Early Twentieth Century physical culture adherents, such as Charles Atlas, have been ridiculed for their stand against masturbation and pornography, but modern scientists have recently proven that their ideas actually anticipated the internet-porn boon of the modern era. Now, who is the real snake-oil salesman: Charles Atlas and his sneered at advertisements celebrating health and self-reliance or Viagra?
Heavy Internet porn use can lead to sexual afflictions like a drop in libido and premature ejaculation, according to a new Italian study. Padua University andrologist Carlo Foresta said Web porn “gives an imprinting devoid of real experiences and constructs a media-based and instinctive sexuality which takes no account of sensory experience or affection.”
The Padua survey assessed 500 young Italian males who said they were “well acquainted” with porn sites. “More than 50% spends at least 45 minutes or an hour sitting down in front of a PC twice a week watching porn films,“ said Foresta, who is president of the Italian Andrology and Sexual Medicine Society. “The major characteristic marking out these boys from ones who are less faithful to porn is a very strong auto-eroticism. They say they masturbate more than 30 times a month.”
In another survey of 28,000 users, Foresta found that many Italian males started an “excessive consumption” of porn sites as early as 14 and after daily use in their early to mid-20s became inured to “even the most violent” images. After developing their sexuality largely divorced from real-life relationships, Foresta said, the effects were gradual but devastating. “It starts with lower reactions to porn sites, then there is a general drop in libido and in the end it becomes impossible to get an erection.”
Article from “Psychology Today” on porn and erectile dysfunction:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cupids-poisoned-arrow/201107/porn-induced-sexual-dysfunction-growing-problem