How Many Years Can I Take Cialis?

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Cialis is one of the most effective treatments for ED on the market today — but what about tomorrow, next month and two decades from now? Just how effective and safe is Cialis over the long term?

It’s a question some people with ED forget to ask. After all, Cialis has been proven safe and effective in a number of studies, and it’s FDA-approved for the treatment of ED.

But while there are extensive studies showing Cialis is safe for a couple of years, research hasn’t been done on the question of decades of usage.

We’re not sounding any alarms here — if you’re dealing with ED, Cialis and its generic version tadalafil, should offer a long-term or even permanent solution for what ails you and your member. But you should still be aware of the potential risks (and unanswered questions) before beginning a life-long regimen of medication.

Some men, after all, want bedroom activity as frequently as possible (which is one of the reasons Cialis’s potential for daily use draws so much attention). But we want our ED treatments to work, too — even if we have other health problems.

Read below to find out more about long-term Cialis safety, Cialis long-term side effects and some tips for how to use Cialis safely for many years to come.

How Long Can You Take Cialis Safely?

Is Cialis safe? Yes. Is Cialis safe over decades? That’s hard to know for sure.

Cialis is not a medication intended for temporary use. Most men do not see ED spontaneously disappear, and unless something drastically changes in your life, medications like Cialis are intended to work in an ongoing capacity. How long “ongoing” is, however, is somewhat of an unanswered question.

Here’s the good news: there are currently no reports of Cialis eventually ceasing to be an effective treatment. Likewise, there are no current studies suggesting that long-term use of Cialis is dangerous.

Assuming that you’re not taking nitrates, alpha-blockers or other medications for high blood pressure, hypertension or benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), we don’t know of any serious problems that you might see (more later on why these other medications can cause problems).

Some people might also wonder whether Cialis could lose effectiveness over time. While some users might argue that they need to increase their dosage, generally speaking, there’s no research to suggest that men can build immunity or tolerance to these medications.

So if you’re wondering whether Cialis has a cut-off point for safe use, the answer is no… so far.

Are There Long-Term Side Effects of Cialis?

Here’s the problem: there isn’t a lot of data about the long-term risks and complications associated with regular use of tadalafil. Currently, there are no known long-term side effects of taking Cialis, but that can honestly be attributed to a lack of knowledge more than a lack of side effects.

2017 paper in the journal Urologia Internationalis acknowledged that while there were substantial studies done on short-term effects, there was a lack of long-term and follow-up testing, and that the efficacy and safety long-term “could not be evaluated.”

Most of the study data available today doesn’t look at the multi-decade use of Cialis — in fact, few reach more than a few years into the future.

2004 clinical trial published in the Journal of European Urology found no serious adverse effects from long-term use of tadalafil in more than 1,000 men using various dosages. The problem is that those results only take into account 24 months of use. Most men will likely plan to take Cialis for more than two years — or at least hope to.

Can Cialis Cure ED Permanently?

You probably already know this, but Cialis cannot cure ED. Cialis is an ongoing treatment for the symptoms of chronic intimacy dysfunction. It’s a prescription phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitor — one of the two most popular on the market, alongside Viagra.

Getting hard is the product of two processes: blood flow to the privates’ blood vessels, and the trapping of that blood in two long chambers called the corpora cavernosa. When you become aroused, your brain sends chemical signals to your body to dilate the blood vessels in the privates, allowing blood to flow in before a muscle closes things up like a filled balloon.

ED is what happens when those processes break down — and it’s a common problem. The National Institutes of Health say that an estimated 30 million to 50 million men nationwide have some degree of ED.

ED can be caused by many factors, including poor diet, obesity, blood flow issues, stress, anxiety, illicit or prescribed drugs, habits and hormones.

Luckily, PDE5 inhibitors work to sustain the dilation of your member’s blood vessels in the soft tissue of your privates, which gives you (and helps you maintain) firmer arousal.

But these medications must be taken regularly — daily in some cases — for those effects to continue.

Unlike most other PDE5 inhibitors, tadalafil can be taken either as-needed or once per day. And, according to the National Library of Medicine, a single dose has been shown to be effective for up to 36 hours.

So is it a cure? No. But it can be an effective (and potentially long-term) solution, as long as it’s used correctly.

Safety Tips for Long-Term Cialis Usage

Let’s not mince words, guys. The razor you shave your face with is literally called a safety razor, and yet you probably know all too well about the serious side effects of misusing even a safety blade. It doesn’t take medical advice to know that razors can cut.

Cialis has a lot of research backing it as one of the most safe and effective treatment options for ED, but that doesn’t mean you just start popping pills when you’re ready to get into bed with someone.

