Retraction of the foreskin.

Answer 1

Retraction of the foreskin.

When a boy is born, the foreskin is usually attached to the glans; much as like the fingernail is attached to a finger. Normally by the time a boy reaches puberty, the penis will usually have completed its development, and the foreskin will have separated from the glans. There is no hard and fast rule as to when this separation occurs. It would however be preferable that this happens before sexual activity takes place. It was once described by a doctor thus: "The foreskin therefore can be likened to a rosebud which remains closed and muzzled. Like a rosebud, it will only blossom when the time is right. No one opens a rosebud to make it blossom."

Even when the glans and foreskin separate naturally in infancy, the foreskin "frenar band"1 can normally dilate only enough to allow the passage of urine. This ideal feature protects the glans from premature exposure to the external environment.

The penis develops naturally throughout childhood. Eventually, the child will, on his own, make the wondrous discovery that his foreskin will retract. There is no reason for parents, physicians, or other caregivers to manipulate a child's penis. The only person to retract a child's foreskin should be the child himself, when he has discovered that his foreskin is ready to retract. The foreskin is designed in such a way as to make it feel good to be handled which leads young boys too often reach for their penis and play around with it. This is a natural thing and helps the foreskin separate and become more flexible. (There are no sexual urges involved at this stage, it just feels nice.) However we live in a society where we spend a lot of time dressed and is taught to be self conscious or are even admonished for touching our genitatalia. This leads to a situation where the foreskin becomes les flexible then would be preferred by the time sexuality starts to play a part in the process. The frenar ban in particular is the first hurdle to overcome. This area is right at the end of the foreskin and will need to be stretched; this can be done by literally grabbing the tip of the foreskin between the fingers of both hands and expanding the hole that it forms at the end. You can also gently begin to force a finger into it and get it between the glans and the fore skin Remember to always be careful not to use too much force. Don't hurt yourself. There is a lot of information available if you ask "How do I loosen my foreskin" at the top of this page. Just remember not to let any quack near it with a knife because genital mutilation is just not required.

1,The Frenar band (or ridged band) is a group of soft ridges near the junction of the inner and outer foreskin. It usually extends, or "puckers" past the tip of the glans. It is the primary erogenous zone of the intact penis. The high density of Meissner's corpuscles at this point of the foreskin make it the sensitive part of the intact foreskin.

The band is to keep the foreskin forward, protecting the glans when the penis is flaccid. However it becomes erect, the band expands, which allows the foreskin to slide over the glans..

John R. Taylor, a Canadian pathologist and medical researcher, used the phrase "ridged band" in an anatomical and histological study of the foreskin published in the British Journal of Urology in 1996.

Answer 2

It is normal for infants' and childrens' foreskins to not be able to be retracted. Some boys maybe be able to retract their foreskin as early as age 3, while for other boys the foreskin will not be able to be retracted until puberty.

When the foreskin can't be retracted in adult men it's known as phimosis. This condition can be treated by a series of stretching exercises and a topical corticosteroid cream over a few weeks or months. This option is popular with many men as they are able to keep the foreskin and avoid a painful circumcision. You should consult a urologist for help treating this problem.

The word Phimosis comes from the ancient Greek word meaning "muzzled" and refers to the condition in which the foreskin cannot be drawn back to expose the glans. most babies are born with phimosis, this is normal as the glans of the infant penis are fused to the prepuce, and in many boys the condition persists until puberty or his mid-teens. The concept that phimosis in childhood is a problem and an "indication" for circumcision was an error committed by Anglo-American doctors in the Victorian period, who suddenly decided that it was an abnormality ("congenital phimosis") which had to be surgically corrected. Up until that time doctors and midwives were more worried about a foreskin that was not long and tight enough, so much so that the Greek authority Soranus, author of a manual of baby and child care that remained in use for over a thousand years, gave instructions on how to lengthen an inadequate foreskin.