HOW MALE CIRCUMCISION MAY BE AFFECTING YOUR
LOVE LIFE
By
Dr. Christine Northrup © 2004
Circumcision, the surgical removal of the male
foreskin, usually
during the first few days after birth, is an emotionally charged
subject that most people are reluctant to discuss openly, let alone
objectively.
I know. As an obstetrician-gynecologist, I've
performed hundreds of circumcisions, and I've been on the front
lines of the circumcision debate for more than 25 years.
Though I've provided information on circumcision
for expectant couples for years, it long ago became clear to me that
the decision about whether or not to circumcise a boy is made from
an emotional not a rational place. Still, the tide is turning as
more and more people, both within and without the medical
profession, rethink the entire subject.
In the spirit of science and compassion, I urge
you to read this article with an open mind. It may well change the
entire way you view circumcision.
A Risky, Painful, and Unnecessary
Procedure
The sad truth is that throughout most of the 20th
century, the American medical community has focused on finding
reasons to remove the foreskin of newborn males instead of
acknowledging Mother Nature's wisdom in including this highly
sensitive tissue. Happily, more and more individuals are questioning
circumcision's necessity and acknowledging its potential harm. Since
1980, the national circumcision rate has dropped by 30 percent, and
an increasing number of physicians are finding the courage to refuse
to perform the procedure.
This is precisely what happened in England, a
nation formerly obsessed with circumcision. In the 1940s, following
the release of information that supported leaving male babies fully
intact, England's circumcision rate plummeted almost overnight to
less than I percent. Similar information is beginning to gain ground
here in the United States, so I'd like to share it with you.
To start with, babies feel pain the same way
adults do. But the prevailing wisdom at medical schools has long
been that newborns can't feel pain and therefore don't experience it
during their circumcisions. When I was a medical student, this is
what I heard from my professors as well, although common sense told
me it wasn't true. I watched placid newborns begin to scream and
gasp in pain as the circumcision procedure began. Fortunately, it is
finally accepted as a medical fact that circumcision is
extraordinarily painful for newborns, who are born with full
nocioceptive (pain sensing) ability.
Furthermore, routine newborn circumcision has no
health benefit. Though a wide variety of health advantages have been
attributed to circumcision--decreases in the incidence of cervical
cancer, AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, and male urinary tract
infection--the most up-to-date research has refuted all these
justifications. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a
policy statement in 1999 saying there is not sufficient scientific
data to recommend routine newborn circumcision. Given this, the
number of insurance companies willing to pay for the procedure is
also decreasing.
Though circumcision is relatively easy to perform,
like any surgical procedure it has risks. The most common
complication is hemorrhage, which is reported in as many as 2
percent of cases. Though rare, more disastrous complications can and
do occur: "degloving" of the penile skin, which requires skin grafts
and results in loss of sensation; destruction of the penis; and
death from hemorrhage or infection.
Because there are no proven benefits for the
procedure in the first place, these complications are all the more
tragic. As respected obstetrician and gynecologist George Denniston
points out, "Circumcision violates the first tenet of medical
practice: 'first, do no harm.' According to modern medical ethics,
parents do not have the right to consent to a procedure that is not
in their son's best interest. The removal of a normal, important
part of the male sexual organ is not in their son's best interest.'
"
Uncircumcised is the Norm
The vast majority of the world's men, including
most Europeans and Scandinavians, are uncircumcised. And before
1900, circumcision was virtually non-existent in the United States
as well--except for Jewish and Muslim people, who've been performing
circumcisions for hundreds of years for religious reasons.
Believe it or not, circumcision was introduced in
English-speaking countries in the late 1800s to control or prevent
masturbation, similar to the way that female circumcision was
promoted and continues to be advocated in some Muslim and African
countries to control women's sexuality. As the absurdity of this
position became apparent, new justifications, such as the prevention
of cervical and penile cancers, received the blessing of the medical
establishment. But these are justifications that science has been
unable to support. Nor is there any scientific proof that
circumcision prevents sexually transmitted diseases.
Also contrary to popular belief, the uncircumcised
penis requires no special care. Many parents get hung up about how
to "clean" the uncircumcised penis in an infant. Some are even told
to retract the foreskin forcibly. This can cause pain and scarring,
and it isn't necessary. The foreskin often does not retract
naturally until a child is older--sometimes not until he is a
teenager--but a boy can easily stretch and retract his foreskin
gently over several months' time.
The Pleasures of Natural Sex
I've always felt that the male foreskin, one of
most richly innervated and hyperelastic pieces of tissue in the male
body, is there for a reason. Until recently, I didn't know exactly
what that reason was. But now, thanks to Kristen O'Hara's
well-researched book,
Sex as Nature Intended It, I finally understand
the reasons for the design of the penis and foreskin and how this
design ensures optimal penile function, including this organ's
ability to satisfy the female sexually. Most American women have not
personally experienced the sensation of sex with an uncircumcised
man because the majority of men in this country, especially those
born before 1980, have been circumcised. But Kristen O'Hara's
long-ago affair with an uncircumcised man was the spark that touched
off years of research, the result of which is her eye-opening book.
