Obesity and smoking significantly increase the risk of erectile dysfunction (ED), according to a US study.
The Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) report also found that regular physical activity lowered the risk of ED.
The researchers surveyed 22,086 healthy subjects aged between 40 and 75 who reported good or very good erectile function and no major chronic disease before 1986.
Among the participants, 17.7 per cent reported new cases of ED between 1986 and 2000.
The researchers adjusted the results to take into account those with and without prostate cancer during the follow-up period, since prostate cancer treatments, such as radiation or surgery, may lead to ED.
"We found a 2.5-fold difference in risk of ED when we compared obese men who did little exercise with men who were not overweight and averaged 30 minutes of vigorous exercise a day," said lead researcher Eric Rimm.
Eric Rimm, Harvard School of Public Health: "Hopefully, these results will help to motivate men to adopt a more active lifestyle to avoid a problem which may be more immediate."
"For men younger than 55 there was a 4-fold difference in risk for the same comparison."
The study also found that alcohol consumption did not increase the risk of ED.
"These results suggest that ED and coronary heart disease may share many of the same risk factors," Rimm added.
Rimm said he hoped the results would encourage men to follow more healthy lifestyles.
"Many men may choose not to change to a healthier lifestyle, which includes exercise and a prudent diet, because they perceive heart disease as something that may only develop decades in the future," he said.
"Hopefully, these results will help to motivate men to adopt a more active lifestyle to avoid a problem which may be more immediate."
Due to the sensitive nature of the condition, it is difficult to estimate how many men it affects.
However, it is believed about 5 per cent of 40-year-old men and up to 25 per cent of 65-year-old men may have ED, according to the BBC.
The HSPH study is published in The Journal of Urology.
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