Scientists reveal eating watermelon could reverse erectile dysfunction and boost your sex drive
The study, published in the journal Current Research in Food Science, noted that all the benefits of the refreshing snack is due to the fact that it's full of antioxidants.
Study author Haitham Al-Madhagi, from Thamar University in Dhamar, claimed that the fruit works the same way as Viagra. In other words, watermelon relaxes blood vessels by boosting production of nitric oxide.
Researchers said in the study: 'Watermelon has played an important dietary and medicinal role throughout the history of mankind. However, the mechanism for its therapeutic actions on male reproduction remains unknown.
'The antioxidant properties of watermelon have been shown to improve sperm quality, male sexual dysfunction, and to improve testicle function.'
It comes after scientists suggested that vitamin D deficiency can fuel erectile dysfunction and even make libido-boosting drugs less effective.
Spanish scientists found that those with diagnosed vitamin D deficiencies had reduced function in their corpora cavernosa, the spongy tissue in the penis that is crucial for maintaining erections.
The new research, by specialists from the Complutense University of Madrid, involved taking samples of corpora cavernosa tissue from 12 human donors with vitamin D deficiency.
The researchers then stimulated the tissue using an electrical probe to test the function of the nerves. They found that donors with the lowest blood levels of vitamin D had the weakest responses to electric stimulation.
In a separate experiment, the same researchers fed rats a diet free from vitamin D, and found these animals were less responsive to the erectile dysfunction Viagra, compared to rats not on the diet.
'Our results suggest that vitamin D deficiency may contribute to the lack of response to this first-line treatment of erectile dysfunction', said Dr Miguel Olivencia, a researcher at Complutense University and co-author of the study.
He added: 'The findings raise the possibility that restoring vitamin D in patients with vitamin D deficiency and erectile dysfunction would improve sexual performance.'
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