More than 30 people in every 10,000 died at one unit in 2017, higher than the Welsh average.

Sleep disorders expert

Dr Alison Bentley is a general practitioner who has consulted in sleep medicine and sleep disorders, in both adults and children of all ages, for almost 30 years. She also researches and publishes on a number of sleep-related topics both in formal research journals and lay publications including as editor of Sleep Matters, an educational newsletter on sleep disorders for doctors.

A BBC investigation reveals parts of the Underground network exceed noise safety levels.

Megan Malone says it stopped her doing things she loved.

The scenario: You’re having a rollicking night out with a date, and you’re drunk on the possibility of heading back home with her.

You’re also literally drunk. You feel good and things are going great – that is, until you get back to your place, fumble with your belt buckle and find, after hours of trying, that you just cannot get erect.

Read more: How to maintain your erection

That’s because you have whiskey dick, or the inability to get erect after a night of heavy drinking.

Whiskey dick is a real thing: though booze may make you feel like you’re the king of the sex gods, that feeling belies what’s actually going on in your body.

Alcohol is a depressant, and it will decrease the blood flow to the penis, says Dr Jamin Brahmbhatt, a urologist at Orlando Health.

Plus, if your body is trying to get rid of all the booze in your system, it will be focusing on that, not on getting hard.

But because two of life’s greatest pleasures are cocktails and orgasms, there’s no need to start a personal prohibition movement. The key is to enjoy the two together responsibly.

“What I always tell guys is that having a drink with someone may make it easier for you when it comes to your game,” says Dr Brahmbatt, “but what they don’t realise is that that drink will make it a little more difficult to end your game in the bedroom.”

Here’s what you need to know about whiskey dick – and how to prevent it.

Read more: The vitamin you need so your penis can perform

1. Alcohol isn’t always the enemy

Chances are, you’ve had wild, tipsy sex before without whiskey dick rearing its angry, flaccid head. That’s because in moderate amounts, alcohol can be helpful.

“It acts as a muscle relaxer, which disinhibits [you],” says Dr Jesse N Mills, a urologist at the Men’s Clinic at UCLA. “Some men find they perform better with a little bit of alcohol in their system,” since they let go of their inhibitions.

In the event that you did actually get hard despite drinking heavily, it doesn’t mean you’re home free: after drinking heavily, you might find that if you have an orgasm, it’s significantly less pleasurable than usual, says Dr Brahmbhatt.

Read more: What to do if your orgasms seem less intense

2. Just because it’s called ‘whiskey dick’ doesn’t mean whiskey is the only culprit

Whiskey isn’t the only alcoholic beverage to give you erectile dysfunction – and no, that doesn’t mean you have a free pass to imbibe fruity rum beverages.

The more alcohol you have in your body, the more issues you may have with your sexual performance, and certain beverages contain higher percentages of alcohol by volume, which means you can drink more alcohol without getting as intoxicated.

Think about it this way: a single beer has a lower ABV than straight-up whiskey (or a cocktail with multiple shots in it), so imbibing something like a beer or glass of wine is probably a safer bet, Dr Eric Giesler of Austin Urology, says.

Read more: 8 ways to protect your erection

3. There’s no magic number for how many shots you should have

It would be convenient if a fairy dickmother flew from the sky and told you this would be the drink that renders you flaccid, but when it comes to figuring out your limit, you’re on your own. There’s no hard and fast rule as to how much will actually affect you, either; Dr Mills notes that some men may be able to drink a lot and get erections, as everybody’s threshold is different.

That said, there are some numbers to consider. Moderate drinking, Dr Mills says, counts as two drinks a night for a male. Additionally, chugging more than five drinks in two hours counts as binge drinking, according to the CDC.

While, again, there’s no one-size-fits-all rule for what will affect your penis, they are good numbers to consider if you’re being conscious about overdoing. That’s important, because…

4. Years of drinking can hurt you in the long run

Years of binge-drinking might turn that episode of whiskey dick into a more frequent occurrence.

