Prof Dr Deepak K Jumani, Senior Sexual Health Physician & Counsellor, answers today’s questions
Q: Dr Deepak Jumani, I am 61 years old. I was told by a friend of mine that WaterMelon is the best fruit for sexual health in older age. What is your advice ?
A: It is true. We know that in Men erection is nothing else but flow of blood in the penile spongy columns. This happens only when the spongy columns of the penis are relaxed. The relaxations of the spongy columns is initiated by a chemical messenger called Nitric Oxide
Nitric Oxide reduces as we age or when we have metabolic diseases like Diabetes, Hypertension, Obesity or even due to stress. At 60 years of our life we have only 15 % of Nitric oxide present in our body which is not sufficient for getting optimum or desired erections. Thus it needs to be supplemented. During normal course an amino acid L Arginine which is produced by the inner lining of our blood vessels produces Nitric Oxide, but when the inner lining of the blood vessels are changed or damaged due to metabolic diseases the production of L Arginine is reduced considerably and leads to reduce Nitric Oxide and men don’t get optimum erections sufficient for their sexual needs.
Water Melon contains good quantities of natural Citrulline which is also an amino acid.
Citrulline is converted into L Arginine in our body. Hence Citrulline when combined with L Arginine doubles the production of Nitric Oxide which dilates the spongy columns of the penile tissues and allows the blood to flow in the penis.
So water melon which is a rich source of Citrulline can be very good for men having erectile dysfunction. It is also helpful in patients who have heart disease
