Is my stuff up to snuff? Penis Size trends…
Is My Stuff Up to Snuff? Trends in Penis Size
The Takeaway First
Every now and then I see a young man at the clinic ashamed of his penis size and wanting to learn how to make it bigger. As you can imagine such perception of being smaller than standard size can be socially debilitating. Ninety-nine percent of the times this type of patient has flawed views of what the average penis size – not realizing the number is a little more than 5 inches erect.
Study Details
- A search of the medical literature revealed 17 studies with up to 15,521 males who underwent penis size measurements.
- The average length of a flaccid penis was 3.6 inches (9.16 cm).
- The average length of a flaccid stretched penis was 5.21 inches (13.24 cm).
- The average length of an erect penis was 5.16 inches (13.12 cm).
- The average flaccid circumference was 3.66 inches (9.31 cm).
- The average erect circumference was 4.59 inches (11.66 cm)
- Also, if your curious to know which countries did best, that would be France at 4.2 inches (10.74 cm) flaccid. Least best? Korea at 3.3 inches (7.7cm) flaccid.
- – Veal et al. 2015 – LINK
We’re all busy people, and chances are you’ve never found the time to measure your penis.
Here’s the correct way to size yourself up.
- A “flaccid penis” is one that is un-stimulated or not aroused, and would be seen when the man is in the normal anatomical position.
- A “flaccid stretched” penis is unaroused and pulled to its maximal distance. Please, please, please don’t hurt yourself.
- An “erect penis” is one that is maximally stimulated, either through visual, tactile or pharmaceutical manipulation.
Penile girth should be obtained from the middle of the penile shaft, in all three states. Take a tape measure and simply wrap it around. When you’re measuring length, start at the base of the penis (right at the pubic bone) to the tip of the head of the penis.
But before we get there, let’s talk history. How long have people been studying penis length? I did my own search and found that the earliest formal study was in 116 years ago (1899). This study (Loeb 1899) examined 50 men aged 17 to 35 and found that their average length was 3.7 inches (9.6 cm). Not bad, Loeb.
The first studies looking at other variables (e.g. girth) I found were Schonfeld and Bebe (1942). They found that the average stretched length was approximately 5.1 inches (13.1 cm). In addition, they found the average girth of the flaccid penis (location of measurement not mentioned) to be 3.3 inches (8.5 cm), and the average girth of the erect penis to be 6.2 inches (15.8 cm). Apparently things have changed much over the past 60 years eh?
Does Shoe Size Really Matter?
Personally, I always wondered if shoe size really reflected the size of a man’s penis. So I looked it up. According to a study that examined 104 men from 54 to 87 years of age, there was no statistical correlation between stretched penile length and shoe size. Darn!
What about finger size?
Interestingly, it was not the size of the fingers but the length ratio of the second (index) to fourth (ring) fingers that predicted penile length (Choi et al., 2011). This suggests that anyone with a ring finger that stretches far beyond his index finger may be blessed in unexpected ways. Yes, some people have longer ring-fingers than index fingers and vice versa.
What should you do?
I provide this information mainly to give you an accurate understanding of “normal” penis size, why it matters, and some interesting facts about how penile length relates to other measurements. It’s always good to get to know your body—not for the sake of comparing yourself to others, but for the sake of knowing yourself. If your penis is below average length, don’t fret! The “ideal penis” changes with the times. For instance, the ancient Greeks prided themselves on their relatively small penises because they set them apart from the animals. That’s one way of looking at it, I guess. The most important thing to do with your penis is not to judge it, but to understand it and enjoy it.
References
Mehraban D, Salehi M, Zayeri F.Penile size and somatometric parameters among Iranian normal adult men. Int J Impot Res. 2007 May-Jun;19(3):303-9.
Shah J, Christopher N. Can shoe size predict penile length? BJU Int 2002; 90: 586-587.
Choi IH, Kim KH, Jung H, Yoon SJ, Kim SW, Kim TB. Second to fourth digit ratio: a predictor of adult penile length. Asian J Androl. 2011 Sep;13(5):710-4.
Loeb H. Harnrohrencapacitat und tripperspritzen. Munch Med Wochenschr 1899; 46: 17.
Schonfeld W. Normal growth and variation in the male genitalia from birth to maturity. J Urol 1949; 48: 759.
Bogaert AF, Hershberger S. The relation between sexual orientation and penile size. Arch Sex Behav 1999; 28: 213-221.