The snip promises sterilization, but that’s not all: A recent survey conducted by researchers at Frankfurt University in Germany found that men who’d gotten vasectomies also report improved sexual satisfaction.
Per the report, “The vasectomized men had significantly better results than the healthy historical comparison group in the IIEF [International Index of Erectile Function] domains of erectile function, orgasm, sexual desire and intercourse satisfaction.”
Women whose partners were sterilized also reported more feelings of arousal than those whose partners remained fertile.
So… what the hell is going on here?
Experts theorize that it’s all down to the vasectomy removing anxiety about potential unwanted pregnancies. “Increased sexual desire stems from not having to worry about pregnancy, diapers, college tuition and everything else that comes with having a baby,” explains Jamin Brahmbhatt, urologist and infertility specialist at Orlando Health. “Since erectile dysfunction can be linked to stress, no longer experiencing that stress can also improve your erections.”
Brahmbhatt also explains why having a partner who’s on the pill doesn’t have the same effect, despite seeming like a viable alternative: “With a vasectomy, the man is in control,” he says. “With the pill, the man is dependent on someone else to protect them [from unwanted pregnancy].”
But don’t rush off to the urologist just yet, because the effect is far from guaranteed. In the realm of erectile function, orgasm, sexual desire and intercourse satisfaction, only a little more than half of the participants experienced improvements.
Being sterilized is a life-changing decision, too: “Men should only have a vasectomy when they’re 110 percent sure they no longer want to have children,” Brahmbhatt emphasizes, adding that reversing a vasectomy is costly (anywhere from $4,000 to $10,000) and imprecise (successful pregnancies occur in around 75 percent of men who undergo reversal within three years of getting a vasectomy, compared to just 30 percent in those who wait more than 15 years).
So if your sex life is suffering, maybe consider taking advice from a sexpert before doing something drastic.
Ian Lecklitner
Ian Lecklitner is a staff writer at MEL Magazine. He mostly writes about everyone's favorite things: Sex, drugs and food.
