Outer space is not an environs that is very welcoming to us Earthlings . Microgravity wreaks havoc with our os , muscles , andblood availabilityand distribution , and increase radiation is seen as a unremitting and present danger . append to heart and sight problems , there could be something else that might touch on some of the astronaut who go to space : erectile dysfunction .
Studies of the intimate health of cosmonaut are actually quite special , and what it is jazz is normally anecdotic and based on word of sassing . But sexual health is an crucial part of ecumenical wellness , despite the ecumenical uneasiness of space agencies to look into it .
Researchers at Florida State University simulated the effects of microgravity on a group of 43 male rats . This was done by snarf their hind leg at a 30 - arcdegree slant for four hebdomad . A controller group of an adequate turn of informer was kept on the ground . Hindlimb unloading is not a double-dyed simulation of microgravity , but provides crucial insight .
The blabber in both groups were then disunite into three submarine - groups and exposed togalactic cosmic rays(GCR ) in the GCR simulator at the NASA Space Radiation Laboratory . GCRs are protons and ions moving at high speed . The dirty dog were exposed to either high degree , low levels , or no radiation .
A year later , the team looked at signs of erectile dysfunction in the rat . They measured more oxidative stress and a narrowing of the ancestry vessels ( endothelial dysfunction ) in the tissues around the penis in the animals that had radiation exposure compared to those that did n’t – even at low doses . Microgravity also increased these two danger factors , but to a less extent .
Despite the limitations of the study , it is significant that this is investigated in human race . The prospicient - full term effect is certainly concerning , but the team believe that this could be alleviated by takingantioxidants , although this has not been tested yet .
“ [ T]his work indicates that intimate health should be nearly monitor in astronauts upon their return to Earth , ” corresponding author Dr Justin D. La Favor said in astatement . “ While the negatively charged impact of astronomic cosmic radiation were long - lasting , usable improvements induced by sharply targeting the redox and nitric oxide pathways in the tissues suggest that the cavernous disfunction may be treatable . ”
The study is published inThe FASEB Journal .
