While ED is often perceived as an age-related problem it is much more complex than that. Age indeed plays an important role in ease of sexual arousal, but ED does not just appear with age like hair loss - its causes are multifold.

ED can be caused by physiological and psychological factors. Among the physiological causes are the following:

Kidney conditions can lead to chemical changes in your body and consequently affect circulation, hormones, energy level, and nerve function. Such problems often affect one's libido or sexual ability. If you have a kidney disease, medication that addresses it may also help cure ED.

Diabetes (high levels of sugar in your blood) sometimes causes damage to your nerves and arteries making it difficult to achieve erection. The National Institute of Health statistics say that about 35% to 50% of men with diabetes also experience ED.

Vascular diseases, such as atherosclerosis (hardening of arteries), high cholesterol and hypertension (high blood pressure), affect your blood vessels and restrict the flow of blood to your heart and brain, having a potential to cause ED. It has been shown that vascular diseases account for as much as 70% of all physiological causes of ED.

Your body's nervous system is also extremely important in attaining and maintaining erection. Men who suffer from such conditions as multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's syndrome, stroke, Alzheimer's disease, and injuries of the spinal cord may experience ED.

Prostate cancer is not in itself a cause of ED but the treatment of prostate cancer, such as a surgery to remove the cancer, radiation, and hormonal manipulation, can result in ED.

Some physiological causes of ED are unrelated to diseases:

Injury of spinal cord, bladder, pelvis and penis that require a surgery may cause ED.

Surgeries performed to cure diseases like bladder cancer or prostate cancer may require some tissues and nerves to be removed and can lead to ED. However, surgeries usually cause only a temporary erectile dysfunction.

Hormonal imbalance, such as thyroid gland hormones and testosterone, can lead to ED. Such imbalances can be related to various diseases listed above.

Venous leak is a condition in which blood vessels in your penis let your blood leave your penis during erection thus making it difficult to maintain erection.

Alcohol, tobacco and drug use can cause damage to your blood vessels and make the blood flow to your penis difficult, leading to ED. Particularly smoking is a leading cause of ED in patients suffering from arteriosclerosis.

ED can be amplified by psychological problems because often times if it has happened to you before you tend to be constantly anxious that it might happen again thus you are yourself psychologically affecting a lasting erection.

In addressing ED it is important to keep in mind all of the potential causes and address them specifically. There are also many available types of medications you can use. Levitra is a good example of a prescription medication that has proven to effectively address ED problems by helping to increase the blood flow to the penis. It has been clinically proven that Levitra helps improve erectile function even in patients who suffer from other potential ED causes like hypertension, diabetes and other ones, mentioned above.