September 17, 2022
An intactivist meme claims that sex with a circumcised partner causes vaginal dryness. In support of this assertion, the meme cites two studies and a book. All three sources were written by anti-circumcision activists, and none of them provides evidence for the validity of the statements.
"Maintaining a fully intact foreskin helps to avoid problems with excessive dryness of the vagina, report Dr. John P. Warren and Psychologist Jim Bigelow in a scientific review published in the British Journal of Sexual Medicine."
In the 1994 paper Warren and Bigelow argued that one of the four functions of the foreskin was to provide a sheath inside which the penile shaft could glide, which "provides for more enjoyable intercourse for both partners and avoids problems with vaginal dryness." [1] The authors provided no citations or other evidence for these assertions. Our article The gliding function provides an in-depth look at this supposed foreskin purpose. [2]
"The tip of a man's penis (the glans) resides naturally inside his foreskin, making it an internally protected body part. But when the foreskin is removed, the glans or head of the penis constantly rubs against the fabric of his clothing and consequently, it forces it to adapt to its unnatural external environment by drying out."
The penis is an external organ. From a medical perspective the glans is not an internal body part. The meme provides no evidence that the glans of a circumcised penis dries out from constant rubbing against a man's clothing. Our article Getting to the point of the glans discusses the difference between a dry penis (which is beneficial) and a dried out penis (which is nonexistent in living humans.) [3]
"Not only does the dried out head of the penis demand more lubrication of the female sex partner, as Dr. Paul M. Fleiss explains in his book What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Circumcision, the lack of gliding action and the shape of the glans actually drags vaginal lubrication out of the vagina."
According to Paul Fleiss, the "dowel-like circumcised penis must scrape in and out of the vagina like a ramrod. This is hardly the way nature intended the female to be stimulated. The result is dryness, friction, and, if carried on for too long, pain." Fleiss wrote that "in the United States today... painful vaginal dryness is the biggest complaint women have about sex. This is also the reason that there is such a large industry in the United States that manufactures artificial sexual lubricants." [4]
Fleiss provided no evidence in his book for any of these assertions. Moreover Paul Fleiss should not be considered a reliable source of information. Fleiss was convicted of federal conspiracy and bank fraud for laundering hundreds of thousands of dollars and lying on a loan application to hide profits from his daughter Heidi's prostitution ring. A 3 year-old girl died because he rejected a link between HIV and AIDS. He promoted the consumption of raw, unpasteurized milk, and he invented the intactomyth that the foreskin contains more than 20,000 highly erotic nerve endings. [5]
"O'Hara and O'Hara reported significantly more vaginal dryness and discomfort in circumcised partners versus intact partners, in a survey of sexual enjoyment for women." Our article Sex as the researcher intended it explained how the study was a sham. Kristen and Jeffrey O'Hara violated standard survey methodology throughout. The survey was conducted over a period of several years. Respondents were recruited via an ad placed in an anti-circumcision newsletter. Survey questions featured prejudicial terms and were structured to elicit responses favoring uncircumcised sex. Some questions were added or reworded during the survey period. Kristen O'Hara admitted that she conducted the study in order to make circumcision "a women's issue" because too many circumcised men were happy. [6][7]
The Bottom Line
A 2015 Canadian study and a 2019 systematic review of women's knowledge and sexual satisfaction directly contradict the claim that a partner's circumcision status affects vaginal dryness. The Canadian study reported that more women preferred a circumcised partner than an uncircumcised partner for vaginal sex. The respondents reported no significant differences between circumcised and uncircumcised penises with respect to vaginal lubrication or pain of vaginal intercourse. [8] The systematic review found "a positive consistency between [male circumcision] and women's sexual satisfaction." [9] In other words, a circumcised partner is more likely to increase a woman's satisfaction and pleasure with vaginal intercourse.
[1] John Warren, Jim Bigelow; "The case against circumcision: Why the snipping should stop"; British Journal of Sexual Medicine, pp 6-8; September 1994
[2] "The gliding function"; Circumcision Choice; July 25, 2021
[3] "Getting to the point of the glans"; Circumcision Choice; March 5, 2022
[4] Paul M. Fleiss; "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Circumcision"; Warner Books Inc; August 1, 2002
[5] "The intactivist hero who committed bank fraud and money laundering for the Hollywood Madam"; Circumcision Choice; January 16, 2018
[6] O’Hara, Kristen with O’Hara, Jeffrey; "Sex As Nature Intended It"; Turning Point Publications; 2002
[7] Andrew Gross; "Sex as the researcher intended it"; Circumcision Choice; April 14, 2018
[8] Jennifer A Bossio et al; “You either have it or you don’t: The impact of male circumcision status on sexual partners”; Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality; 2015
[9] Jonathan M. Grund, et al; "Association of Male Circumcision with Women’s Knowledge of its Biomedical Effects and With Their Sexual Satisfaction and Function: A Systematic Review"; AIDS and Behavior; October 24, 2018