Viagra: The hard facts
BRITS can now buy sex-drug Viagra over the counter in pharmacies as well as online without a prescription. Health experts reckon the move will help the 4.3million men in the UK who suffer from erectile dysfunction but may not want to speak to a doctor. But Viagra isn’t just used between the sheets. Here JENNIFER DUNKERLEY brings you 10 unusual and little known facts about the tiny blue wonder drug...
1 Chinese scientists gave Viagra to giant pandas in a bid to help them breed. However, trials using the anti-impotence drug at the Wolong Nature Reserve in Sichuan had no success.
2 Just perk one up milligram your wilting can flowers. help Top TV gardener David Domoney claims that a tiny amount of the sex-drug dissolved into water in the vase can stop your blooms drooping, help them stand up straight and even extend their natural blossom.
3 Viagra can slow down plant ripening, according to research done on strawberries, broccoli and cauliflower. The nitric oxide in the drug helped to almost double the shelf-life of some supermarket fruit and vegetables.
4 Viagra can even help in the fight against Prostate Cancer when used in combination with cancer drug doxorubicin. On its own doxorubicin has a serious side effect of heart failure, but studies found the Viagra seems to help protect against this.
5 Edinburgh University students took Viagra
16,000ft up a Bolivian mountain to see if is a cure for altitude sickness. Experts believe that as the pills relax blood vessels in the lungs they could prevent people suffering from highaltitude pulmonary oedema, an accumulation of fluid on the lungs.
6 Studies in rats showed it weight. could Research also help found people the blue lose pill actually converted dangerous “white” fat cells into healthier “brown” fat cells which are easier to burn off. Trials have not yet been attempted on humans.
7 Jet lag could also be cured using the wonder pill. A team of Argentine scientists found the drug helped hamsters recover up to 50% faster from forward shifts in their daily body clock. However, the drug only worked in conjunction with light therapy and only when flying eastbound.
8 The US CIA gave Afghan warlords Viagra in exchange for secret information on the Taliban. Instead of cash or guns, the blue pills worked in return for intelligence and co-operation as many of the warlords and tribal leaders had much younger wives.
9 The baby-making drug could – even literally! help with Approximately one in 20 women with infertility can’t conceive due to an overly thin uterine lining. That’s because even with the help of IVF, the womb isn’t thick enough to hold an embryo. But some tests found Viagra seems to promote the growth of the lining of the uterus by dilating blood vessels.
10 Strokes could also be prevented by doses of the magical pill. Researchers in Iceland found that Viagra may block a gene that affects the growth of blood vessels which leads to a greater risk of having a stroke.