Health
Bicycle Days: The Downside
Bicycling may not be all it's made out to be, at least on one front. Researchers now think bicycle-riding could help trigger impotence in men and sexual and urinary problems in women.
The problem is those narrow, hard seats that seem to come as standard gear. Data from the Boston University School of Medicine indicates, for instance, that it takes only 11 per cent of a man's weight to cause compression of penile arteries as they press on the bike seat.
Researchers compared cyclists to other athletes and found the incidence of impotence to be four times higher in the riders. On the female side, they say, cyclists reported higher incidents of clitoral dysfunction when compared to female runners.
What happens, says Professor Irwin Goldstein, is that repeated heavy contact with the bike seats appears to damage arteries and tissues in the genitals. He estimates 4 per cent of impotence cases can be blamed on bike riding.
The problem is those narrow, hard seats that seem to come as standard gear. Data from the Boston University School of Medicine indicates, for instance, that it takes only 11 per cent of a man's weight to cause compression of penile arteries as they press on the bike seat.
Researchers compared cyclists to other athletes and found the incidence of impotence to be four times higher in the riders. On the female side, they say, cyclists reported higher incidents of clitoral dysfunction when compared to female runners.
What happens, says Professor Irwin Goldstein, is that repeated heavy contact with the bike seats appears to damage arteries and tissues in the genitals. He estimates 4 per cent of impotence cases can be blamed on bike riding.
