About how often one should conduct a self-examination of the genitals, in which situations one should run to a doctor, and why one should refuse from poisonous blue shower gels with "frosty freshness".
Men not only in Russia but also in many other countries do not favorRosen D. S., Rich M. The Adolescent Male. Adolescent Medicine: State of the Art Reviews. Philadelphia: Hanley & Belfus doctors. According to statisticsAdolescent male health, after examinations by doctors in childhood, the next time men see them is already at the age of 50 with a serious disease.
They especially dislike urologists and andrologists. But the penis is as unique an organ as the vagina and requires no less care and a lot more caution and attention regarding hygiene.
We turned to the comments of Dr. Darius Paduch, a urologist and sexologist at the Presbyterian Hospital in New York, and spoke with Daria Chernysheva, a urologist at the City Center for Endoscopic Urology and New Technologies in St. Petersburg and a member of the European Urological Association, to find out how to properly care for the penis, how often to see a doctor, and what diseases to beware of.
1. Self-examination is really useful
Dr. Chernysheva believes that self-examinations of the penis and scrotum should be performed from the very beginning of puberty.
Daria Chernysheva.This is an element of the boy's acquaintance with his body, but this procedure also has a medical meaning — early detection of testicular tumors, which, unfortunately, are most common in young men aged 18–30.
To get the maximum benefit from self-examinations, Chernysheva advises doing this regularly. Additionally, a person should have a notion of "norm" in order to identify deviations.
Daria Chernysheva.If a teenager starts examining himself at age 13, by 18 he will be able to notice changes: everything was smooth and even, and now there is some lump, and that needs attention.
It is most hygienic to do this in the shower at least once a month.
2. Wash your penis as often as possible, but with regular water
Doctors recommend washing the penis with regular warm water twice a day. It is especially important to monitor the area under the foreskin, as smegma — the oily secretions, natural lubrication, which ensures that the foreskin can slide over the head properly, accumulates there actively.
Initially, it is whitish in color and odorless. If it is not rinsed off, after a few days the color changes to gray-green and smegma begins to smell. The area itself becomes a comfortable breeding ground for infections. One of them — balanitis, inflammation of the glans, often caused by smegma accumulation — can be very painful.
Patrick French, sexual health consultant.It is surprising how many men ignore the area under the foreskin. Not only does [a lack of hygiene] regularly lead to complications, it is also very unpleasant for a sexual partner.
So before washing, one needs to pull back the foreskin all the way to see the entire head of the penis and wash it.
However, one should be more careful with the foreskin of a boy until puberty. Do not try to forcibly retract the foreskin, as this can be painful and cause harm. The foreskin may still be attached to the head of the penis and therefore will not fully retract. At this stage of the boy's development, there is no need to clean in that area.
3. Yes, you should wash after sex and masturbation
Unlike the vagina, the penis cannot clean itself; it needs help. And if a person with a vagina does not leave any liquids inside after sex, as the acidic environment will take care of them, then the remnants of any liquid on the penis need to be rinsed off. According to Dr. Paduch, if they dry on the skin, it will lead to a very rapid increase in the number of bacteria.
In real life, it is hard to imagine a situation where a man after sex immediately rushes to wash, but Dr. Paduch claims that the optimal timeframe is within 10–15 minutes after sex.
At the very least, one should wash before going to bed or use unscented baby wipes.
Dr. Paduch adds that it is especially important for uncircumcised men to pay attention to cleanliness under the foreskin after masturbation and nocturnal emissions, as dried sperm between the skin areas — is also an ideal condition for bacteria to multiply.
4. Be careful with soap
The penis is still a very delicate area that requires careful handling. Daria Chernysheva says that using soap is possible, but in that case, it is necessary to rinse it off very thoroughly: "It is especially important to pay attention to this if the man is uncircumcised. Soap is essentially an alkali, and if it gets on the delicate skin and mucous membrane under the foreskin and stays there, it can lead to the development of phimosis (a condition in which exposing the head of the penis is painful or impossible due to narrowing of the foreskin.— Ed. note.)."
Dr. Paduch also recommends using plain soap with a minimal number of ingredients. As with female hygiene, antibacterial soap is also unnecessary for you.
5. It's also better to be careful with bright blue shower gels
Russian stores offer men a rather limited number of shower gels — masculine options with "frosty freshness" or menthol. After all, no one should doubt the masculinity of a man who washes his hair, face, and penis with one gel. But for your member — buy a separate product for it.
Daria Chernysheva.Using shower gels with specific scents, bright blue colors, and menthol fragrances is certainly not encouraged. This can cause both allergic reactions and intolerance to some components. Therefore, it is best to manage with plain soap without fragrances and warm water.
Pay attention to any irritation, spots, and discolored areas of the skin on the penis. This may be a sign that the personal hygiene product is not suitable for you or that there is an infection.
Try washing the penis with only water for a few days, and if the irritation still remains, see a doctor.
6. Do not use scented talc
Genitals should not smell like flowers. Properly washed genitals do not smell. Stop torturing the penis and vagina with perfume, powders, and fragrances. Daria Chernysheva explains that this has become popular among men: "It is now fashionable to use deodorants for the genital area, special scented powders. Of course, urologists do not support this at all because it clogs the pores and promotes the accumulation of talc under the foreskin. These are all irritating external factors and can contribute to the growth of bacteria."
