For The Guys(is This Common?)

[spyderbabe]

Hi, i'm new to all this. My boyfriend has celiac. Weve been dating about 3 months.

I found out he had been lying to me about his impotence. He had been sneaking

viagra when we were first together and i had no idea he had a problem.

He says the celiac causes this. Is this true?

I'm really trying to be understanding but it upsets me that he wouldnt be honest with

me in the beginning. He has viagra now but won't take it. I don't want to pressure him,

but he doesnt want to talk about it either. i would appreciate any input from wives, girlfriends

also dealing with this.

[GC1]

OK, I'll bite, and be as discreet as possible. I don't know about being common, but it happened to me as well. I'm 48, and have been burdened for years in this way, along with all the other health conditions. After going gluten-free, I didn't expect much... afterall Celiac had been affecting my health since childhood and I'd foolishly associated these problems with other conditions (this _is_ very common!) But, after about 3 months (and to my surprise), all is well in that regard... the only problem now belongs to the better half.

:-)

GC

[Nantzie]

Men can get hormone deficiencies just as women do. Please look into the possibility of Testosterone Deficiency.

My husband has testosterone deficiency and we didn't know what was wrong for years. He had no sex drive, he was tired all the time, had a hard time concentrating. Another sign that he has is very little chest, arm and leg hair, and his facial hair is very soft (not hard and wiry like most men). Other than that, he's completely normal, and 6'2".

Once we found out about it, all he had to do was go to the doctor to get a blood test. The blood test showed that, on a scale of 1-10, he was at about a 2. The doctor was shocked that we had two kids with no problems conceiving because most men who have such marked testosterone deficiency have difficulty reproducing. The doctor prescribed him testosterone replacement patches.

We found out from his mom that when my husband was little he ate a whole month's worth of birth control pills. She took him to the doctor, but he told my MIL not to worry about it. It's very likely that that is what caused his hormones to become imbalanced.

Now, we have a normal sex life, and he's a lot happier in a lot of ways. He has always been athletic, but now he notices a big difference in his sports endurance. Even his concentration and memory have improved.

It's important with this type of thing to get prescriptions, and don't try to fix this with stuff from the health food store. The non-prescription male enhancment supplements can cause some really serious problems.

Hope this helps.

Nancy

[spyderbabe]

he says the doctor told him he had a prostate of a 65 year old and he's only 40.

He says his prostate is swollen. But the doctor told him the more sex the better.

He says the celiac cause the swollen prostate, is this true?

[ianm]

Is your boyfriend completely gluten free? Are there other health problems that he is having. Celiac caused me to become obese and all of the other health problems that go along with being overweight. The brain fog and fatigue certainly caused problems for me. I am 38 and have not had any more difficultties since I went gluten-free and lost the weight. More sex is good for prostate health and overall health in general.

[tarnalberry]

he says the doctor told him he had a prostate of a 65 year old and he's only 40.

He says his prostate is swollen. But the doctor told him the more sex the better.

He says the celiac cause the swollen prostate, is this true?

My understanding is that what you describe there - prostate problems - cause cause impotency itself. the thing is, he needs to deal with this. I know a lot of men don't want to discuss sex problems, but it's not really optional. that said, whom he most needs to talk with (right now) is his doctor. I have not seen any medical research that suggestions celiac disease can cause prostate problems, but I can't say it doesn't either. Inflammation doesn't know specific boundaries, and it's not that hard to believe that it would be an issue in this case. At the same time, as long as he's strictly gluten free, this should calm down within a few months (four to six, I would expect, on average).

That being said, it's true that sex is good for prostate health. Well...

** warning, I don't use euphamisms for sex - don't keep reading if you're offended by these sorts of things **

What's good for the prostate about sex is orgasm. The prostate produces some of the fluid that goes into semen, and producing and getting rid of that fluid "washes out" the prostate. So, intercourse isn't necessary to get the prostate benefits of orgasm. Oral sex and masturbation (solitary or mutual) doesn't need anything close to a full erection to achieve orgasm. Penetrative sex doesn't either, but there may be psychological difficulties with that particular aspect. Too many (in my oh-so-humble) opinion think that sex means intercourse. In a situation like this, that makes it doubly hard to deal with.

If he continues to have problems... there's not going to be a choice but to talk.

[ianm]

An empty prostate is a happy prostate. Oh wait can I say that?

[spyderbabe]

LOL, good one!

[Jenn2005]

My husbands doctor checked his testosterone levels in a routine check and they came back kind of on the low normal side. He rechecked them a week later and they were ok, but he has been monitoring them to see if that was just a one time fluke. He also did a PSA test to check for levels that are put off if you have prostate cancer and he did a prostate exam because he said these should always be done before considering going on the hormone replacement therapy due to the increased risk of prostate cancer (like the increased risk for breast cancer in women taking hormones). Just thought I'd mention these test for anyone considering or needing hormone replacement.

Jennifer

[SurreyGirl]

....He says the celiac cause the swollen prostate, is this true?

Hi spyder, consider this: Celiac causes malabsorption of many nutrients. It's well known that various organs would enlarge over time if they experience prolonged deficiencies of nutrients as they try to enlarge their absorptive mass/area to grab more of what they need from the blood (eg thyroid enlarges when iodine is low, red blood cells when B12 and/or iron are low).

If I were you, I would look into what healthy prostate needs (could well be zinc?) and address that - as well as any other nutrients and vitamins, especially fat-soluble.

[GC1]

Celiac does indeed cause degeneration and cancer of all the body, especially the digestive/elimination organs. My father died several years ago, and the 'doctors' and my family all said or believe it was from lung cancer "spreading" to his intestines... thing is; his lung cancer was caught early, removed/treated, and had been inactive for years (and he no longer smoked). I didn't know of Celiac then, nor did he... he also had stomach problems, etc, from early life, and was mostly Irish--the people who suffer among the most from Celiac.

From my chilhood; there was stomach problems, abdominal pain, gas, foul stool, pain in my testicals, back pain, rectal pain, etc... progressing to a point several years ago, that pulling up underwear/pants caused considerable pain in my testicals. That's gone now, gluten-free for just 6 months... and the rest is 85-90% gone as well (and I'm almost 50).

GC