Urology Does Cycling Men really Impotent?

New study clears up myths about cycling

Cycling enjoys great popularity in Germany. But media rumors have been circulating for quite some time that frequent cycling can restrict a man's sexual function. In a recent study, male cyclists were examined for urinary and sexual function in a large multinational sample in order to deal with the rumors. Men who like cycling a lot and can breathe easy. Because the study shows that cycling is not an increased risk of sexual dysfunction.

Numerous previous reports have led to the belief that cycling can trigger microtrauma due to continued pressure on the perineum, which could have detrimental effects on sexual or urinary health. This has invalidated a new study by the University of California. The study is considered the largest of its kind so far. 2,774 cyclists, 539 swimmers and 789 runners from different countries were involved in the study. The research also considered bike intensity, bicycle and saddle configuration, and even road conditions. The results were published in the journal "The Journal of Urology".

New study encourages cyclists. The results indicate that cyclists do not need to fear sexual dysfunction. (Image: ARochau / fotolia.com)

Different groups of intensity

The cyclists were divided into two groups. One group consisted of people who regularly cycled at low intensity. The other group included people who cycled on average over 40 kilometers a day at high intensity. A control group consisted of swimmers and runners. Comparing the different groups, the researchers have gained some interesting insights. Sexual and urinary health was comparable among all participants, although some cyclists had a higher rate of urethral narrowing.

Low handlebar height can cause genital deafness

With regard to the bicycle and road surface, the researchers found that they had no negative impact on cyclists. However, it could come to a deafness in the genital area, if the handlebar height is lower than the saddle height. However, if athletes ride more than 20 percent of their time cycling, the likelihood of genital deafness is significantly reduced.

Health benefits outweigh

The survey's results suggest that cyclists have no worse sexual function than swimmers or runners. In terms of urinary tract health as well, researchers found only increased susceptibility to urethral stricture. Otherwise, there were no health concerns.

"We believe that the results will be encouraging for cyclists," reports study leader Benjamin Breyer of the Department of Urology at the University of California in a press release on the current study.

Cycling offers tremendous cardiovascular benefits and low impact on the joints. "We believe that the health benefits of cycling will far exceed health risks," Breyer said. Future studies will need to look more closely at those who reported deafness to see if this could be a predictor of future problems. (Fp)