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Getting the snip is a touchy subject, but a new study into the tactile receptiveness of pruned peckers has found that circumcision does not compromise penis sensitivity.
Debates over the pros and cons of foreskin removal have divided opinion among scientists and laymen alike for years, with some suggesting that a little trim can bring a range of hygiene benefits by reducing the chance of infection, while others claim that this limits a man’s sexual prowess by dulling the sensitivity of the penis.
Two main reasons are typically given for this supposed blunting of sexual sensation. Firstly, it has been hypothesized that the removal of the foreskin and subsequent exposure of the glans – or head of the penis – causes keratinization, whereby skin cells become filled with keratin, resulting in a loss of feeling. Secondly, since the foreskin is thought to contain more nerve endings than any other part of a gentleman’s member, it is often assumed that it is the most sensitive component of the whole organ.
To investigate this, researchers from Queen’s University in Ontario conducted a todger touching test, using 62 volunteers who agreed to have their private parts explored by strangers in the name of science. Of these, 30 had been circumcised while the other 32 remained “intact.”
Rather than just touching the participants’ glandes, however, the researchers wanted to really hit the nail on the head, so to speak, by also testing for “pain, warmth detection and heat pain thresholds at multiple sites on the penis.” These types of stimuli are thought to activate nerve fibers that are relevant to sexual pleasure, and therefore provide a good indication of how circumcision really affects a man in the sack.
In doing so, they discovered no difference in sensitivity between circumcised and non-circumcised men at the glans or on the shaft, thereby providing evidence that circumcision does not in fact cause keratinization and a loss of feeling. A full write-up of the study has been published in the Journal of Urology.
Interestingly, sensitivity at the foreskin was not found to differ from that of other parts of the body, such as the forearm, while sensitivity at both the glans and on the shaft was greater than at the forearm. As such, the study authors conclude that not only is circumcision “not associated with changes in penile sensitivity,” but that “the foreskin is not the most sensitive part of the penis.”
This news will no doubt be welcomed by millions of unsheathed men around the world, as all myths about sexual disadvantages have now been put to bed.
