Watermelon boasts properties that can boost blood flow that leads to erection, according to UK scientists.
Erectile dysfunction, also known as impotence, is the inability to get and maintain erection. It can have a range of causes, including narrowing of the blood vessels, a problem usually associated with diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
While some men opt for Viagra as a way to treat the condition, experts say watermelon can be used as a natural treatment thanks to the amino acid citrulline, which can help ‘relax’ blood vessels.
Lily Soutter, Nutritionist at lilysoutternutrition.com told Daily Express newspaper: “Watermelons have now been coined as nature’s Viagra.
“Research has shown that these effects are down to their high concentrations of an amino acid called citrulline.
“When consumed, citrulline is converted into the amino acid arginine, which boosts nitric oxide – the responsible agent for relaxing and dilating blood vessels.
“This effect can improve blood flow to the penis, which is just how Viagra works to treat or prevent erectile dysfunction.”
A scientific study in 2011 concluded that citrulline consumption had a ‘significant positive impact’ for people suffering with mild erectile dysfunction.
Researchers gave men with mild erectile dysfunction a placebo for one month and a citrulline supplement for another month recording the hardness of their erection and the amount of times they had sex.
Scientists tested a total of 24 patients, with an average age of 56. The results showed: “The improvement in the erection hardness score from three – mild erectile dysfunction to four – normal erectile function – occurred in 2 (8.3 per cent) of the 24 men when taking placebo and 12 (50 per cent) of the 24 men when taking L-citrulline.”