Yorkshire men are the most likely to need a little help in the bedroom in England, NHS data suggests.
Official data shows that almost 3.5 per cent of men in the East Riding were prescribed Viagra, also known by its generic name sildenafil, in 2023.
This was followed by men from Northumberland and Dorset, who came in second and third for rates of prescribing the ED drug, at around 3.2 per cent each.
The Yorkshire region appears to be particularly affected by impotence, with its cities and towns Rotherham, Barnsley, Harrogate, Scarborough and Whitby featuring in the top 10 areas for Viagra prescriptions.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, Leicester City men appeared to be the least likely to need help from the little blue pill to maintain an erection, with a prescription rate of just 1.6 per cent.
Official data shows almost 3.5 per cent of men in the East Riding were prescribed Viagra, also known by its generic name sildenafil, in 2023 (file image)
Other areas of England with similarly low prescription rates were north-west London (1.7 per cent), as well as Cambridgeshire and Peterborough (1.9 per cent).
For comparison, the national prescription rate for sildenafil is 2.5 per cent across England.
These figures were calculated by examining NHS prescribing data collected from England’s 106 clinical commissioning groups, the Sun reported.
In total, some 750,000 men in England received 4.3 million prescriptions for these drugs last year, costing the NHS £16.4 million.
However, the data may not give a real indication of where men rely most on the little blue pill.
Men can buy a sildenafil treatment over the counter for as little as £15 and tablets are also available online for as little as £1.30 per pill.
These private purchases of the drug would not be included in the NHS data.
Sildenafil is also not prescribed only for erectile dysfunction.
These medications also, although less famous, treat pulmonary hypertension, a type of high blood pressure in the arteries that supply the lungs.
The same mechanism by which medications increase blood flow to the penis also relaxes blood vessels in the chest, which helps treat pulmonary hypertension.
London Bridge Hospital consultant urologist Gordon Muir suggested the data may also reflect not just the need for the medications, but also where people felt most comfortable talking to their GP about sexual health.
“Talking about sexual problems with a GP may be more difficult for some religious or ethnic groups, and some regions may be more understanding than others,” she said.
‘Drugs like sildenafil are safe, cheap and effective.
“Men who use them and their partners experience a significant increase in well-being.”
Impotence is no laughing matter and men suffering from this problem are often urged to seek advice from their GP.
Not only can it affect your sexual and mental health. Erection problems can also be a potential sign of serious health problems such as cardiovascular disease.
However, not all men are recommended to take medications such as sildenafil; For example, those with heart problems are warned not to do so.
Approximately one in 100 people taking sildenafil will experience common side effects when taking sildenafil.
These include headaches, nausea, hot flashes, indigestion, nasal congestion and dizziness, according to the NHS.
Those who take the pills for longer periods, for example for pulmonary hypertension, are more likely to experience these effects than those who take the pills “as needed” for erectile dysfunction, the health service says.
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More serious side effects requiring urgent medical attention are estimated to affect less than one in 1,000 people.
These include seizures, suffering a prolonged and potentially painful erection, especially for more than two hours, chest pain and, in very rare cases, a life-threatening allergic reaction to the medication called anaphylaxis.
Earlier this year, MailOnline revealed that popular erection pills such as Viagra have been linked to more than 200 deaths in Britain.
None of the deaths (all occurring since 1998) have been directly caused by drugs.
