avatarCarlyn Beccia

Summary

The article discusses the implications of circumcision on sexual pleasure, health benefits, and ethical considerations, questioning the commonality of the procedure in the United States.

Abstract

The article "Does Circumcision Reduce Sexual Pleasure?" delves into the controversy surrounding male circumcision, particularly in the United States where it is a common procedure. It highlights the foreskin's nerve endings and its role in sexual pleasure, protection, and lubrication. The piece examines studies on sensitivity reduction post-circumcision, the prevention of STDs, and the potential for decreased sexual pleasure. It also addresses the evolutionary purpose of the foreskin, the rarity of penile cancer, and the effectiveness of the HPV vaccine. The author raises concerns about the ethicality of performing non-consensual surgery on infants, the pain inflicted, and the cultural and religious influences on the practice. The article concludes with a call for more informed decision-making regarding circumcision.

Opinions

  • The author suggests that the foreskin's nerve endings contribute to sexual pleasure, and its removal should not be taken lightly.
  • There is skepticism about the claimed health benefits of circumcision, such as STD prevention, and the strength of the evidence supporting these claims.
  • The article implies that good hygiene, rather than circumcision, is the key factor in preventing penile cancer and maintaining cleanliness.
  • The author expresses that circumcision for religious or cultural reasons is a personal choice but emphasizes the importance of understanding the procedure's implications.
  • The piece criticizes the societal pressure to conform to certain aesthetic standards for genitalia, drawing a parallel to the unrealistic beauty standards faced by women.
  • The author advocates for the rights of the child, stating that circumcision is a sexual decision that should not be made without consent.
  • The article questions the necessity of circumcision when alternative treatments exist for conditions like phimosis.
  • A sense of regret and guilt is conveyed by the author for having chosen circumcision for their child without thorough research.
  • The author promotes informed consent and ethical considerations, suggesting that the practice should be reevaluated in light of current knowledge and alternative preventive measures.

Does Circumcision Reduce Sexual Pleasure?

The foreskin is not a fingernail

Photo by Dainis Graveris on Unsplash

Whenever a doctor plans to lop off a body part, the first question you should probably ask is — but wait…do I need that? Is it like my tonsils, which I won’t miss unless I am eighty years old with pneumonia? Or is it like my appendix — only remove it if it is causing problems?

Unfortunately, if you are an American male, you most likely did not have a say in one of the most common surgeries performed in the US. And it’s time we stopped taking circumcision so lightly.

First off, a man’s foreskin is not a fingernail. The foreskin has over ten thousand nerve endings, including Meisner’s Corpuscles — the fine nerve endings found on places like your fingertips.

Although the foreskin has similar nerve endings as your fingertips, it is not as sensitive. In comparison, your fingertips have a Meissner’s index of 0.96, while the foreskin has a Meissner’s index of only 0.28.

Personally, if someone said to me that they were going to snip part of my clitoris off but not the most important part…I wouldn’t be happy.

Artwork: © Carlyn Beccia | www.CarlynBeccia.com

This begs the question — do men miss those extra nerve endings? There’s been considerable debate about whether removing the foreskin reduces sexual pleasure. The most recent studies (so far) found the reduction of sensitivity was negligible.

But aside from lost nerve endings, the foreskin also protects the very sensitive glans from dirt and debris. To our early ancestors, a penis could use a little extra protection while hunting. The hotdog bun prevented the hotdog from falling apart.

The foreskin’s inner mucous membranes also provide lubrication, which helps the penis glide during sex. (Hint: gliding is good. Pulling…baaaaaad.) Some women even swear that an uncircumcised penis feels better during sex because there is less friction.

To our ancestors, this extra lubrication allowed men to penetrate his woman quicker. (Sorry, kids, if a saber tooth tiger is about to devour you…no time for foreplay.)

Another possible evolutionary purpose for the foreskin is to delay sexual intercourse in pre-pubescent boys. Until puberty, the foreskin usually does not fully retract. For this reason, some anthropologists believe the foreskin acted as a sexual deterrent until a child reached the age that he could properly parent. Basically, the foreskin prevented boys from shooting their baby batter until they were ready to take one out of the oven. (That will be my last bad food pun…maybe.)

The foreskin protects the penis in the same way your eyelids protect your eyeballs. Or…in the same way, the clitoral hood protects the clitoris.

But cutting the clitoris is frowned upon in most medical circles. So why are we still mutilating men?

STDs are not pleasurable.

The medical community today faces the age-old question regarding circumcision — does the intervention match the risk? In most scientific debates, “extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.”

Currently, the CDC recommends circumcision to prevent the spread of STDs. But although the CDC has found the benefits outweigh the risks, there are several holes in the STD argument.

Older research found circumcised men have lower rates of syphilis and gonorrhea. And a 2010 study in sub-Saharan Africa found circumcision reduced the risk of HIV acquisition in men by about 60%.

There are several problems with these studies. First, a common mistake in analyzing data is to confuse relative change vs. absolute change. For example, a small change in the number of uncircumcised men infected with HIV can result in a large percentage change in that area.

The second problem is that STD rates are affected by many factors, so assuming correlations can lead to inaccurate conclusions.

