80 pointsby brandonb5 hours ago10 comments
  • woliveirajr4 hours ago
    Sildenafil [0] was synthesized to treat high blood pressure. Erectile disfunction was a side effect that raised much more interest.

    Tadalafil [1] followed the path of Sildenafil about the phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) enzyme inhibitor.

    Help to live longer was the main objective since the beginning.

    [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sildenafil#History [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tadalafil#History

    • joezydeco4 hours ago
      I invested heavily in ICOS when they launched, they had Bill Gates money and were looking for ways to extend lifespans and solve inflammation.

      And all we got was another boner pill.

      • giantg23 hours ago
        Quanity and/or quality of sex shows correlation with longer lifespan. Maybe this is a roundabout way to get there...
        • joezydeco2 hours ago
          I do admire the fact that someone with a sense of humor at ICOS named the molecule TADA-lafil.
        • croemer3 hours ago
          Healthy people have more sex I guess?
      • fny4 hours ago
        Lifespans and inflammation are ironically harder problems.
        • mykowebhn3 hours ago
          Yes, but we don't want medical science to go soft by focusing on the easy problems.
          • miguelxpn2 hours ago
            But the whole point of those pills is that it didn't go soft anymore!
      • VyseofArcadia38 minutes ago
        Well they extended something at least.
      • fragmede4 hours ago
        During your extended lifetime, wouldn't you like to be able to have a boner, though?
        • NordStreamYacht3 hours ago
          Picasso managed it all without these meds.
          • fragmedean hour ago
            If you're saying it's easy, just be as good as Picasso, imma be real with you and say I'm not as good as Picasso.
  • Modified30193 hours ago
    FYI, before reaching for PDE5 inhibitors, please be aware that these seem to be ototoxic in some way. Common side effects are tinnitus and to a lesser extent hearing loss.

    When taking these, you should track if there are changes to your hearing and cease immediately if you notice something. The damage seems cumulative and based on dose, and may resolve quickly, over months, or not at all. You should also look into any other medicines you take to see if they are ototoxic.

    • Noaidi2 hours ago
      Fascinating! I have non-hearing damage induced Tinnitus and Bipolar Disorder and have been interesting in my PDE genetics for sometime as a link to my issues. It seems I have a natural inhibition of many PDE genes (PDE4B specifically, but I have some less studied changes in my PDE5A genetics which suggests an inhibition there as well).

      Sildenafil has been know to make BP people relapse in one case...

      https://academic.oup.com/ijnp/article/7/4/525/707950?login=f...

      And also investigated with some mood issues...

      https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00213-023-06361-3

      Zinc and Magnesium are cofactors for all the PDE genes and those have helped me, specifically the zinc.

      I have a feeling that low GTP is causing issues in ED since Cyclic GMP is made from GTP.

      • Modified30192 minutes ago
        That’s really interesting, I’d never hear of this before and wouldn’t have ever considered there to be a relationship. Thanks for bringing it up.
    • raspasov2 hours ago
      Study link and/or source?
  • miiiiiike3 hours ago
    Check your blood pressure regularly.

    Every time I read about a drug reducing dementia risk or increasing longevity I look it up to see if it lowers blood pressure. Never fails.

    Cialis does.

    • toasty2282 hours ago
      > Check your blood pressure regularly.

      Also avoid things that increase blood pressure and do more thing that improve your cardiovascular system. No amount of drug will make up for decades of abuse

    • exhilaration2 hours ago
      Very interesting. Since you've spent some time thinking about it, what's your hypothesis of the connection between high blood pressure and dementia? Any interesting links you could share?

      Maybe high blood pressure causing more pressure in the blood vessels of the brain, leading to a lifetime or decades of cumulative damage?

      • Qeman hour ago
        Microstrokes, that affect capillary vessels in the brain, don't cause short term acute loss of function, but have a cummulative impact over time?
  • jurip4 hours ago
    There was also just last week this study, which indicated a link to a higher risk of glaucoma: https://www.thepharmacist.co.uk/clinical/mens-health-clinica...
  • francisofascii4 hours ago
    Suprised this article doesn't mention nitric oxide or vasodilation? Is that how it works. It boosts nitric oxide signaling, acts as a vasodilator, and improves endothelial function. Beet juice, exercise, and eating nitrate-rich vegetables are some non-pharmaceutical ways to have a similar effect.
    • josh-wrale3 hours ago
      I thought nitrates were dangerous with regard to cancer. (?)
      • rkallos2 hours ago
        They can be when they are converted into nitrosamines, which appears to happen in the absence of plants. In the presence of phytonutrients, nitrates are converted to nitrites, which have several health benefits. In the absence of phytonutrients, nitrates can be converted into nitrosamines, which are a potent carcinogen.

