Contrary to conventional belief, alcohol improves rather than damages men's performance in the bedroom if taken within safe guidelines, a new study has revealed.

The finding is likely to bring some relief to men who are worried about the affects of drinking on their sex lives.

While it is widely believed alcohol consumption could cause erectile dysfunction, commonly called 'brewer's droop', a study on 1,580 Australian men showed the reverse may be true, with drinkers reporting as many as 30 per cent fewer problems than teetotallers.

'Men who drank within safe guidelines appeared to have the best erectile function compared to those who have never touched alcohol,' lead study author Kew-Kim Chew of Western Australia's [Images] Keogh Institute for Medical Research was quoted as saying by the Herald Sun.

Even binge drinkers had lower rates of dysfunction than those who never drank, although this type of drinking can cause other health problems, the report said.

Many people do benefit from some alcohol, including some people who drink outside the guidelines, Chew said, adding he had patients with erectile dysfunction who had been told to stop drinking completely.

The latest finding should prevent them compounding the problem by feeling 'guilty and stressed' about present or past drinking, he said.

After other risk factors were excluded, weekend drinkers, high-risk drinkers and those who exceeded alcohol-intake guidelines had lower rates of erectile dysfunction than those who drank one day a week or less. Ex-drinkers, however, had the highest risk, the report said.