This podcast is for you, the Modern Man. I'm Dr Anne Truong,

your host. I'm an intimate health medical doctor and best

selling author of the book, Erectile Dysfunction Fix. I'll

do a deep dive into sexual health and performance and how

it affects men of all ages and backgrounds. So let's get

started, and be sure to visit my website at

sexualhealthformenpodcast.com for more information and

resources from the show. See you on the inside.

Hello there, Modern Man. I'm Dr Anne Truong. I've treated over

7000 men with ED. In today's episode, we're going to answer

the question, "Can the high blood pressure medicine called

amlodipine cause ED? I get this questions a lot, and I want to

review, what is high blood pressure and what medicine that

you take for high blood pressure that contribute to ED.

Now, in August of 2025, American College of Cardiology, as well

as American Heart Association, came out with new guidelines

that will define what high blood pressure is. So normal blood

pressure is considered 120 over 80. It used to be higher, but

now it's lowering down to 120 over 80. And if the top number,

which is systolic number, is higher than 120 to 129 that

means that you are at risk for high blood pressure. You are an

early stage of high blood pressure. That's it, even if the

bottom number is 80 or lower. Now, if your blood pressure the

top number is above 129 to 139 then you have high blood

pressure. Or if your blood pressure is over 80, the bottom

number, then you have stage one, high blood pressure. Now stage

two high blood pressure, which is one of the more concerning,

is anything over 140 systolic number, and then the bottom

number is over 90. So the numbers are lower now, but

they're finding that early intervention of high blood

pressure can really help with longevity and death. And so it's

more important, if you have high blood pressure, with high

cholesterol and also with diabetes, you really need to

manage the blood pressure.

Now one medication tend to cause ED, and a lot of people ask

about amlodipine. Now amlodipine, is a calcium channel

blocker, so it lower blood pressure by releasing box

calcium. So the evidence is mixed, and the risk appears to

be low that it can contribute to ED. It's mixed because there was

some study that showed that men taking amlodipine have a higher

occurrence of sexual dysfunction, and then there's

another study that shows that it does not. So it is a little

mixed, but amlodipine, taken for long term, does reduce

testosterone level as well. And in a major clinical trial, which

is TOMHS, found amlodipine group had 26% decrease in sexual

activity through two years. So higher than most other

treatment. The bottom line is the comprehensive research shows

that amlodipine does not significantly increase the risk

of ED compared to other antihypertensive medication. So

that's good news. It's very well tolerated. You can usually take

it with Viagra or Cialis. You shouldn't take both of it when

you're taking blood pressure medicine, but it does reduce

testosterone level with long term use. So that is important

Then the other question is, what medication tend to contribute

to know.

