This Study On Masturbation Might Surprise You

Popular culture would have us believe that men are masturbating machines, if you’re not you are certainly not alone. A recent study decided to look further into this assumption and find out how much straight men are actually pleasuring themselves.

The study was carried out at Indiana University and came to the conclusion that actually only 57 percent of straight men actually claim to have masturbated within the last month. But they didn’t look into the specific reasons why that was the case, which of course could range from disinterest in sex to getting so much action that pleasuring oneself wasn’t necessary.

Other research has shown that anywhere from 14 to 17 percent of men have low sexual desire in general, which means that not only are they not necessarily out having sex but probably aren’t masturbating much either.

The study also suggested that some men might get pressure from their girlfriends to quit masturbating when they’re in his life, although we don’t see the harm in a normal healthy self-sex life.

According to?Debby Herbenick, Ph.D., a coauthor of the study:

“We know that quite a few women ?police? men?s sexual behavior, including getting upset if they find their partner is masturbating?and even more upset if they feel their partner is masturbating to porn.”

Masturbation can actually provide a lot of health benefits, as long as it isn’t taking away from your well being and real sex life. One Australian study done in 2003 found that men who ejaculate five times a week have a lessened chance of developing prostate cancer, and one study even suggested that it can reduce swelling in the nasal cavities. If you aren’t getting it elsewhere, might as well get it from yourself.

But then again other studies have shown that not all orgasms are created equal and they have different effects when someone is alone versus with a partner. Hmm…

One thing we know for sure is that men can also use masturbation to train themselves to last longer when they’re with a partner if that is a desire. Basically it can be paced out a bit.

Masturbation has also been shown to have positive effects on stress and depression by relaxing those feel good hormones into the body, as well as upping the immunity in the body. When you ejaculate the levels of cortisol raise in the body, which in large doses is a stress hormone but in small doses can jumpstart the body into regulating its immunity.

And of course it goes without saying that masturbation is the only totally safe way to get off when it comes to avoiding unplanned pregnancies and STI’s. Not that you should be avoiding sex with real people, but you know, it’s cool to mix it up too.

As for what’s a “normal” amount to masturbate, there are quite a few different opinions out there. Some believe that a couple times a day is fine as long as it isn’t interfering with life. But whether it’s very frequent or infrequent there is no normal amount to be doing it, just like there’s no normal amount to be having sex.