“Chronic alcoholism not only can permanently impact erections, it can change your hormonal [balance],” says Dr Giesler. In fact, a 2007 study revealed that “chronic and persistent alcohol use” led to sexual dysfunction in men, including erectile dysfunction, low sexual desire, and premature ejaculation.

A study confirmed that long-term alcohol use can impact male hormones, and another substantiated that it can affect fertility and semen quality.

The more you drink, the lower your testosterone will be and the higher your oestrogen levels will be, Dr Mills explains. That can potentially lead to a slew of unfortunate side effects, like a decreased sex drive.

Read more: How erectile dysfunction led to the best sex of this man’s life

5. Don’t panic if it happens just once

If it’s a “whoops, I accidentally got drunk”-type situation, whiskey dick is probably not indicative of a major problem. (It’s also a great opportunity to hone your oral sex skills.)

If it starts to happen more regularly, however, it’s worth talking to your partner. “If a guy has a stable relationship, [he] should have an open dialogue [like], my erections aren’t what they used to be,” Dr Mills suggests.

That said, if you have a hard time getting erect even without booze – or if even the tiniest bit of alcohol causes a problem – you should consider consulting a doctor.

A big red flag that you may have ED? An absence of morning erections, according to Dr Giesler.

Read more: If you’re worried about erectile dysfunction drink this

It might also mean there are other issues at play here. Your penis actually can tell you quite a bit about your health, and Dr Giesler cautions that erectile issues might be warning signs for potential vascular problems.

“The penis is the window into one’s heart,” he says. That poeticism is meant to be taken both literally and figuratively: if there’s any penile issues going on, it’s worth taking a look at your heart health, too.

Ultimately, booze can be “a reward for a day well spent,” says Dr Mills, but “anything over [two drinks a night regularly] should be called into question, and [men] may have other issues that call them to look to alcohol as a way to relieve stress.”

But, “Sex is a great way to release stress, and as long as everybody’s consenting, it’s probably the best way to relieve stress there is.”

This article was originally published on www.menshealth.com

Image credit: iStock  

Mallory Schlossberg

The best news: Sleeping longer may be the key to reaching your health and weight-loss goals.

According to a new study from researchers at King’s College London, people who snooze for an extra hour or so could end up consuming fewer sugars and carbohydrates.

With 21 participants involved, the study was admittedly small; it was also a pilot, meaning more studies would be required to support its findings.

Researchers recruited 42 people: half received a sleep consultation intended to up their time in bed by as many as 1.5 hours each night, while the other half proceeded with their bedtime habits as usual.

Each person got an individualised set of instructions – no caffeine before bed; set a pre-sleep routine that promotes relaxation; don’t go to bed too full or too hungry – and a suggested time to hit the hay.

Read more: Will you really get fat if you sleep after eating?

Over the next week, participants wore motion sensors to bed and kept diaries detailing their sleep patterns and daily diets.

The study found that 86% of those in the sleep-consultation group ended up spending more time in bed, and half of them slept longer: between 52 and 90 minutes longer, to be exact.

That extra sleep may have been less restful, which researchers chalk up to it being a new habit. Among the control group, researchers saw no change.

Notably, the long sleepers also reduced their sugar intake – think: the simple sugars found in fruit juice, for example – by 10g, along with their carbohydrate intake. 

As principal investigator Wendy Hall, of Kings College’s Department of Nutritional Sciences put it, “a simple change in lifestyle may really help people to consumer healthier diets.”

Read more: 7 easy hacks for your best sleep ever

According to the researchers, more than a third of UK adults don’t get enough sleep. In the United States, that number looks much the same: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that one in three adults is not getting the suggested seven-hour nightly minimum. 

Previous research supports the theory that people who sleep for shorter stretches tend to consume more kilojoules than long sleepers, and not getting enough sleep has also been linked to diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

Consider this your perfect excuse to pencil in another hour of shut-eye.

^{This article was originally published on wwww.womenshealthmag.com}

^{Image credit: iStock}

Claire Lampen