How Cialis and Viagra work

Cialis and Viagra are both phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors. PDE5 is an important enzyme involved in erections that’s one of the biggest culprits behind ED.

Here’s how Cialis and Viagra work:

• When your penis nerves are stimulated, you get an erection. When this happens, muscles that surround two cylinder-shaped pieces of tissue in your penis, called the corpora cavernosa, relax and fill with blood.
• When you have ED, nerves aren’t communicating between your brain and your penis to help make this process happen, so blood doesn’t flow properly into your penis.
• Viagra and Cialis block PDE5 and help relax your blood vessel walls. This makes it easier for blood to flow into your penis tissues and give you an erection.

How to get the maximum effect from Cialis or Viagra

Since Cialis and Viagra are both PDE5 inhibitors and both are used to treat the symptoms of erectile dysfunction, it is not necessary or recommended to take both at the same time.

If you want to maximize the benefits of taking a PDE5 inhibitor, it’s better to evaluate which drug better suits your lifestyle rather than double up on medications. Doubling up increases your risk of severe side effects from exceeding the recommended dosage.

For example, Cialis has a longer 24-hour window of effectiveness than Viagra, but to see the results, you need to take it daily. You only need to take Viagra as needed, but it’s only effective for a few hours.

If someone is having sex infrequently or has trouble remembering to take their medications daily, Viagra may be the better option. They should see results after just one dose and won’t see a drop in effectiveness from missing daily doses.

However, someone having more frequent or spontaneous sex — where it would be difficult to take a pill early enough before a sexual encounter — may find Cialis is the better option.