7. It is not recommended to leave the penis wet after washing
Urologists advise thoroughly drying the penis. Excess moisture contributes to the development of candidiasis and generally increased growth of bacteria in the area under the foreskin.
However, it is important to remember that the skin in this area is delicate, so it is not necessary to rub the penis until it is red. The optimal method is to simply pat the penis dry with a towel and cover the foreskin.
6. Don’t forget about the testicles and pubic area
At the base of the penis and testicles, where sweat and hair converge, the smell can be as strong as that under the armpits, so these areas need frequent washing. Especially if they have been in tight clothing for most of the day. Ensure that the area between the base of the testicles and the anus is also clean.
And it is a good idea to check the testicles for tumors and swelling. It’s worth doing this once a month after a warm bath or shower.
7. Do not insert the penis into places not meant for this
Daria Chernysheva.If there is a desire to diversify one’s sex life, there are sex toys sold in sex shops for that purpose. But there is a certain category of men who insert the penis into objects not meant for that. And this, to put it mildly, harms the health of the penis.
Also, you should not forget to wash sex toys with soap after use and thoroughly dry them.
8. Practice safe sex
Urologist Daria Chernysheva recommends always using condoms during sexual contact with new partners or those partners whose STD test results you have not seen: “Moreover, these results should be recent and ideally not single, but taken at least every three months.”
Regular adherence to personal hygiene can reduce the risk of HIV and other STIs. However, a balance must be maintained here, as overly thorough washing and repeated exposure to harsh cleaning agents can damage the skin of the penis, which in turn can make it easier for bacteria and viruses, including STIs, to penetrate.
Remember that any skin ulcer, scratch on the skin, and poor hygiene of the penis can increase the risk of HIV transmission.
9. Go for preventive check-ups
Teenagers without complaints should see a doctor at 13–14 years
“In Russia, everything is organized so that before the start of the academic year, schoolchildren should be examined by a urologist among others. But it is hard to say how this program is implemented: as a rule, the urologist is combined with the surgeon. In Europe and America, this function is assigned to the pediatrician, who monitors the child annually and can assess his sexual development as well. Our pediatricians simply do not have time for this,” says Daria Chernysheva.
So if the school inspection seemed useless, if there are still questions or if the inspection did not occur at all, the teenager should see a urologist.
In case of suspected delayed sexual development, according to Chernysheva, no symptoms should be considered in isolation. It is important to look at the development of secondary sexual characteristics, check whether sex hormones are released and whether they reach their destination: "You need to monitor whether there are signs of hair growth on the face and body, whether the voice has changed, whether there is a growth spurt. Simply checking a teenager’s scrotum for testicle growth is somewhat one-sided.”
Daria Chernysheva.In general, the norms of sexual development vary even from region to region, so it is somewhat incorrect to compare the norms of boys in America with those of boys in Buryatia. It is considered that one should really sound the alarm if signs of puberty have not appeared by 20 years.
However, in cases of early sexual development, parents should take the child to see a urologist and endocrinologist. Early maturation in boys is considered to be that which begins before the age of nine. Thus, signs of hair growth and a growth spurt at around seven should raise concerns.
Adult men should go for check-ups once a year
According to Chernysheva, there are no norms in Russia regarding how often a young man without complaints should visit a urologist: "However, a responsible attitude towards one’s health and one’s sexual partner still implies that a man should get tested for sexually transmitted infections at least once a year. This, of course, should vary depending on whether he is in a monogamous relationship, but as a rule, one should get checked once a year."
Dr. Evgeny Grekov, andrologist, urologist, head of the Urology Department at Professor Kalinchenko's Clinic, also spoke about the necessity of regular examinations for men, as, according to him, serious pathologies in Russia are first discovered only during military medical examinations.
One of the common pathologies he mentions is microgenitalism, caused by Kallmann syndrome or Klinefelter syndrome. In these conditions, the penis does not develop: it does not grow and cannot perform its functions.
According to Grekov, with early diagnosis, this can be completely cured with hormone therapy, but further treatment is more complicated.
10. Be sure to see a doctor if there are complaints
If there are complaints, do not postpone going to the doctor in any case. Daria Chernysheva recommends going to the doctor at the slightest doubt, as oncological diseases, such as testicular tumors, develop rapidly and very aggressively. She adds that treatment is quite effective if applied at early stages, so self-examination and timely visits to a doctor are indeed very important here.
11. Problems with potency can save a man's life
Any disturbances in the sexual sphere — are always a complex problem. As a rule, they signal endocrine and vascular diseases that cannot be tackled alone.
Daria Chernysheva adds: “It is important to understand that any discomfort in sexual life requires a visit to a doctor: premature ejaculation, too short an intercourse. These problems can be effectively solved, significantly improving the quality of life for the patient if he consults the doctor in a timely manner. Moreover, it has been found that erectile dysfunction may be an early sign of heart and vascular problems. Research has shown that signs of erectile dysfunction appear 2–3 years earlier than signs of coronary artery disease and 3–5 years earlier than possible development of myocardial infarction.
Therefore, the early detection of sexual dysfunction can, broadly speaking, save a man's life. This is a reason to visit a doctor. This is a reason to undergo a comprehensive examination, get blood tests done, perform an ECG, and, possibly, an echocardiogram as indicated, and check for signs of coronary artery disease.