First of all, since tadalafil is a prescription medication, you’ll need to talk to a healthcare professional. They’ll help you better understand your individual ED circumstances, address potential causes like obesity, stress and hormones and suggest (and potentially prescribe) treatment.

Dosage is an important element of effective Cialis use. According to FDA.gov, daily doses of Cialis are typically smaller than as-needed doses. While as-needed doses will range from 10mg to 20mg, a daily dose will typically range between 2.5mg and 5mg.

Those lower doses are effective when taken daily, and a larger daily Cialis dose would offer no additional benefits — just added risks.

There are a few things you should know about what’s up (or isn’t) down there:

  • Avoid dangerous drug interactions. Cialis should not be taken alongside other ED medications — particularly other PDE5 inhibitors — without a healthcare professional’s oversight. Before taking Cialis, you should also tell your provider if you take any heart or blood pressure medications or other drugs with the potential to interact with your blood pressure, or you have a history of heart disease. You’ll also need to avoid grapefruit.

  • Be wary of side effects. Cialis can cause side effects. Common side effects from Cialis are headache, indigestion, back pain, muscle pain, flushing and nasal congestion. A small number of patients also reported vision loss in some circumstances.

  • Rare Cialis side effects are also possible. They include sudden hearing loss, renal impairment and prolonged arousal (priapism) — those four-hour arousals you’ve likely heard about. According to the FDA priapism can cause permanent tissue damage if not treated as soon as possible.

  • Use Cialis as prescribed. Misuse of the medication may increase the risk of certain Cialis (tadalafil) side effects over time, so don’t make executive decisions about how many pills you take. Instead, consult a healthcare provider about dosage changes if Cialis doesn’t work. Overdosing on Cialis or taking it alongside other ED medications can cause sudden and severe blood pressure drops, which can result in chest pain or low blood pressure leading to death.

  • Consider the mental health side of ED. While you may have physical reasons behind ED, the cause of your ED might also be psychological. Remember that insecurity, fear of intimacy, low self-esteem and conditions like anxiety and depression can play a role in performance issues.

How Many Years Can You Take Cialis? Takeaways

The science of Cialis use is still very much evolving on the long-term effects of regular doses. It’s nice to tell a 20-year-old experiencing ED for the first time that he can depend on tadalafil for the rest of his life, but the truth is that we just won’t know until more research is done.

In the meantime, however, if men in their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and beyond are concerned with long-term risks or problems with the active ingredient tadalafil, they should consider the following tips: 

  • Try other meds. Other ED treatments might work better for your individual needs, so if you’re not seeing the results you want from tadalafil, consider sildenafil (generic for Viagra), Stendra (avanafil), Levitra or check out chewable ED meds hard mints for alternative ways of treating ED.

  • Consider your mental health. If you think that you might be dealing with psychological ED, consult a psychiatrist or mental health professional to see if other treatments might be helpful, instead of or in addition to medications.

  • Examine your diet, sleep, drinking and exercise habits. There may also be lifestyle factors that a healthcare provider will want you to address, like diet, stress or weight.

  • Mind your dosage. Though tadalafil has been proven safe, there are still important cautions to consider before starting a Cialis regimen.

This article originally appeared on Hims.com and was syndicated by MediaFeed.org.

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12 Reasons Men May Experience ED (& What to Do About It)

12 Reasons Men May Experience ED (& What to Do About It)

Having ED is a common problem that both older men and younger men in the United States experience. In fact, some research indicates that 30 million American men experience symptoms of ED — and it’s not always clear why.

The causes of ED can be any number of things. Alcohol may cause temporary ED and medications may cause EDs. Health conditions like kidney disease, obesity, vascular health issues and medical conditions of the nervous system may all affect a man’s ability to maintain one. It might even be an issue that comes as a symptom of a mental health condition.

If you’re asking questions like “Why couldn’t I get hard the last time I had sex” or “Why can I only get a semi hard on” then the answers list could help you get a sense of where the issue might be.

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Getting hard are about two things: blood flow in, and no blood flow out. Your genitals is essentially a balloon filled with blood. Actually, there are two main ones in the genitals, and together they’re called the corpora cavernosa (there’s also a third, softer one called the corpus spongiosum).

When you become aroused, these “balloons” fill with blood, and the increased pressure pushing against the surrounding fibrous tissue seals off the exit, trapping that blood inside your genitals. It fails to happen only when something interrupts this process, and there are a few things that can do that. 

Some of these things include: 

  • Weight

  • Age

  • General health 

  • Alcohol consumption

  • Drug dependency

  • Medication side effects

Those are just a few on a long list of physical and mental causes (which we’ve elaborated on below).

Physiological or psychological factors may impair a man’s ability to get hard, and they may also experience partial obe due to these factors.

