Masturbation is the natural behaviour of individuals of all sexes and sexualities. It is to put on the genitals alone in order to experience sexual delight and emancipation. For years, masturbation has been used to engender myths and misconceptions: among them is that it’ll change the size of your penis. We’ll explore masturbation and the alleged correlation between penis size in this post, and prove the myth wrong.
History
Traditionally, we believe masturbation causes a diminution in the size of the penis due to a lack of knowledge of human anatomy and sexuality. Masturbation was viewed as a damaging, sinful behaviour, so over the 18th and 19th centuries it became subject to a host of misunderstandings and falsehoods. Such assumptions were bolstered by social sex taboos and the absence of proper sex education.
What defines the size of the penis?
First and foremost, you should realise that the length of the penis is largely genetically determined. As with many other physical traits, including height and hair colour, the size of the penis is determined by genes and cannot be altered by any external factor. A 2011 study in the Journal of Urology found that the average erect penis length is 5.16 inches, and ranges from 1.6 to 10.2 inches. This range is normal, and determined by genetics and hormones during puberty.
The length of the penis is also related to how much blood circulates in the organ. If a man gets sexually excited, the blood vessels in the penis expand, pushing more blood into the erectile tissue. This produces an erection, which can make the penis appear bigger than its flaccid state. But this small expansion is not long-term, and has no relationship to the frequency or intensity of masturbation.
Misconceptions
Masturbation, by contrast, does not influence the size of the penis. It’s a common myth that repeated masturbation will shrink your penis. The myth feeds off the idea that masturbation can shrink the amount of semen and sperm in the body, and this reduces the size of the penis. However, this is not true. The number of semen or sperm in the body does not influence the size of the penis. Indeed, the size of the penis remains the same even when masturbation is not accompanied by ejaculation.
Furthermore, some people believe that aggressive or coarse masturbation damages the tissues of the penis and shrinks it. But the penis itself consists of flexible muscle that can flex and stretch in the course of an erection. It is meant to withstand friction and pressure during sex, including masturbation. So long as there are no sharp objects or excessive force, masturbation does not hurt the penis.
Another misconception regarding masturbation and the size of the penis is that the amount of masturbation can affect the size of the penis. Some believe that too much masturbation will make a smaller penis and some think not enough masturbating will make a larger penis. But these arguments have nothing to do with science. The amount of times we masturbate has no bearing on the size of our penis, and it is a personal decision to make.
Also, to make things clear, there is no medical or scientific evidence that masturbation can change the size of the penis. Indeed, masturbation has been associated with a number of health effects, including stress reduction, a boost in sleep, and endorphins that enhance mood and wellbeing. Masturbation is also a healthy and acceptable means to explore one’s own sexuality.
Key figures
Sex educators, medical professionals and scientists have all been leaders in the development of masturbation and penis size education. These are people who have tried to dispel the myths and offer up real facts about sexual health.
Highly influential figures in the human sexuality movement have done much to break the masturbation myths and advance a more honest and open discussion about sexuality. Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a world-renowned sex therapist and educator, has long championed sexual health and wellbeing, dispelling misperceptions about masturbation, and embracing a sex-friendly perspective on human sexuality. Likewise, Dr. Emily Nagoski, a pioneer of the study of human sexuality, has written extensively about masturbation and its effects on the body, sharing scientific knowledge to bust myths and ensure sexual wellness.
Other major entrants into the debate on masturbation and penis size include Sigmund Freud, who devoted chapters to the subject in his psychosexual development book. Freud hinted that masturbation tended to provoke various psychological problems, but didn’t cite a diminution in the size of the penis. Other scientists (including Alfred Kinsey) did research on masturbation and sexuality, but none found evidence that masturbation might make a penis grow larger.
Efforts by the American Sexual Health Association and the World Health Organization have pushed information about sexual health, including that masturbation does not affect the size of the penis.
In addition, there’s no evidence that masturbation changes anything physical about the penis. It’s an entirely natural and innocuous practice that does not cause any side effects over time. Likewise the notion that masturbation causes erectile dysfunction or premature ejaculation is a hoax. Masturbation, in fact, is a therapeutic strategy to treat these disorders as it allows people to become more intimate with their sexual impulse and develop a sense of control over it.
Conclusion
Masturbation, in a word, does not impact the size of your penis. Like I said, the penis size is a genetically determined variable, and not affected by other external forces such as masturbation. That myth must be dispelled, and the reality must be poured out, to remove the unwelcome fear and embarrassment associated with masturbation. It’s part of the normal, healthy cycle of human sexuality, so individuals should be comfortable and secure in their bodies, regardless of the size of their penis.
