CHECK Nord #2
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POTENCY<br />
VIRILITY<br />
Interview: Bernd Müller<br />
ENGLISH<br />
Since Viagra triumphantly entered the market in 1998, potency enhancers have<br />
been a global bestseller. But do they really work as they are promised? And do<br />
they hold any possible dangers? Werner Schelken, a pharmacist at the Munich<br />
Regenbogen Apotheke clarifies this – and a lot more.<br />
Wenn es um Erektionen<br />
geht, hat man<br />
alles hergenommen,<br />
das aufragt – was<br />
beispielsweise für<br />
Nashörner keine gute<br />
Nachricht war und bis<br />
heute nicht ist.<br />
When it comes to<br />
erections, everything<br />
that stands up was<br />
considered, which<br />
was – and still is – bad<br />
news for rhinos.<br />
Photo: David Clode_unsplash.com<br />
The desire for potency is probably<br />
as old as humanity...<br />
Yes, that’s probably true! Means<br />
for manpower have been<br />
around for centuries – some<br />
work, most don’t. Regardless,<br />
people kept on searching and<br />
investigating again and again<br />
and whatever they came up<br />
with sold well. We pharmacists<br />
have also earned very well from<br />
it over the past centuries.<br />
What substances were available<br />
before Viagra?<br />
Attempts have often been<br />
made to assign nature’s form to<br />
achieve certain effects. When it<br />
comes to erections, everything<br />
that stands up was considered,<br />
which was – and still is – bad<br />
news for rhinos. The so-called<br />
“unicorn powder” made from<br />
the ground horn of the narwhal<br />
was also very well known in the<br />
18th century. And the “Spanish<br />
fly”, a powder made from a<br />
poisonous beetle, is still on the<br />
market. An unpleasant side<br />
effect was that people died if<br />
they overdosed. Even though<br />
the Spanish fly is still sold, it<br />
should be administered as a<br />
placebo because it is now clear<br />
that the original beetle venom<br />
can damage cells.<br />
Let’s look at today: Viagra<br />
came on the market in 1998<br />
– seemingly a breakthrough<br />
then.<br />
Correct. What’s interesting<br />
is that one wanted to treat<br />
heart diseases with the active<br />
substance contained inside it.<br />
In a study, however, the effect<br />
was not sufficiently confirmed,<br />
so it nearly got canceled. The<br />
women agreed, but the men<br />
protested. Why? Because the<br />
active ingredient improved the<br />
men’s potency! In this respect,<br />
the discovery was more of a<br />
by-product, a decidedly profitable<br />
coincidence.<br />
There are now several products<br />
on the market. How are they<br />
different?<br />
In principle, Viagra, Cialis,<br />
Levitra or Spedra all work in<br />
the same way: So-called PDE-5<br />
inhibitors ensure that the<br />
smooth muscles, such as those<br />
found in the erectile tissue, are<br />
filled with blood. All preparations<br />
begin to work after 30–120<br />
minutes and develop their<br />
maximum power after about<br />
3–5 hours. Then they are slowly<br />
flushed out of the body again.<br />
Only with Tadalafil (Cialis) does<br />
the effect last up to 17 hours.<br />
That’s why it sells particularly<br />
well. Although we pharmacists<br />
don’t like it that much, because<br />
<strong>CHECK</strong> NORD <strong>#2</strong><br />
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