# Is Frequent Masturbation Good For You (Especially Males)? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 16, 2005, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266 "2005-11-16T04:46:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2005, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/61 "2005-11-17T21:41:17Z")
If excessive masturbation is good for you, then I will live the immortal life of a god. A hairless god. Two facts from the world of psychology and medicine: 1. A recent study found that sex on a regular basis increases immune system function. (Sorry, no cite.) I’d bet that masturbation counts towards this. 2. Yes, there is such a thing as too much masturbation. Compulsive masturbators can jerk off sometimes 30-40 times per day. They get little pleasure from it, but can’t help themselves. Problems arise when it affects their home lives, jobs, social lives, etc. It’s like any other compulsion. Doing anything compulsively like that is bound to have some negative consequences. While the act of masturbation itself isn’t harmful, the compulsion is. It’s a sad thing, and not uncommon. So now you’re asking “Is this me? Am I compulsive?” I’d say that if you still get pleasure from it, still show up at your job on time, and call your mother every now and then, then wank away. ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2005, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/62 "2005-11-17T22:52:35Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > So now you’re asking “Is this me? Am I compulsive?” I’d say that if you still get pleasure from it, still show up at your job on time, and call your mother every now and then, then wank away. On the other hand, if you’re getting pleasure from it at work while you’re on the phone with your mother, you have a problem. ---
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/63 "2005-11-18T02:01:29Z")
> [@ShibbOleth](#): > > Can you type fairly well with just your left hand? I won’t say which one, but for short periods I can type faster with one hand than with both. It’s impressive when I watch that hand typing. It just knows where the keys are and the fingers all seem to work independently and figure out where they need to be without me thinking. ---
**Author:** ![Hostile\_Dialect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e495f1/32.png) [@Hostile\_Dialect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hostile_Dialect)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/64 "2005-11-18T03:24:31Z")
> [@riker1384](#): > > I won’t say which one, but for short periods I can type faster with one hand than with both. It’s impressive when I watch that hand typing. It just knows where the keys are and the fingers all seem to work independently and figure out where they need to be without me thinking. Someone’s getting whooshed here, and I’m not sure who. ---
**Author:** ![millifoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@millifoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/millifoo)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/65 "2005-11-18T05:11:57Z")
> [@VCO3](#): > > The basic explanation I’ve heard is that jerking it allows you to release semen/spooge which would otherwise just hang out in your testicles, potentially allowing carcinogens in the spooge to cause testicular cancer. Soooo… what happens if one gets a vasectomy? The little guys can no longer escape. Are they just “backed up” and slowly turning carcinogenic? -mf p.s. my first post… what a thread to choose, eh? ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 8:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/66 "2005-11-18T08:20:19Z")
> [@millifoo](#): > > Soooo… what happens if one gets a vasectomy? The little guys can no longer escape. Are they just “backed up” and slowly turning carcinogenic? It’s only the ‘little guys’ (actual sperm) that is produced in the testicles, and they are a very small part of an ejaculation. So small that ‘backing up’ isn’t a problem at all. Most of the volume is the prostratic fluid, produced by the prostate as a medium to carry the sperm. It’s this fluid that we have to worry about. The prostate produces this fluid, and it’s the one where we worry about prostate cancer. The research seems to show that frequent emptying’s of the prostate reduces the risk of cancer of the prostate. This fluid stays in the prostate until ejaculation; VCO3 is mistaken in thinking thatit ‘hangs out’ in the testicles. Such frequent emptying also flushes out the sperm produced by the testicles, and it’s possible that this might also reduce the risk of cancer of the testicles. But since that is pretty rare anyway, the research didn’t show any evidence about this. This research only dealt with prostate cancer, not testicular cancer. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/67 "2005-11-18T16:03:43Z")
> [@Antigen](#): > > On the other hand, if you’re getting pleasure from it at work while you’re on the phone with your mother, you have a problem. Well, yeah, duh. When you masturbate at work while you’re on the phone with your mother, it’s best not to enjoy it. Boy, did I learn that the hard way! ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/68 "2005-11-18T17:47:38Z")
> [@clairobscur](#): > > It looks like an SM catalog… To say nothing of a motherlode of BAND NAMES! C’mon, can’t you just see the concert posters for Dr. Moodie Apparatus, Sexual Armor and Spermatorrhea Bandage? Um. Or not. ---
**Author:** ![Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2005, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266/69 "2005-11-18T18:08:02Z")
> [@Hermes](#): > > I’ve seen a few articles that mention excesses of sex or masturbation convert too much testosterone into DHT, leading to hair loss. > Here’s one: [Hair Loss - Caused by Over Masturbation | Herballove.com](http://www.herballove.com/article.asp?art=62) Your site is called [Herballove.com](http://Herballove.com), a site that touts the magical curative powers of natural herbs and is presumably a notch or two less credible than the Mayo Clinic. 😉 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-frequent-masturbation-good-for-you-especially-males/331266.md?page=3)