For example, in a frequently cited study of Uganda men, circumcision was found to reduce rates of HIV transmission. But those who agreed to adult circumcision were obviously more likely to care about their sexual health and therefore more likely to use condoms. And condoms are far more effective in preventing STDs than circumcision.

The other argument for circumcision is that it prevents human papillomavirus (HPV). HPV causes 91% of cervical cancer cases and 50% of penile cancer cases. But since the recently developed HPV vaccine is 99% effective against penile cancer and cervical cancer, a vaccine is far less invasive than surgery.

Botched circumcisions vs. UTIs and Cancer

Although rare, mistakes do happen. At Massachusetts General Hospital, 7.4% of all pediatric urologist visits this year were due to circumcision complications. And approximately 117 annual neonatal deaths in the US are caused by circumcision.

Sometimes too much or too little of the foreskin is removed. Some men report that they cannot reach orgasm due to botched circumcisions. It’s surgery, and any surgery comes with risks.

But supporters of circumcision point out that UTI’s are more common in uncircumcised men. But UTIs are treatable with antibiotics and are rare in men. We don’t even take wisdom teeth out until there is a problem.

The other argument is that circumcision protects against penile cancer, which would surely wreck your sex life. In the US, penile cancer is rare. Only 1 in 100,000 men are diagnosed with it (less than 1% of the population.)

Currently, the American Cancer Society has found that men who are circumcised as children have lower rates of penile cancer. Unfortunately, the reason for this reduction is unclear.

Circumcision prevents phimosis — a narrowing of the opening of the foreskin that prevents retraction. Phimosis is associated with 90% of penile cancer cases. But phimosis is only treated with circumcision in severe cases. Most cases can be treated with gentle stretching exercises or steroidal creams. Given its rarity, phimosis is not a condition that needs prophylactic treatment.

The most important factor in preventing penile cancer is good hygiene. When smegma gets trapped under the foreskin, it can irritate the penis and even increase cancer risks. This brings me to my next point…

Clean sex is fun sex.

Another argument for why circumcision leads to more pleasurable sex is because a circumcised penis is cleaner.

I will tread carefully on this one because I don’t have the machinery. But cleanliness seems like a fatuous argument. All penises should be cleaned whether they are circumcised or not. Why are we promoting surgery when soap and water will get the job done? Your butt hole is pretty dirty, but we clean that instead of chopping it off.

All pleasure begins in the brain…

It always surprises Americans, but less than a third of men are circumcised worldwide. Most men are circumcised for one or a combination of the following reasons.

It’s tied to religious identity.

According to the WHO, about 98 percent of American Jews are circumcised, and 92.6 percent of Muslims are circumcised.

If circumcision is part of your religious identity, then no one has the right to question your decision. Of course, I still think you should educate yourself on the pros and cons, but I will not argue against this reason.

It‘s more attractive.

When I conducted an informal poll asking male friends why they were happy they were circumcised, they all said the same thing — it looks better.

I hate to break it to you, but…an uncircumcised and a circumcised penis do not look different when erect.

And why are we cutting our genitals to make them look prettier? Most women condemn labioplasty — the cutting of the inner lips to reduce labia size. So I am applying the same logic here. Our bodies are all beautiful in their uniqueness.

Unfortunately, it might not be men driving the cultural preference for circumcised penises. In a 2019 study, women said they preferred sex with circumcised men. Their reasons were superficial — “better appearance,” “better hygiene,” and the last reason stumped me — easier to manually stimulate and fellate. (This is going to require a separate article.)

I shouldn’t have to point out the hypocrisy here. Women are angered by the cultural pressure to be thin with large breasts, but we fail to see how cultural norms dictate penis attractiveness.

It’s only fun if everyone is doing it.

When I was a child and used this argument with my parents, they would respond, “And if your friends jumped off a cliff, would you do that too?”

Point taken. Are we lemmings or humans? Just because we have been practicing circumcision for the last two centuries does not make it right. And if we begin to stop this practice, it won’t become the aesthetic ideal in future generations.

The ethical considerations

A baby cannot give consent.

Obviously, a baby is not getting a say in what you do to their body. You are making a sexual decision for your child when you have no idea what repercussions that decision will have on their future sexuality. Your son may someday decide they don’t even want their penis.

It’s pretty much the foundation of all human rights that no one gets to decide what they do with your body (unless that decision hurts others.)

Pain is never fun.

Babies do feel pain. And because we can’t exactly ask them, no one really knows how much circumcision hurts them.

During a typical procedure, a baby is tied to a board, and a local anesthetic is injected at the base of the penis. A clamp or special ring is also placed around the foreskin to cut off the blood supply. If that doesn’t sound barbaric enough, then you should probably watch a video of the procedure.

“The scalpel is the greatest proof of the failure of medicine.” — Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez

When my son was born, I chose to have him circumcised because I believed there were valid medical reasons for the procedure.

Knowing what I know now, I have one underlying emotion — guilt. Guilt because I made a decision that I had no right to make. And guilt because, at the very least, I should have researched it further before making that decision.

I can’t unlearn what I have learned. And I certainly can’t undo the decision. But I do hope others never take the decision lightly.

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