Does drinking water help you sexually?

In the age of wellness “hacks,” increased water intake is often seen as a simple cure-all for everything from weight loss to healthy skin, but does drinking water help you sexually? If you’re struggling with erectile dysfunction (ED) or low libido, you might be looking for DIY quick fixes and wondering if chugging some extra H2O will make a difference… but will it?

Keep reading to learn more.

Yes, drinking water can help you sexually, at least indirectly, since it supports your overall health. Proper hydration is essential for helping your body function optimally —and this includes your sexual functioning.

Drinking water doesn’t just quench your thirst. It supports all of your organs and processes involved in arousal and sexual performance, including your brain function, cardiovascular function, blood flow, and energy levels. 

With all that said, water is not a silver bullet for sexual dysfunction, but staying hydrated certainly can’t hurt, and is an essential piece of the puzzle when it comes to overall wellbeing, sexual or otherwise.

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Drinking water helps you sexually by keeping your body hydrated and supporting bodily functions involved in sexual functioning. It’s not as simple as just drinking a glass of water and getting hard immediately, though. Here’s how drinking enough water over time can help. 

Improved blood flow

Staying hydrated is important for your vascular health. When you’re dehydrated, you may experience reduced blood volume and decreased blood flow. 

Good blood flow is key to strong erections. An erection occurs when blood rushes to the penis, and the spongy tissue of the penis fills up with blood. So, if blood volume and blood flow aren’t optimal, this can make erections harder to get or maintain. Staying hydrated can help combat this.  

Hormone regulation

Hydration is essential for regulating your hormones. When you’re dehydrated, your body can have a harder time regulating hormones, including cortisol and testosterone. 

Additionally, dehydration causes your body to release angiotensin II. This is a hormone that helps maintain blood pressure by promoting vasoconstriction (narrowing of the blood vessels). While this response can help stabilize blood pressure in the short term if your body is low on fluids, the resulting vasoconstriction can make it more difficult to get an erection.

Blood pressure improvements

Dehydration can cause vasoconstriction, meaning your blood vessels narrow. This can raise blood pressure and increase systemic vascular resistance, which essentially means your heart has to work harder to pump blood through the body. 

High blood pressure (especially when it’s chronic) is not just a risk factor for heart disease, but it’s also a known contributing factor to erectile dysfunction. Better heart health can help support healthier sexual function, too, and staying well hydrated is one essential step in taking better care of your heart. 

Improved energy levels

When you’re dehydrated, your body doesn’t have enough fluids to work properly, and you might feel weak and fatigued — not exactly ideal for sex. 

Once you’re properly hydrated, you may feel more energized, which can make it easier to get in the mood. Plus, more energy = more stamina for sex. 

Yes, drinking water can help with ED if you’re dealing with temporary, dehydration-induced erectile dysfunction. A lot goes into getting an erection. It involves multiple body systems, including your vascular, neurologic, and hormonal systems. Dehydration takes a toll on your body and impacts all of these systems, making it harder to get or maintain an erection. 

But drinking more water will only help if you’re actually dehydrated in the first place.

If your ED has been a long-term issue and is related to other causes (like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, medication side effects, or depression), it’s unlikely that drinking water alone will help. 

First, let's cover the general symptoms of dehydration. These include:

• Feeling thirsty

• Dry mouth

• Feeling weak

• Fatigue

• Urinating less

• Darker colored urine

• Dizziness

• Heart palpitations

• Irritability

• In more severe cases, confusion 

So, if you’re experiencing any of these symptoms alongside low libido and erectile dysfunction, it’s possible that you’re experiencing at least some component of dehydration-induced ED.  

To combat this, make sure you’re drinking enough water every day (more on that next), and don’t hesitate to reach out to a healthcare professional if you’re worried about these symptoms. 

The general recommendation is an average of 13 cups of fluids a day for men and nine cups a day for women. This doesn’t mean you need to actually drink this many cups of water; you also get fluids from the foods you eat, and of course, other healthy drinks.

Everyone’s different, and various factors impact how much water someone needs to drink, including:

• Your age

• Your activity level

• Whether you live in a hot climate

• If you’re sick

• If you have diabetes, chronic kidney disease, or other health conditions

For the best advice regarding your optimal fluid intake, speak with your healthcare provider. 

Hydration is essential for overall sexual health and can help with dehydration-induced erectile dysfunction. However, if your ED is persisting long-term and drinking more water isn’t helping, there are many other proven strategies to help ED, including the following. 

Prescription medications

PDE5 inhibitors (phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitors) are prescription oral medications approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treating ED. They work, in part, by increasing blood flow to your penis, which helps you get and keep an erection when you’re aroused. PDE5 inhibitors include:

• Cialis (tadalafil)

• Viagra (sildenafil) 

• Avanafil (Stendra)

• Vardenafil

Penile injections

Penile injections (yes, injections directly into the shaft of the penis) are another way to increase blood flow to the penis, resulting in an erection. This is another prescription-only option that a healthcare provider may prescribe if PDE5 inhibitors aren’t the right fit for you. 

Unlike PDE5 inhibitors, these injections work even if you’re not aroused, so they’re a good option if you struggle with low libido, as well. 

Therapy and/or sex therapy

Sometimes ED is psychogenic, meaning it’s caused by something psychological rather than physical. For example, stress can contribute to ED, and so can mental health conditions like anxiety and depression. Talking to a therapist to help manage stress or symptoms of mental health conditions can often improve ED.

Sex therapy is also a great option for those who struggle with sexual performance anxiety or sexual trauma (both of which can contribute to ED). 

Lifestyle changes

Making healthy lifestyle changes can improve your overall health and, in turn, erectile function. Examples include:

• Exercising regularly: Getting regular exercise, especially aerobic (cardio) exercise, is shown to improve erectile function. Plus, if obesity is a contributing factor to your ED, losing weight by burning more calories than you consume can improve overall health and ED. 

• Eating healthy: Not only does a healthy diet play a part in maintaining a healthy weight, but it also results in other health benefits. Research suggests a link between eating a heart-healthy Mediterranean diet and decreased risk of ED. 

• Quitting smoking: Cigarette smoking is a known ED risk factor, since it damages blood vessels and, in turn, blood flow. Quitting smoking can help restore normal erectile function.

• Cutting back on alcohol: Excessive drinking is another cause of ED. Research shows that after three months of abstinence from alcohol, there’s a significant improvement in erectile function. 

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Drinking water and staying hydrated can improve your overall health and wellness, which can indirectly contribute to better sexual functioning.

• If you’re experiencing temporary dehydration-induced erectile dysfunction, drinking enough water may help improve your erectile function.

• If your ED has been occurring for a long time or if hydration isn’t helping, it’s likely your ED has another physical or mental cause. Seek help from a healthcare provider to determine the cause and develop a treatment plan.

• There are many proven treatments for ED, including prescription medications like PDE5 inhibitors, injections, and therapy. Lifestyle changes like exercising regularly and eating a heart-healthy diet can also make an impact.