 _So you've heard that the foreskin is very sensitive tissue and "feels different" than normal touch. But how exactly does it feel different? Is there a way to find out? Try the "touch test" and see for yourself! Touch your cheek or arm. You're able to feel this sensation because of Pacinian corpuscles (which are one of the main types of nerve endings in the skin). These receptors recognize deep pressure and pain. But the foreskin has a different type of nerve receptor. The ridged band is a ring of highly innervated tissue just inside the tip of the foreskin. In this ridged band are Meissner's corpuscles, which recognize light touch and heat. In particular, they have the highest sensitivity (lowest threshold) when sensing vibrations lower than 50 Hertz. To feel the difference between Pacinian corpuscles and Meissner's corpuscles: Gently run your fingers over the back of your hand. Now, turn your hand over and gently run your fingers over the palm of your hand. Feel the difference? This is because the palm of your hand has Meissner's corpuscles, just like the foreskin and frenulum. They are what make our fingers and palms so sensitive, as well as our lips, anus, and other opening of the body. Penis Mechanoreception - How Your Penis Actually "Feels" the VaginaDr. von Neumann, who co-authored a manual on helping men get the most out of their Sexual Potential, writes: "[Meissner's corpuscles] are tactile sensors in the surface of the skin. They are what we use at the end of our fingers to detect very fine "touch" sensations. They are responsive to light touch and vibration. In the penis, they are located only in the foreskin and frenulum. These type of receptors allow the penis (through the foreskin) to "feel" its way in the vagina. Men who are circumcised have, unfortunately, lost this ability of very fine penile sensation. The foreskin is the only region of the penis that has Meissner's Corpuscles apart from the frenulum and its bands. This is the tear-dropped formation just below the glans of the penis as it attaches to the shaft. [...] Unfortunately for men who have been circumcised and have lost their foreskin, they will be unable to appreciate the fine, tactile feel of the inside of a woman's vagina. There may be some leftover Meissner's Corpuscles in the frenulum if it wasn't damaged too badly during the circumcision." This is why circumcised men will say that the most sensitive part of their penis is the small part of the frenulum that remains, if any. See diagram below:
_Fine-touch pressure thresholds in the adult penisMorris L. Sorrells, James L. Snyder, Mark D. Reiss, Christopher Eden*, Marilyn F. Milos†, Norma Wilcox and Robert S. Van Howe‡ Retired, *HIV/AIDS researcher, San Francisco, CA, †National Organization of Circumcision Information Resource Centers,‡Department of Paediatrics and Human Development, Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, MI, USAAccepted for publication 22 October 2006OBJECTIVETo map the fine-touch pressure thresholds of the adult penis in circumcised and uncircumcised men, and to compare the two populations. SUBJECTS AND METHODSAdult male volunteers with no history of penile pathology or diabetes were evaluated with a Semmes-Weinstein monofilament touch-test to map the fine-touch pressure thresholds of the penis. Circumcised and uncircumcised men were compared using mixed models for repeated data, controlling for age, type of underwear worn, time since last ejaculation, ethnicity, country of birth, and level of education. RESULTSThe glans of the uncircumcised men had significantly lower mean (SEM) pressure thresholds than that of the circumcised men, at 0.161 (0.078) g (P=0.040) when controlled for age, location of measurement, type of underwear worn, and ethnicity. There were significant differences in pressure thresholds by location on the penis (P<0.001). The most sensitive location on the circumcised penis was the circumcision scar on the ventral surface. Five locations on the uncircumcised penis that are routinely removed at circumcision had lower pressure thresholds than the ventral scar of the circumcised penis. CONCLUSIONSThe glans of the circumcised penis is less sensitive to fine touch than the glans of the uncircumcised penis. The transitional region from the external to the internal prepuce is the most sensitive region of the uncircumcised penis and more sensitive than the most sensitive region of the circumcised penis. Circumcision ablates the most sensitive parts of the penis.
