes to the hospital. I was therefore taken aback when Dorcas entered the consultation room and declared that she had come to seek treatment on behalf of her husband. He had refused to accompany her to the clinic.

“He can never admit that he has a problem; I have failed to convince him to come over for consultation,” she explained. “He has become spongy in bed and the sponginess isn’t fun!”

I enquired further to understand what Dorcas meant by her husband being ‘spongy’. Her explanation was that James, her husband, had grown obese over the years. He was a civil servant and had risen up the ranks, which caused a change in his lifestyle. He spent most of his time sitting in the office or in meetings and was driven around in a government vehicle. He rarely walked or did physical exercises. His status no longer allowed him to walk even if the distances were small. He spent his recreational time in clubs with his peers watching football and eating nyama choma.

“He has developed a big tummy. His neck has grown fat and short. Now he weighs about 100kg,” Dorcas explained. “His body is wobbly, including his sex organs. That’s what I mean by being spongy.”

I could understand that he had grown fat and his muscles were not toned, but I needed to understand what ‘spongy sex organs’ meant. I interviewed Dorcas more on this. 

“He has erection problems; he can barely rise to the occasion, it is frustrating and he won’t even come for treatment!” Dorcas exclaimed.

I told Dorcas the importance of having James come to the clinic for treatment. It was not possible to give her medicine to take to James. She asked me to talk to him on phone and ask him to come for treatment. After a persuasive phone conversation, James agreed to come the next day. His only condition was that his wife does not accompany him. Dorcas had no problem with that.

James arrived early the next day. A well fed man of medium height, James had a BMI of 38, signifying severe obesity. He reported that his sex life had been worsening over the years. In fact, he tried as much as possible to avoid intimate situations with his wife for fear of failure.

“But a man must never admit such failures to his wife, you must put on a brave face and appear like you are not the problem and in fact make her feel guilty,” he said and burst out in a staccato bout of laughter. I did not agree. Sex problems are shared and you should not allow yourself to suffer alone. Working through the problem with your spouse is very important.

I did a full medical assessment on James. Other than obesity, his blood pressure was rather high. Blood tests also showed that he had high cholesterol and high levels of fat called triglycerides in his blood.

Cholesterol is a cheesy, wax-like substance. It is important in the body for manufacturing body cells, hormones and various other chemicals. When in excess, however, it accumulates in the blood vessels destroying their walls and obstructing blood flow. It is the main cause of heart attack and stroke. Its effects get worse when triglycerides are also high. James was therefore a time bomb.

MONITOR YOUR BMI

The health and wellbeing of sex organs is highly dependent on the health of blood vessels. When cholesterol and triglycerides have damaged blood vessels in the sex organs, getting erections becomes a problem. “But doctor, What exactly led to this?” James asked anxiously, “I have friends who eat meat too but they are not obese.”

One’s genes have a role to play. There are people who are predisposed by virtue of their genetic make-up. A sedentary lifestyle is however a major trigger. Office jobs that involve sitting for most of the day and thereafter driving or being driven home and not having time to go to the gym or exercise at home are serious risk factors.

Unregulated eating of animal proteins, especially red meat and full fat dairy products, is also a major risk factor. Refined carbohydrates are also bad. The best way to know if things are going wrong with your body is to monitor your BMI. Almost everyone with high cholesterol has a high BMI. And, of course, if you smoke your risks are multiplied.

James was put on cholesterol reducing medicines and an exercise and diet regimen. It took eight months to normalise his BMI, thanks to his determination to regain his health. He then underwent sex coaching together with his wife for another three months. It was a year before he regained his full sexual function.