Consider the following:
The primary pleasure zones of the natural
(uncircumcised) penis are located in the upper penis, which includes
the penis head, the foreskin's inner lining, and the frenulum--the
hinge of skin that connects the foreskin to the head of the penis.
When a male is circumcised, some of the most erotically sensitive
areas of the penis are removed: the foreskin that normally covers
the head of the penis (the glans) and some or all of the frenulum.
The frenulum contains high concentrations of nerve
endings that are sensitive to fine touch. The glans was designed by
nature to be covered all the time except during sexual activity.
Upon erection, both foreskin layers unfold onto the upper penile
shaft, leaving the highly innervated frenulum, glans, and inner
lining exposed and readied for sexual activity. This is one of
reasons why the penile tip is the focus of sexual excitement.
New scientific evidence shows that highly
erogenous tissue equivalent to the female clitoris is located in the
core of the penis, beneath the corona (the hook-like head of the
penis) and coronal tip. This sensitive tissue extends all the way
down the length of the penile shaft to the pubic mound, where it
branches and continues into the pelvis and onto the pelvic bone in a
manner analogous to the anatomy of the female clitoris. Though the
penis contains nerves that are sexually excited by pressure, its tip
contains the greatest density of these nerves and is therefore the
most sexually responsive part, just as the tip of the clitoris is
the most sensitive part. And like the tip of the female clitoris,
the tip of the penis is sexually stimulated by the pleasurable
sensations created by the massaging actions of the movement of the
foreskin upon it during intercourse.
During intercourse, these exquisitely sensitive
nerves of the upper penis both excite a man sexually and control the
rhythm of penile thrusting. "When the natural penis thrusts inward,
the vaginal walls brush against the erotically sensitive nerves of
the glans, the foreskin's inner lining, and the frenulum, causing
these nerves to fire off sensations of pleasure;" writes O'Hara.
"The inward thrust of the penis keeps these pleasure sensations
ongoing, but after these nerves have fired, the penis senses a
reduction in pleasurable feelings, so it stops its inward thrust and
begins its outward stroke in search of stronger sensations.
"During the outward stroke, the foreskin's outer
layer slides forward to cloak the nerves of its inner lining, while
the inner lining itself covers the frenulum" she continues. "Once
covered, these nerves are allowed to rest from stimulation until the
next inward thrust. As the foreskin moves forward on the shaft, it
bunches up behind the coronal ridge, and may sometimes roll forward
over the corona, depending upon the length of the stroke. This
applies pressure to the interior tissue of the corona and coronal
ridge where nerves that are excited by pressure send a wave of
sexual excitement throughout the upper penis. The natural penis
receives pleasure sensations from one set of sensory nerves on the
inward thrust and a different set of nerves on the outward stroke.
It can maintain a continuous stream of highly pleasurable sensations
by maintaining the right rhythm"
And intriguingly, because the area of sexual
sensation is so localized in the tip, the penis only has to travel a
short distance to excite one set of nerves or another. In other
words, it doesn't have to withdraw very far to receive pleasure on
the outward stroke. This allows the penis to stay deep inside the
vagina, keeping the man's pubic mound in close and frequent contact
with a woman's clitoral area, which increases her pleasure and a
sense of closeness.
As part of the research for her book, Ms. O'Hara
surveyed approximately 150 women--enough to make the study
statistically reliable. Here's how one survey respondent described
sex with a natural partner:
"Sex with a natural partner has been to me like
the gentle rhythm of a peaceful but powerful ocean--waves build,
then subside and soothe. It felt so natural, as if it were filling a
deep need within me, not necessarily for the act of sex, but more in
order to experience the rhythm of a man and woman as they were
created to respond to each other."
The Sexual Consequences of Male
Circumcision
After circumcision, the exposed head of the penis
thickens like a callus and becomes less sensitive. And because
erotically sensitive areas of the penis have been removed, the
circumcised penis must thrust more vigorously with a much longer
stroke in order to reach orgasm through stimulating the less
sensitive penile shaft. In her study of women who have had sexual
experiences with both natural and circumcised men, O'Hara notes that
respondents overwhelmingly concurred that the mechanics of coitus
were different for the two groups of men. Seventy-three percent of
the women reported that circumcised men tended to thrust harder,
using elongated strokes; while uncircumcised men tended to thrust
more gently, to have shorter strokes, and to maintain more contact
between the mons pubis and clitoris.
O'Hara's research makes the following
sexual comparisons between the natural and circumcised penis.
The natural penis may be more comfortable for the
vagina than the circumcised penis. The coronal ridge of the natural
penis is more flexible; O'Hara likens it to the resiliency of
Jell-O. The circumcised penile head is considerably harder--overly
firm and compacted like an unripe tomato. This is because
circumcision cuts away 33-50 percent of penile skin. As a result,
the skin of the penile shaft can get stretched so tightly during an
erection that it pulls down on the skin covering the glans,
compressing the tissue of the penis head. The abnormally hardened
coronal ridge can then be very uncomfortable to vaginal tissue
during intercourse.