 By Larissa Boeck Two pregnant moms are sitting together on a park bench after their birthing class. One mom turns to the other and says, “So you’re getting your son the penis reduction surgery right?” “Penis reduction surgery?” “Oh yes. All the men in my family had the penis reduction surgery done at birth. As a matter of fact, I can’t think of a single man who hasn’t had it done. I’ve asked them what they think and they all say it’s way better.” “Why do they get it done? I’ve never really thought about it.” “Well, all the other boys I know of have had it done and I wouldn’t want my son to be the odd one out. If he has the biggest penis in the locker room he’ll get made fun of by all his friends! Girls won’t want to date him once they hear about how big his penis is. I mean it would be cruel to make him go through life with a bigger penis! The smaller ones are so much more attractive.” “But is that really for you to decide? Can’t he do it later if he wants to?” “Well it’s a personal decision every parent makes for their son based on what’s best for their family. If we get it done when he’s a baby he won’t remember it, and he’ll thank us for it when he’s older! My husband is glad it was done to him as a baby, and we were told if daddy had the penis reduction surgery then his son should too so their penises look alike.” By now you’re probably saying to yourself, Penis reduction surgery for infants? What a joke! Believe it or not it’s the most frequently performed surgical procedure in the United States. If you haven’t caught on by now we’re talking about neonatal circumcision. All the commonly believed benefits about circumcision sure sound great. It’s “cleaner,” they say. He’ll have “fewer infections” and “he’ll fit in better.” Sure, when you put it that way, who wouldn’t want to be circumcised? But suppose we called circumcision what it really is- a penis reduction surgery. Does it still hold the same appeal? It’s one of the most commonly asked questions we hear from insecure men: Does size matter? Clearly it does, in today’s society anyway. Regardless of your age or gender if you check your spam filter on your email you probably get advertisements daily for “male enhancement” drugs. So in a world obsessed with penis size, why oh WHY would we inflict a surgery upon our sons that reduces the size of the organ? Because that’s exactly what circumcision does. The tissue removed during circumcision comprises roughly 50% (and sometimes more) of the mobile skin system of the penis. If unfolded and spread out flat, the average adult foreskin would measure about 15 square inches - the size of a three-by-five index card. That’s a lot! In 1995 Australian researchers were measuring the penis size of one hundred fifty participants to better understand condom sizing. An unexpected outcome of the research was discovering the difference in size between circumcised and intact erect penises. They found that circumcised penises were an average eight millimeters shorter than their intact counterparts. Circumcision also meant a reduction in girth of the penis by an average of two millimeters behind the coronal ridge and four millimeters at the glans. (1) Physical size is not the only thing lost in circumcision. An estimated 20,000 fine touch nerve receptors are lost, along with the ridged band, blood vessels, rolling action of the prepuce, and much more. Above all the right to a whole body and the ability to have sex as nature intended is forever gone. Would you sign your son up for a smaller penis? (1) Richters, J., Gerofi, J., & Donovan, B. (1995). Are condoms the right size(s)? A method for self measurement of the erect penis. Venereology, 8, 77–81.Upload the PDF for the study below:
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 You've heard of penile adhesions following circumcision, but how should they be properly taken care of? Adhesions (or skin bridges) are the result of two raw tissues healing together. With circumcision, the cut skin will try to heal back and can possibly attach itself to the penis, creating a skin bridge. This is why some doctors recommend putting Vaseline on the glans for a week to ten days after circumcision (which will prevent the two structures from reattaching.) But what happens if this doesn't work and adhesions form? It is likely that your doctor will advise you to rip the tissues apart, which can cause pain, bleeding, and scarring. It may be best to see what his reaction is before attempting to do this. If it's painful and traumatic for him, it would be best to leave it alone for now. We're learning that adhesions can sometimes resolve themselves as the boy approaches puberty and begins to 'fiddle' with his penis. In boys that are not circumcised, the foreskin will start to separate as the boy pulls on his foreskin (boys pull the foreskin out and away from their bodies, not toward their bodies.) Note: only the boy himself should be the one pulling. Everyone else (doctors, parents, etc.) need to leave it alone.
If the adhesions do not resolve on their own by the time the boy approaches puberty, topical creams can be prescribed which will weaken the tissue and help break down the adhesions. If the topical creams do not work, the adhesions can be lysed after the boy goes through puberty (18-25 years) when his penis is done developing. At that time, he will also be able to understand what is happening to his body and can have proper pain medication. Of course, if problems develop prior to puberty, they would have to be dealt with when they present themselves. The important thing to remember is: adhesions do not need to be immediately dealt with in young children or forcefully ripped apart. As said before, it is possible that the adhesions can resolve themselves. Do not feel pressured by anyone, even your doctor, to take immediate action. If needed, get a second opinion from an intact-friendly doctor first.
 A mother shares about the pressure she received from her spouse, and how her son's botched circumcision caused her to regret going against her instincts.
Posted with Permission from Author
When I found out my second child was a boy, I started immediately thinking of the differences I would find in parenting and care-taking between him and my first born daughter. As I sat at lunch one day with my sister and mother, my sister asked me if I planned on circumcision. We sat there talking and she informed me if she could go back, she wouldn’t do it to my nephew. My mother agreed, stating that if she had had the choice all those years ago, she doesn’t think she would have done it to my three brothers. I was unsure, however; I don’t have a penis, never had to care for one, never knew anything different than circumcision. But I was young. The world was changing. So I did what any reasonable young mother would do. I researched.
