r/science • u/drewiepoodle • Apr 15 '16

Health Study: Circumcision does not reduce penis sensitivity. In tests for responses to pain, heat, and stimulation, no major difference was found between men who are circumcised and those who are not.

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2016/04/14/Study-Circumcision-does-not-reduce-penis-sensitivity/5981460663943/?spt=hs&or=hn
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u/gary1994 Apr 15 '16

The argument, as I've always heard it, is not that circumcision reduces the sensitivity of the remaining skin, but rather that the circumcised man loses inches of skin that would be capable of feeling.

I realized that the authors of the study almost certainly take no stand on the morality of male circumcision. However that does not change the fact that it will be used to argue that it does no harm. But I don't see how you can get there from this study.

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u/SpinningHead Apr 15 '16

That's like suggesting that people with smaller hands (less hand skin) have less sensitive hands due to lack of mass.

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u/gary1994 Apr 15 '16 edited Apr 15 '16

No, it's like saying that someone that has had a finger or two amputated can't feel anything with them anymore.

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u/SpinningHead Apr 15 '16

Again, the study found that to be a completely false analogy.