Women sometimes experience a scraping feeling with
each outward stroke and even report discomfort after intercourse or
even the next day. The brain makes pain-relieving endorphins that
may partially block any discomfort during intercourse itself. As a
gynecologist, I can tell you that painful intercourse is a very
common symptom in women, many of whom blame themselves or who feel
that something is wrong with their sexual response.
The give of the natural penis, by contrast, allows
for more bend and flex of the organ in the vagina, adding to a
woman's pleasure and comfort. The abundant skin of the natural
penile shaft further cushions the force of the coronal ridge in the
vagina. In addition, the mobile skin of the penis is "grasped" by
the ridges of the vaginal mucosa and held in place. The bunching and
unbunching of penile skin during intercourse enhances a man's
pleasure, but it also excites the woman. As one of O'Hara s survey
respondents reported: "What I noticed was that my natural man got a
lot of pleasure from deliberate, slow insertion and backing out
because his foreskin would fold back and forth, which would excite
me also."
Circumcised sex may cause the vagina to abnormally
tense up and decrease its lubrication. Women report more problems
with lubrication when having sex with circumcised men, possibly
because of irritation from the harder tip and involuntary tensing
against it, and also because the longer stroke length tends to
remove lubrication from the vagina. Often an artificial lubricant is
necessary.
Intercourse may also be painful for the
circumcised man because his penis scrapes against the ribbed
structure of tensed-up vaginal walls and becomes over stimulated
from constant pressure. The degree of discomfort, if any, will
depend upon the tightness of the man's shaft skin, the vigor of his
thrusting, the duration of intercourse, and the amount of
lubrication.
Circumcision may cause a man to work harder to
achieve orgasm, resulting in emotional and physical distancing from
his partner. When a circumcised man has sex, he may have to
concentrate intensely on the erotic sensations he is receiving while
simultaneously blocking out any uncomfortable sensations. Survey
respondents often reported that their circumcised partners seemed to
have to work too hard to achieve orgasm. And because of the erotic
tissue that has been removed, he can't enjoy the sensations leading
up to orgasm or his partner's responses.
O'Hara makes a compelling argument that
circumcised intercourse may frustrate the primordial subconscious
that seems to know "real sex ain't this way." She also suggests that
each circumcised experience has the potential to buildup negative
memory imprints so that over time, repeated sexual encounters with
the same partner may lead to negative feelings between the two that
carry over into everyday life. If this sounds like an extraordinary
leap, consider the question that O'Hara asks in her book: "Other
things being equal, which couple is more likely to stay
together--one enjoying delicious, satisfying sex or one whose sexual
pleasure is being compromised in many ways?"
The Solution: Foreskin Restoration
Fortunately, there are alternatives for men (and
their partners) who want to experience natural sex. This quiet
revolution, called Foreskin Restoration, can be achieved through
plastic surgery or non surgical methods. The latter work on the
principle that skin stretches and grows under pressure just like
abdominal skin when it stretches to accommodate pregnancy. According
to O'Hara, whose husband stretched his foreskin over the course of
several years, their sex life is better than ever, and neither can
believe the difference that foreskin restoration has made. Many
other men and women attest to this improvement as well. For more
information, the following resources can be helpful.
National Organization of Restoring Men (NORM)
Web site: http://www.norm.org
For an initial information packet, send $5 to cover printing and
postage. For information on joining the support network or to learn
the location of regional NORM groups send a request with a S.A.S.E.
to R. Wayne Griffiths 3205 Northwood Dr. #209 Concord, CA 94520-4506
Tel: (925) 827-4077
The Joy of Uncircumcising! A restoration manual and
more, by Jim Bigelow, Ph.D. (Contact UNCIRC, POB 52138, Pacific
Grove, CA 93950).
Restore Yourself! A Handy Kit for Circumcised Men
from NOCIRC of Michigan Web site:
www.RestoreYourself.com Address:
P.O. Box 333, Birmingham, MI 48012Tel: (248) 642-5703
Non-Surgical Foreskin Restoration, a Canadian Web
site with a great deal of information:
http://infocirc.org/top.htm Foreskin
restoration internet discussion group: To subscribe, send an email to
>restore-list-request@e...Type
"subscribe" in the subject line.
What about Religious Circumcision?
I am not Jewish (or Muslim), but I can assure you
that many Jews are rethinking circumcision. (I do not have any
information about Muslims). As a matter of fact, two of the most
well-researched and eloquent books on the harmful nature of
circumcision have been written by Jewish men. For more information,
I urge you to read Circumcision: The Hidden Trauma by Ronald
Goldman, Ph.D., (Vanguard, 1997) and Circumcision: An American
Health Fallacy by Edward Wallerstein (Springer Publishing, 1980).
For more information on the Jewish perspective, Contact:
Circumcision Resource Center Ronald Goldman, Ph.D,
PO. Box 232 Boston, MA 02133Tel. 617-523-0088 Web resource: www.
circumcision. org/info.htm
I hope this has been an eye-opening article. I
realize that circumcision may not have been the topic uppermost on
your mind before you opened your issue this month, but it's my
mission to bring you timely, life-enhancing information.My hope is
that you'll weigh it and then make the wisest choice for yourself
and your family.
Christiane Northrup, M.D. Copyright ©
2004