I googled everything I could think of, day and night. I watched videos, read articles, looked up scientific facts on pros and cons. I blogged and tweeted my concerns, asking for help making this decision from friends, family, and even strangers. In my heart I knew it was wrong, I couldn’t find any reason to justify it, but I also struggled finding a reason to justify not doing it to my husband. He was convinced it had to be done, that it was cleaner, that it was easier to care for, that it was the natural thing to do. My son would look different than his peers, he would look different than his father, and women wouldn’t be attracted to it. I tried to show him the research, I tried to discuss it, I tried to show him the videos, but to no avail. I couldn’t convince him and I was tired of fighting. Finally, someone gave me this advice, “If you’re still unsure and it’s that important to your husband, just let him decide, even if you don’t agree on it.” So I did. I relented and said, “Fine, dear, have it your way.”
The days and weeks leading up to the birth of our son, I still tried, without luck, to make my husband reconsider. Not even reconsider really, but to just consider another option. He wouldn't watch the videos and stated plainly that I had no idea what owning and cleaning a penis entailed; it would be much more difficult if he was left intact. Did I really want that?
My son was born early on a July morning, and by the afternoon the nurse came around to ask if we were choosing circumcision. I was alone in the hospital room at this point and nearly told her no, to leave him alone, but instead I choked out a yes and was told that he would be picked up tomorrow morning for his “procedure.”
The next day, I sat; silently praying they wouldn’t show up, that they would forget about us, about him, about his penis. They allowed me to finish nursing while they described the way it would happen, what they would do to soothe him and had me sign the forms with a shaky signature. They promised it wouldn’t be more than an hour- two tops. He would come back, right as rain.
I sobbed as they wheeled his little bed away from me.
Five hours later, I awoke from a nap to my husband standing in the room, questioning where he was. I didn’t know, they took him away this morning and I hadn’t seen him since. He walked to the nursery to question the nurses where they explained that he had bled “just a little more” than they were comfortable with, so they kept him a little longer just to make sure.
“You’re lucky!” The nurse laughed at my husband. “Most babies are way too small and the doctors have a lot of trouble getting the whole thing off. You have a big boy!”
For days, my son slept. Not the sweet, peaceful sleep of a newborn, but a fitful, obviously painful sleep. When he awoke, he screamed in pain, unable to be soothed, unwilling to nurse or cuddled closely. He screamed when he urinated or defecated; he was only happy when his diaper was off, but so long as his penis went untouched. I lived in fear of diaper changes. I wanted nothing more than to just leave him be; no diaper, no pulling his penis to ensure the foreskin wouldn’t grow back, no Vaseline on the base. Just freedom from pain is all I wanted for him. We both sobbed during those moments, his diapers always speckled with blood and his face always tear stained.
The healing process never seemed to end. As he got older, the bleeding stopped, but the wound never healed. At first, his pediatrician told us to continue to just put the Vaseline on it, continuing to treat it like we always had. It wasn’t until six months of questioning did she inspect a little better and found that, while the doctors considered him a “big” boy and claimed to have no trouble with his circumcision, they actually snipped too much off. Now, he will have a permanent scar about a half of an inch long at the tip of his penis. When it will become a scar, I have no idea (as of right now, it’s still an open wound, 14 months later.) We’re still required to keep Vaseline on it several times a week. We find blood occasionally on diapers and hear him screaming at the first sign of a dirty diaper. He runs away after his diaper comes off and holds himself sobbing. During those nights when his cut reopens, he and I both lay awake at night crying, wishing for an end.
We should have allowed him that choice, we should have waited. If we had, he wouldn’t be in pain several times a month... he would be whole with no pain, as he should be. I don’t know if this has changed my husband’s view on circumcision, and I don’t blame him for this. I blame myself for saying yes; I blame myself for signing those forms; I blame myself completely, and I will fight for tomorrow’s sons- whether they are my own, my nephews, or a stranger's. No boy should have to go through this pain, not for his parents peace of mind.