        See: https://nutritionfacts.org/topics/nitrates/

        • josh-wrale2 hours ago
          Thanks. I'm looking at the articles in these replies. I see that maybe I should be taking Vitamin C and E to help balance things.
      • mikestew3 hours ago
        Not quite the same thing despite sounding very similar: https://www.mdanderson.org/cancerwise/what-to-know-about-foo...

        (And good gracious, HN, how about answering the person’s question instead of downvoting it?)

      • vonneumannstan2 hours ago
        Not sure what the parent comment is referring to exactly or if they are also conflating things but:

        Nitric Oxide = NO

        is not the same as common carcinogens in foods like

        Sodium Nitrite = NaNO2 or Potassium Nitrate = KNO3

    • asturaan hour ago
      >Beet juice, exercise, and eating nitrate-rich vegetables are some non-pharmaceutical ways to have a similar effect.

      Add deep breathing to that list too, believe it or not!

  • comrade12344 hours ago
    The weirdest thing I read about was weightlifters taking viagra to increase their blood flow when working out at the gym. Hopefully they shower at home.
    • throwawaytea3 hours ago
      Just an FYI, these drugs don't actually cause erections or sexual excitement. They simply make erections easier.

      Now, if someon is mildly excited by other bodybuilders but usually not enough to make it known, yes Cialis could cause 'movement' as George Costanza put it.

      But if you're not into what's in front of you, Cialis isn't going to change anything.

      • KellyCriterion2 hours ago
        ...then please throw a 20mg Taladafil and go to the Gym - good luck! :-D LOL
        • KellyCriterionan hour ago
          For all the downvoters:

          While Taladafil does not have a psychotropic effet (like Extacy, MDMA etc.), just the friction of your sport clothes may be a problem for your "experience", and visiting the sauna afterwards will be very likely somehow problematic if sauna guests match your preferences, to put it in a diplomatic way ;-)

    • GenerWork4 hours ago
      >weightlifters taking viagra to increase their blood flow when working out at the gym

      The weightlifting community moved off of Viagra years ago due to Cialis having a much longer half life.

    • mikestew3 hours ago
      It’s the hardcore version of beet juice powder, which athletes often take to…increase blood flow. As a user, I can’t say whether it helps with Viagra’s advertised purpose.
    • cghan hour ago
      Cialis is most common and it is typically low dose, like 5mg/day. Can still provoke unwanted “movement” in a gym environment however.
    • SoftTalker2 hours ago
      L-Citrulline supplements are also commonly used.

      https://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/l-citrulline#uses

    • 2 hours ago
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    • debo_3 hours ago
      If that's the weirdest thing you've heard of weightlifters doing, you are lucky.
      • WithinReason2 hours ago
        what would be an unlucky thing to hear?
        • cgh2 hours ago
          Taking Arimidex (breast cancer treatment drug) to control estrogen levels.
          • r0me1an hour ago
            cancer is a big word, arimidex is just an aromatase inhibitor that prevents androgens from turning into estrogen, that also helps prevent spread of some types of cancer. Amazon is full of turkey tail supplements, that's also a prescription cancer medicine in Japan
  • schrectacular3 hours ago
    Maybe not longer, but definitely harder.
  • karakoram2 hours ago
    Correct me if I am wrong but I think marathon runners take Cialis for something too.
    • mikestew24 minutes ago
      Serious lifelong runner here, and it’s news to me. OTOH, it may be an influencer bro-science thing that I’ve successfully ignored.

      OTOOH, I take beet juice powder, which is to increase blood flow pre-run, so I would not be surprised if folks “leveled up” to a pharmaceutical.

  • jacknews4 hours ago
    Maybe the extra sex is the main benefit?
  • khalic3 hours ago
    As usual, without double blind studies, this is playing with fire… maybe the people taking it have better health because of the extra exercise that goes with an active sex life.
    • dpark2 hours ago
      I would imagine the sex itself isn’t super relevant in terms of exercise. But people who seek out medical treatment (or enhancement) likely take better care of themselves in general.

      But I would be surprised if there were not a measurable increase in health markers for men who take Cialis. Pretty much any drug that reduces blood pressure is going to have a positive effect on longevity for the average male population (but not the sub-population who have low blood pressure).

      • astura42 minutes ago
        >people who seek out medical treatment (or enhancement) likely take better care of themselves in general.

        That was immediately my thought as well, the population of men who seek out ED medications have to be very distinctly different than the population of men in general.