PDE5 inhibition has been shown to increase cognitive function by promoting better blood flow to the brain and instigating emotional arousal. Brain scans have found that daily use of tadalafil in subjects with cognitive impairment results in increased blood flow to regions of the brain associated with cognitive function: the gyrus, precuneus, and brainstem. By impacting this part of the brain, PDE5 inhibition enhances attention, memory, abstraction, orientation, language, and naming.

Chronic conditions accumulate as we age, and PDE5 inhibition has been proven to slow or halt this regression in health, lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer’s Disease. This study shows that tadalafil increases cognition through its anti-inflammatory effects, while this animal study revealed tadalafil’s ability to cross the blood–brain barrier helped to reverse cognitive dysfunction. Tadalafil is also found to be more beneficial than other PDE5 inhibitors for memory impairment, including Viagra, because of its longer half-life and proven safety, representing “a promising approach for the chronic treatment of cognitive disorders.”

Unsurprisingly, men who struggle with severe erectile dysfunction are less sexually satisfied. Research shows that PDE5 inhibitors can help change this. In this study on vardenafil, men taking the PDE5 inhibitor self-reported greater intercourse satisfaction and orgasmic function. But men taking the medication aren’t the only ones to benefit. Research indicates partners of men with erectile dysfunction are sexually dissatisfied. Yet, partners of men taking tadalafil report greater overall sexual satisfaction. In fact, in a survey of 100 heterosexual couples in which the male had clinically diagnosed erectile dysfunction, researchers found that 79.2% of the women surveyed preferred that their man take tadalafil, while only 15.6% of those women expressed a preference for Viagra.