 A closer look at the use of anesthetic during circumcisions. Is it actually effective?A large majority of routine infant circumcisions are not performed with any anesthetic. In fact, up to 96 percent of the babies in the United States and Canada receive no anesthesia when they are circumcised, according to a report from the University of Alberta in Edmonton.This has many parents (and medical professionals) concerned about the pain associated with circumcision, but is a local anesthetic enough? In this research study, 11 male newborns were circumcised with a local dorsal penile nerve block, and 13 controls were circumcised without anesthetic. When the adrenal cortisol levels were compared, response to surgery was not significantly reduced by the administration of lidocaine. Some doctors use EMLA cream as an anesthetic. Not only is EMLA cream less effective than a lidocaine injection, but the manufacturer's insert warns against its use on infants and on the genitals of children: - EMLA is used to temporarily numb the surface of the skin. It is used for pain relief on the skin prior to procedures such as needle insertion and minor skin surgery in adults and children older than 1 year
- When using EMLA Cream, it should NOT be applied to the following areas:
• cuts, grazes or wounds
• where there is a skin rash or eczema
• in or near the eyes
• inside the nose
• in the ear
• in the mouth
• in the anus (back passage)
• the genitals of children - Use on genital skin prior to injections of local anesthetics (adult men only)
- Use on genital skin prior to minor skin surgery (adults only)
Sometimes, seeing is believing. The below video, which can be found on YouTube, is a recent circumcision, performed at a private clinic. It is narrated by the doctor performing the surgery, and is intended as a video for medical professionals. Anesthetic is used... can you tell?
 The United States, a nation with 4.5% of the world's population, consumes 47% of the world's Viagra (Pfizer's own figures). Turns out the same nation has been circumcising the majority of its male infants for generations.
A new study in the International Journal of Men’s Health shows that circumcised men have a 4.5 times greater chance of suffering from erectile dysfunction (ED) than intact men, revealing what appears to be a significant acquisition vector. Other studies have previously observed that circumcision’s damage results in worsened erectile functioning, inability to maintain an erection, and reducing the glans sensitivity, including an overall penis sensitivity reduction by 75%. A recent study discovered that premature ejaculation is five times more likely when adjusted for erectile dysfunction and circumcision.A new Danish study also found that circumcised men are three times more likely to have ED. Moreover, Israel- a country that routinely circumcises their baby boys for religious reasons- was the NUMBER ONE country for U.S. imported Viagra in 2010. It imported $172.4 million (28.2% of total sales, up 24.2% from same period in 2009). In fact, Viagra is so common there that the Pfizer pharmaceutical company asked for permission to market Viagra without a doctor's prescription- making it an over-the-counter medication. The truth is, you simply cannot change form without altering function. While there are immediate dangers and harm caused by circumcision, there are also other problems that may not arise until much later in life. One of these dangers is erectile dysfunction (more commonly known as ED). One of the major reasons that circumcision can lead to ED is because of keratinization. The glans (or head) of the penis is intended to be an internal organ, protected by the prepuce (foreskin). When the foreskin is removed, the head is completely exposed to the elements, including a constant rubbing against clothing. Over time, the skin thickens to protect the glans (much like a callous forms in areas of excessive friction). The head becomes dry and thick and is no longer supple and moist. As men grow older, the thickened skin of the glans becomes less and less sensitive, which can cause men to have issues with erections. Sensitivity loss is also contributed to the circumcision itself, which removes the majority of the specialized nerve endings in the penis (over 20,000). Below are some articles and books which address the issue of circumcision and ED: Acquisition of Erectile Dysfunction from Circumcision http://intactnews.org/node/138/1319461990/acquisition-erectile-dysfunction-circumcisionDoes circumcision cause erectile dysfunction (ED)?
http://www.torontosun.com/life/healthandfitness/2010/03/18/13277631.html
Is circumcision the reason we need Viagra? http://www.canadafreepress.com/medical/urology030302.htmErectile Dysfunction Evaluation after Circumcision http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14979200What is keratinization? http://www.noharmm.org/IDcirc.htm#keratinizationForeskin, Circumcision & Sexuality http://www.circumstitions.com/Sexuality.htmlA change in how intercourse works http://www.drmomma.org/2009/10/change-in-how-intercourse-works.htmlBook: Sex As Nature Intended It http://astore.amazon.com/savingpenises-20/detail/0970044216Book: The Rise of Viagra http://astore.amazon.com/peacefparent-20/detail/081475211XBook: The Joy of Uncircumcising http://astore.amazon.com/savingpenises-20/detail/093406122XHow Male Circumcision May Be Affecting Your Love Life http://www.coloradonocirc.org/pamphlets.php Sexual side effects http://www.boystoo.com/medical/conversion.htm http://www.reserach/cirp.org/ http://www.norm.org/lost.html http://www.notjustskin.org/ From the Journal of Urology http://www.cirp.org/library/sex_function/fink1/Fine-touch pressure thresholds in the adult penis http://www.nocirc.org/touch-test/bju_6685.pdf
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