more to ED? The number one is thiazide diuretic. Medication

that thiazide class that tend to have you go to the bathroom to

lower your blood pressure, and they usually end with the word

thiazide in there. The second class is called beta blocker,

which lower your heart rate, but then, by lowering the heart

rate, also affect your erection. So how does the diuretic affect

your erection? So they usually go by the name of

hydrochlorothiazide or chlorthalidone. They are the

worst offenders for ED, research shows. Because in the landmark

study called the TOMHS, found that men on chlorthalidone has

26% decrease in sexual activity over two years, and men taking

thiazide are twice as likely to have ED compared to those of

other blood pressure medicine. And they're more than double the

incidence of non compliance because of the side effect. Now

I'm not saying you stop the medication. Please do not stop

the medication. If you're on thiazide, you're on beta

blocker, don't stop your blood pressure medicine. Always

discuss with your doctor first. That is the most important

thing, because if you stop your blood pressure medicine, you're

going to start having a hypertensive episode. You're

going to start having a heart attack. You're going to may even

have a stroke. So do not do that without discussing with your

doctor All right. Now, thiazide medication can also cause lower

testosterone level because it affects the absorption of zinc,

and it also decrease blood volume because you're urinating

it all out, so therefore it decreases blood flow to the

penis, and it also lower testosterone. Now the second

offender the beta blockers, they're usually the one that end

with -lol, like Metoprolol, Atenolol and Propranolol are the

one that cause a higher rate of ED. Atenolol cause a little bit

lower. Now, there's no medication called Nebivolol

stands out as the exception and does not increase ED risk. Now,

the beta blocker reduce blood flow by decreasing the heart

rate and how the heart pump out the blood. But by doing that,

the beta blocker actually interfere with the nerve signals

needed for erection, and it can also reduce testosterone levels

in some cases as well. And the class, like the calcium channel

blockers, are less likely to cause ED. And another class of

blood pressure medicines are called the ACE inhibitors, like

lisinopril or enalapril or Angiotensin Receptor Blocker, or

called ARB, like valsartan or losartan, have neutral effect on

sexual function. So please talk with your doctor first before

you do anything, and maybe your doctor can switch you over to

something like ACE inhibitors or an ARB if you're on the thiazide

diuretic and the beta blocker. Okay, my husband's on Atenolol

at this point. So far, it hasn't affected his function yet. He

also has heart issue. That's why he is on the heart medication.

To summarize, the highest blood pressure medicine that

contribute to ED are the thiazide diuretic, and then

followed by beta blockers, less involved on the calcium channel

blockers, the ACE inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers.

Please talk with your doctor about your blood pressure

medicine if you feel that it's affecting your erection, and

maybe consider a conversation with your doctor about switching

to medication that affect erectile function the least. So,

having said that, just know the new guidelines about the new

high blood pressure. If you're over 120, over 80, then you have

high blood pressure. So the guidelines are now lower.

So how do you really treat high blood pressure? Exercise. Yes,

in my last episode, I talked about how exercise alone is the

one intervention that you can do to treat ED. But if you

exercise, it will also lower your blood pressure as well. So

you don't even have to take the blood pressure medicine. If you

exercise, you lose weight, so you don't need to take the blood

pressure medicine. You may even have reduce your blood sugars.

You may not even need to take your diabetic medication as

well. Okay? So exercise is key, followed by eating a

Mediterranean diet, which is recommended by the American

Heart Association for heart health as well as diabetes

prevention as well.

So having said that, I hope you find this episode useful, and

look at your medication. And just know that you do not have

to suffer with ED in silence. You do not have to suffer with

ED on your own. And check out our Modern Man Crib here, which

is the URL ednomore.com to check out the penis pump, which is a

device that you can use to treat ED, along with exercise and

along with Mediterranean diet. Check out the link to the

Mediterranean diet here. I want to provide you with all the

information and the tools that you need to beat ED. Most people

do not know what to do. I am here as a resource, and my

mission is to create a sexual revolution, to make sexual

health information accessible and to simplify a complex issue

to something that you can do at home to start treating your ED

at this point. ED is treatable and it is reversible. Just know

that you can do that. So having said that, check out the Modern

Man Crib at ednomore.com and just know you do not have to

suffer in silence, Modern Man. So I will see you next episode,

and make sure you press that subscribe button and

notification button to be alert when our next episode will come

out. I'll see you in the next episode.

Okay, Modern Man, you are not alone and you don't have to

suffer anymore. ED can feel isolating, frustrating, and even

defeating. The endless guessing, the quiet shame, the weight of

not feeling like yourself is exhausting. But here's the

truth, you are not broken. You are not alone. You don't have to

figure this out alone anymore. The Get Wood Now Boost Program

is your step by step, path to sexual confidence and

restoration. No more suffering in silence, no more trial and

error, just real solution, real result and the confidence you

deserve. It's time to take back your power on your term. Let's

get this journey started together. Check out the course

at getwoodnow.com. I'll see you there.

Thanks for listening to the Sexual Health for Men Podcast.

If you love this episode, then please take a screenshot on your

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what's great for you and I would love to give you the most

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get the book, The Five Common Costly Mistakes Men Make When

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can have sexual vitality for life. I appreciate you until

next time.