Penises are Growing
Earlier this week we were talking about last week’s column about innies and outies and my outrage about body shaming, when one of the trainers pointed out that penis size is also a ‘huge’ issue.
Every woman in the gym burst out laughing and it came as a ‘bigger’ shock to those listening that size very rarely matters if you have great technique. Size it seems only matters to the holder of the penis!
And then the age old question – What is the average size of a penis. Every man in the gym leaned in to hear the answer.
I can only talk from personal experience! Most men are not as huge as they like to think they are Recent studies conducted mostly in the United States are reporting that penis size is increasing.
Formal studies have only been conducted in the last 30 years. IN my head that’s the 70s but it’s not – we’re talking 1992! The studies are also showing that sperm and testosterone levels are dropping.
A team led by Michael L. Eisenberg, MD, the director of male reproductive medicine and surgery and a urology professor at Stanford University School of Medicine in California, analysed penis measurements from more than 55,000 men ages 18 to 86.
The results, published in the World Journal of Men’s Health, identified an increase of 24 percent in the average erect penis length between 1992 (when the first erect lengths were recorded) and 2021.
The change over those 29 years increased from an average of 4.8 inches to an average of 6 inches. The calculations were determined from 20 studies that recorded those measures in more than 18,000 males in that time period.
The pooled data also included measures for flaccid length and stretched length (a way to estimate erect penile length).
All measures included were conducted by investigators and none were self-reported. The study team noted that erect length increased significantly over time in several regions of the world and across all age groups, while no trends were identified in other penile size measurements.
Eisenberg suggested that stretch lengths did not follow the same trend as erect lengths because there were differences in how measurements were taken, including how hard a clinician pulled for measuring. Techniques for measuring erect penises, however, appeared quite consistent.
However, a few studies have been carried out in the past decade in which penis size measurements were taken by health experts using standard procedures.
According to those studies, these are the average sizes of penises in their different states:
- Flaccid penis length: 9.16 cm (3.61 in)
- Flaccid stretched penis length: 13.24 cm (5.21 in)
- Erect penis length: 13.12 cm (5.17 in)
- Flaccid penis girth: 9.31 cm (3.67 in)
- Erect penis girth: 11.66 cm (4.59 in)
What Determines Penis Size?
Genetics is the most important predictor of your penis size. Just as your eye and skin colour are determined by your hereditary factors, so is your penis size.
Studies have found another factor to be a strong indicator of flaccid penis size — height.
Not surprisingly, your height is also determined by your genetics.
The following factors could also influence penis size.
- Hormones. If any hormonal issues arise during pregnancy, they could affect the body of the foetus, including the penis of a male child. For example, this can happen if the expectant mother produces too little human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG), a hormone needed to develop testosterone in the foetus. Abnormalities in penis size could also occur if the foetus couldn’t respond to testosterone, a condition called androgen insensitivity.
- Nutrition. Malnourishment during the time of pregnancy could prevent the foetal penis from growing properly. Similarly, teens who don’t get enough nutrition at the time of their puberty could have delayed puberty — a condition known to cause smaller testicles and penis.
- Environmental chemicals. Many environmental chemicals including fertilizers, plasticizers, pesticides, and phthalates can negatively affect penile development in the foetus. This happens because they act as endocrine disruptors and inhibit the production of hormones in the foetus.
Nothing can be said for sure at this stage because honestly there just has not been enough research. I can’t imagine there is this type of research being conducted and followed up in war and famine torn countries for there to be proper conclusions.
There are a number of myths associated with penis length. For example, many believe foot size and masturbation habits affect penis size. But research hasn’t found any evidence for this.
Your penis size usually settles down in your 20s.
There is also a debate about how one can enlarge a penis beside painful surgery. At Lola Montez we sell a large number of penis pumps and while the manufacturer swears blind that they increase size, I don’t believe the change is permanent.
I think they are great for strengthening erections and increasing erection size in the moment but I haven’t physically seen a permanent change.
How to Measure Penis Size
Knowing how to measure your penis size correctly is important so that you can buy condoms that fit.
To measure the size of the penis, you should consider not only the length from the tip to the pubic bone but also its girth (where it’s the widest).
This is especially crucial in countries like the United States where manufacturers categorize condoms by their length and girth. Here in South Africa one size fits most and they do stretch. I have put them over my fist to demonstrate – and I have a large fist for a girl! But if you are not convinced, we do have a range of XL Condoms.
Before you begin measuring, your penis should be erect, and you should have a measuring tape, a ruler, or a piece of string at hand.
To measure the length of your penis, follow these steps:
- Press the measuring tape into your pubic bone so that it’s positioned right at the base — where your penis attaches to your body. This is all the more important in those with belly fat.
- Measure your erect penis from the base to its tip.
To measure the girth of your penis, follow these steps:
- Take a non-stretchable piece of string or a soft measuring tape. A string that stretches could lead to measurement errors.
- Wrap the string or tape once around the thickest part of your erect penis.
- Check where the ends of your measuring tape meet. Make a note of it if it’s a tape. If you’re using a string, mark where one end meets the rest.
- Straighten out your tape or string. Measure the length from the end to the mark using a ruler.
Now you know where you fit in!
We also discussed very large and very small penises and the good news is someone will prefer yours.
The consensus was that size didn’t really matter to the women in the gym but we all agreed technique was king and that you could all brush up on that – and not from porn.
The stats were researched on the following websites:
www.everydayhealth.com
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