FYI: partial ones are health issues, as well as warning signs for ED. While they’re not as severe as a complete lack of firmness, they represent a problem that needs to be tackled before it gets worse. 

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variety of causes and mental health triggers might cause any man to experience sexual health issues. 

If you’ve experienced (or might currently be experiencing) any of the following conditions, issues or problems, you’re at risk for ED. 

Below, we’ve organized them into two primary categories: physiological reasons like those associated with heart health, and psychological reasons like those related to performance anxiety or depression.

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Your health is not independent from the health of the rest of your body, so if something is going wrong in another area of the factory, so to speak, it could still shut down the production line elsewhere.

One form of ED — arteriogenic ED — is caused by inefficient arteries which are associated with heart disease. 

Common examples of conditions that can increase your risk of ED include:

  • Chronic inflammation associated with diabetes

  • High blood pressure

  • Metabolic syndrome

  • Cardiovascular and neurological diseases

  • Multiple sclerosis (MS) 

  • Parkinson’s disease

There are even neurological causes of ED to consider, like nerve damage or similar traumas that reduce sensation and function in the genitals. 

Things like hormonal imbalances (which can be caused by age, weight or any number of factors) can throw off your libido.

It’s important not to rule out things like lifestyle choices and habits as potential causes of ED, too. The underlying cause of ED could be anything from poor diet and exercise habits to unknown medication side effects. 

If you’re experiencing partial ones or are unable to maintain a full one, you’re possibly suffering from one or more of these conditions. And if you suspect any of these health conditions may be holding you back in the bedroom, talk to a healthcare professional.

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Even if your body may be causing some problems for your health, your mental health could be affecting things simultaneously. Gained some weight recently? It might be affecting your heart health, but it might also be making you self conscious in intimate scenarios.

Meanwhile, performance anxietydepression and low self-esteem can adversely affect your ability to get hard by distracting you from arousing thoughts or lowering your interest in sex.

Stress and anxiety might cause a loss of interest in sexual activity generally, so if things in the office or the relationship aren’t great, the problems may be following you all the way to bed. 

Some believe that pornography can also cause a form of ED, and while the jury is still out on that one, considering whether your porn habit feels like part of the problem has apparently led some men to see benefits from cutting back.

(Related: How Do PE Pills Work?)

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There’s a very wide spectrum of severity that can affect different men to different degrees — your medications, underlying health issues, age and other factors may weigh on your firmness, so it’s best to ask a professional to assess these possible ED causes.

Your healthcare provider will check you out for things like: 

  • Blood pressure issues

  • High cholesterol 

  • Side effects or interactions of medications (particularly, medications for hypertension and antidepressants)

  • Low testosterone levels

  • Prostate cancer

They may also inquire about not-so-physiological things like relationship problems and habits like your smoking, drug, alcohol and eating habits — those are ED causes you can address yourself or with help.

They’ll be able to help you figure out the right treatment for you. In many cases, they’ll suggest one or more of the following:

  • Lifestyle-Based Treatments

  • Medications

  • Therapy

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When we discuss treatment options for sexual dysfunction, there’s one straightforward solution to ED that you should know about first: take better care of yourself. 

Before you run to the pharmacy, understand that ED is very treatable, with a variety of proven options available. Everything from diet and exercise, to medications and healthy lifestyle changes, can help you regain firmness. 

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Your healthcare provider may also prescribe FDA-approved ED medications. There are currently four oral prescription ED pills available:

These drugs belong to a class of medications called phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5 inhibitors for short) and work to increase blood flow to the genitals to help you get and maintain one when you want one.

There are also other medications available for ED, such as alprostadil — an injectable medication.

(Related: Is Cialis Over the Counter?)

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A word of advice: don’t assume the cause is physical. Low self-esteem, performance anxiety and a slew of other mental health disorders can cause ED, and those should be treated with the help of a therapy professional. 

There are various psychological treatments and approaches to dealing with the ED problem. 

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“I can’t get rock hard anymore.” It’s a tough thing to admit, to type into a search bar or to say out loud to a healthcare professional. At least it feels that way. 

In reality, admitting the problem is a necessary first step to, well, being able to have a full one again. 

If you haven’t been achieving full liftoff recently, remember these key facts:

  • It’s a whole-body issue. Getting hard is about more than your genitals. Your whole body and your mind also contribute to the health of your genitals.

  • Your mind may be holding you back. Your body can be ready, but if you’re anxious, depressed or self-conscious, you may be left semi-hard.

  • This is a fixable problem. Like an electric crew doing pole work, medication and healthier living can restore your penile power, as can talking to a therapy professional if your problems are in your head.

This article originally appeared on Hims.comand was syndicated by MediaFeed.or

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Featured Image Credit: PeopleImages/istockphoto.

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