If you’ve experienced erectile dysfunction, you’ve probably done at least a little homework on the subject.   However, there are a few pieces of information you may not have stumbled across.  Consider these seven things you may not have known about impotence. 
These seven facts run the gamut from important to trivial, but they’re all interesting.   

1) Erections aren’t simple. 
There are at least five different physiological processes involved in getting an erection.   
First, nerve impulses must originate in the brain.  Second, those impulses need to travel unimpeded down the spinal cord.  Third, nerve impulses need to connect from the spinal cord to the penis.  Fourth, veins and arteries must supply the penis with adequate blood flow.  Finally, the muscular and vascular structures in the penis must be capable of producing an erection.   
Problems with any one of those processes can spell the difference between a happy sex life and erectile dysfunction. 

2) Women have received the blame. 
Centuries ago, Europeans who didn’t yet understand the physiological and psychological causes of impotence pinned the blame for erectile dysfunction on witches.   
When witch hunting began to wane, the trend of blaming women for being too standoffish with respect to sex took hold. Of course, folks partnered that notion by claiming that eager women could cause impotence, too.   
Even now that we understand the real nature of erections and impotence, you’ll still hear an occasional claim that the problem originates from the behavior or appearance of the fairer sex.  These notions are silly, but they linger. 

3) If blaming women doesn’t work, you can always critique society. 
We know that our environments can have an impact on our ability to get and maintain erections.  High-stress situations, for instance, can encourage erectile dysfunction – probably because they interfere with developing and transmitting the proper nerve impulses. 
Those who take a less scientific view of erections, however, have been happy to blame the world (instead of the body) for erectile dysfunction. 
In Victorian times, many were convinced that an inability to perform was the direct result of those loud, jarring trains and other mechanical marvels.  Steam engines, apparently, upset the natural balance of man’s virility. 
That may sound funny, but it doesn’t measure up to the popularly held opinion that a soft bed could cause erectile dysfunction.  That’s right; many claimed that anything short of an extra firm mattress would inspire impotence.   

4) In some places, erectile dysfunction is a deal-breaker. 
Erectile dysfunction is never a good thing for a marriage but in some parts of the world it can be an absolute deal-breaker.   
The Indian Divorce Act and The Hindu Marriage Act, for instance, allow for divorce in cases where the man suffers from impotence.   
Those of us who live in cultures where divorces are a bit easier to obtain might not think that seems particularly odd.  We can call it quits over anything from abuse to the purchase of a zebra-print rug in the world of no-fault divorces, after all.  However, the allowance for divorces based on impotence in more socially conservative lands reminds us of how serious erectile dysfunction can really be. 

5) The idea of impotence being a marriage killer isn’t new. 
The idea of ending a relationship in a divorce court because of impotence may be a relatively new phenomenon, but erectile dysfunction has long complicated the institution of marriage. 
In Medieval Europe, the church maintained that consummation was necessary to make a marriage valid.  If a new bride complained that her husband was unable to perform, the marriage might not be recognized. 
This policy actually led clergy members to hire prostitutes to “test” male responsiveness.  Believe it or not, a man could actually be compelled to fool around with a prostitute under a priest’s watchful eye to prove that he wasn’t suffering from erectile dysfunction. 
It’s hard to guess how many guys failed the test due to performance anxiety and/or the extremely high turn-off value of having a priest watching you cavort with a prostitute. 

6) Shooting up could give you an erection. 
Most of us are familiar with common cures for impotence.  We know about the prescription drugs on the market and have a good idea about the kind of lifestyle changes that can reduce the likelihood of erectile dysfunction.   
What many of us don’t know is that there are other, more extreme, methods of resolving erectile dysfunction. 
Prostaglandin E is a perfect example.  The substance is derived from seminal fluids can relieve erectile dysfunction.  If the stuff is so good, you might be wondering why no one’s taking out full-page ads in Golf Digest to sell it.  The answer lies in its delivery method. Direct injection. 
When the choice is between a little blue pill and a hypodermic needle to the penis, most guys will get a glass of water ready.

7) The most popular cure for erectile dysfunction was an accident. 
Viagra is one of the most popular prescription medications in history.  The blue diamond-shaped pill became a cultural icon within a decade of its release to the public.  Millions of men have put their erectile dysfunction problems behind them thanks to Viagra. 
Strangely enough, however, the folks responsible for this medical marvel weren’t looking for a way to encourage erections.  Scientists were trying to find a way to curb high blood pressure, but their new drug didn’t help in that department.  They then reasoned that the same formulation might work for angina.  It didn’t. 
Urban legend maintains that test subjects wouldn’t return the leftover medications when the clinical trials for these applications concluded.  They wanted to keep the pills because they’d noticed that their struggles with erectile dysfunction were over.   
Regardless of how researchers actually discovered Viagra’s happy side effect, it didn’t take long for Viagra to hit the market as an erectile dysfunction remedy.  It’s hard to keep a good idea down. 

Erectile dysfunction is still an important issue for many men.  Luckily, as these facts illustrate, erectile dysfunction isn’t the mystery it once was. 
We’ve come a long way with respect to our outlook regarding erectile dysfunction.  While we once blamed witches and soft mattresses for impotence, we now recognize the physiological process involved and how to use an accidental discovery to treat the disorder.

Information via Generic Viagra Pharmacy