AHMEDABAD: A stressful and unhealthy urban lifestyle
is making people increasingly susceptible to cardiovascular diseases, and medical practitioners are getting more serious about prevention and early detection of CVDs. According to experts present at National Debate 2019 held on Sunday – a knowledge-sharing platform on cardiology
, the sexual health of a person may provide the earliest indicators of heart ailment.
“The fastest way to detect whether one is likely to get cardiovascular diseases is to look at one’s sexual health. If a man faces frequent erectile dysfunction
, early ejaculation or low desire, there are chances he may have CVDs in the longer run,” said Dr Deepak Jumani, assistant professor – sexual health department, JJ Group of Hospitals, Mumbai, who delivered a talk on Sex and Heart – the untold truth, at the National Debate 2019. “Similarly, if women experience low desire, fewer orgasms or are depressed, they may be susceptible to CVDs after 2.5-3 years,” he added.
The event was organized with a view to create awareness about the incidence of CVDs among elderly patients. “Even though India has a largely young population, seven years down the line, the number of people over the age of 65 will go up by 80%.
Elderly people are more susceptible to getting CVDs even if they have led a healthy lifestyle,” said Dr Sameer Dani, organizing chairman, National Debate 2019. “Therefore, it is important to create awareness about this, not just among people but also among medical practitioners,” Dani added.
Explaining how sexual health is linked to CVDs, Jumani further said, “CVDs basically impact blood circulation and less blood flow towards the sex organs which may trigger erectile dysfunction in men and lack of lubrication and vaginal arousal for women. This is the first sign of a CVD.”
“In an average Indian, these symptoms will be visible 2.5-3 years before one may actually get CVD. However, this three-year window is good enough to prevent incidence of CVDs through proper lifestyle-improvement measures,” he said.
Jumani also emphasized doing away with inhibitions and taboos associated with conversations about one’s sexual health. “It is important that physicians ask basic questions about sexual health of their patients above 25 years of age so that triggers could be identified. It could help prevent CVDs.”