Why Your Flaccid Size Is Small

Let’s start by saying that most men desire a larger penis, both flaccid and erect, regardless of whether they fall into the average size category.

Conversely, men with less sexual experience perceive their penises to be smaller than the average size, while those with more experience overestimate the size of their penis.

So, as you can imagine, there’s a lot of confusion regarding the average size of a flaccid penis. So the definition of a small flaccid size will differ among males, as each man has a particular idea about how big their members should be.

Having said this, multiple studies have been conducted with large samples of men to find the mean size of a flaccid and an erect penis. You can use these metrics to determine whether you fall into the category of men with an average-sized penis.

A study by BJU International measured the flaccid and erect size of over fifteen thousand men. The results showed that the average length of an adult male penis is roughly 3.61 inches (9.2 cm), while the average circumference is 3.66 inches (9.3 cm).

The study also discovered that the average length of an erect penis is 5.16 inches (13 cm), while the average girth was around 4.59 inches (11.7 cm).

Most interestingly, the samples collected showed that while most men have similar erect sizes, their flaccid sizes vary significantly. And there was no direct correlation between someone’s flaccid size and their erect size.

Most men fall into this size group with a few outliers on either end of the spectrum. For men with a smaller than average penis, several reasons can be attributed to the smaller size.

Your Body Is Aging and Collagen Production Reduces

As we age, our cells take longer to heal and regenerate as collagen production reduces. Collagen is our body’s primary building material, and a drop in collagen levels means a loss of tissue.

While aging is commonly associated with fewer and smaller erections, a reduction in collagen can also cause a decrease in flaccid penis size. The most effective way to deal with this would be to take collagen supplements, so your body has enough raw material to work with.

Weight Gain Can Make It Appear Smaller Than It Is

The size of a flaccid penis is affected by the content of belly fat on a man’s body. An increase in weight can cause your penis to shrink, or to put it more accurately, appear smaller than it is.

When a man’s belly is prominent, their genitals often appear more petite and shorter in proportion. The difference in size is noticeable primarily because the abdomen tends to protrude, giving the appearance of a smaller member.

However, your flaccid size also changes when you gain weight. While your penis doesn’t shrink, a bulk of it, near the base, gets lost in your body fat. And as the size of a man’s belly increases, a more significant portion gets trapped in the fat.

Penile length doesn’t change much when you measure from the pelvic bone to the tip. However, the size drastically reduces when measured from the skin near the base of the penis, making it appear smaller than it is.

Increased body fat is often accompanied by a buildup of fatty deposits in the arteries and blood vessels that pump blood into the penis.

Without a steady supply of blood to the genitals, obese men suffer from erectile issues. When your penis isn’t engorged with blood regularly, the cells start to degenerate and could lead to shrinkage over time.

Medication Consumed Over Time Can Affect the Size

When consumed over a significant period, certain over-the-counter prescription drugs can lead to penis shrinkage in the long run. Certain medicines, like Adderall and some antidepressants, have been linked to a reduction in flaccid size over time.

Some medicines, like finasteride, used to treat an enlarged prostate, have also been linked to a reduction in penis size. In most cases, the side effects of this drug have persisted for months or even years.

Aside from over-the-counter medication, recreational drugs like MDMA and cocaine, when used regularly, can adversely affect the size of your penis.

Drugs like MDMA act as a vasoconstrictor, narrowing blood vessels to different regions of the body. And one of these regions happens to be the genital area, leading to a shrinking of the penis.

While MDMA and cocaine can increase libidinal drive, the same chemicals prevent your body from pumping blood to your nether regions, making sexual activity nearly impossible.

A few recreational experiences may not have much of an effect, and your penis should return to its regular size once the drugs have been flushed out of your system.

However, sustained use of these drugs can damage the blood vessels connected to your penis, leading to a smaller flaccid size in the long run.

Smoking Regularly Can Lead to Shrinkage

The harmful chemicals and substances in cigarette smoke can damage the vessels pumping blood to your penis. Restricting blood flow makes it challenging for your penis to get and maintain erections, affecting your sexual performance.

This report by BBC News revealed how regular smokers had smaller erect penises than non-smokers due to decreased blood flow to the genital area.

Aside from smaller erections, inhibiting blood flow to the tissues in your penis can cause them to atrophy over time, leading to shrinkage.

Lack of Use and Regular Erections

Your penis needs regular exercise, just like any other muscle in the human body. In fact, the phallus is designed to be engorged with blood, and frequent erections are imperative to the health of your member.

What does this mean? It would be best to ensure you’re getting regular erections, either through masturbation or sex, so your penis receives a steady workout. Without a regular supply of blood, the collagen, elastin, and other tissue in your penis will begin to deteriorate.

And a constantly flaccid penis will lead to penis shrinkage over time. You need to ensure erections regularly so you can keep up the oxygen levels in your penile tissues. With regular sexual activity, you prevent the tissues from atrophying over time.

Low Testosterone Levels

Testosterone is the primary hormone in men and is used to carry out various physiological functions. The chief role among them is the development of the penis and testicles.

While most men fall in the spectrum of normal testosterone levels, some men tend to have lower testosterone levels due to their lifestyle or medical conditions.

Additionally, testosterone levels start to drop with age; a condition popularly termed andropause.

Low testosterone levels can cause shrinkage in flaccid penis size over time. The decrease in testosterone levels is also why older men are more likely to suffer from penis shrinkage.

Men undergoing prostate surgery or who have prostate cancer are also required to reduce their testosterone levels gradually. This reduction coupled with prostate treatment can significantly reduce the size of the penis even when it’s flaccid.

Heredity

In some rare cases, men suffer from a condition called micropenis, which refers to an abnormally small but typically structured penis. The small size results from genetic or hormonal imbalances in the body, often occurring in the womb.

Most males may believe they have a micropenis just because they perceive their penises to be small. However, this is often not the case, as most men tend to overestimate the average size.

The issue is a medical condition caused by various factors, and only a penile length of less than 3 ⅔ inches (8.5 cm) can be diagnosed as a micropenis.

The most common cause of micropenis is fetal testosterone deficiency which can occur due to various conditions and can result from hormonal changes in the mother’s body.

Hypogonadism is the most common condition leading to a micropenis and occurs when the body is incapable of producing enough male sex hormones (testosterone). This reduced testosterone production can be due to hormonal or environmental factors.

Luckily, most cases of micropenis are diagnosed at birth or infancy and can be treated using hormonal supplements before the boy hits puberty.

You can also treat micropenis in adulthood through hormonal therapy or surgery.

‘Buried penis’ is another natural condition that can lead to small flaccid size. A buried or hidden penis is usually of standard size but hidden under skin flaps, either on the abdomen or the scrotum.

A buried penis can be caused by abnormalities at birth, excess fat, or swollen lymph nodes in the scrotum. While it’s possible to resolve this issue, a buried penis can be pretty complicated to treat as the treatment differs based on the underlying problem.

It may involve simple procedures like removing scar tissue around the genital area. But if the condition is severe, it could mean a more complicated surgical procedure, like suction lipectomy, where fat cells are removed through incisions.

Side Effects of Prostate Surgery

Prostate cancer affects a significant population of men worldwide and is a serious issue that must be dealt with immediately. However, removal of the prostate through surgery can lead to a substantial reduction in flaccid penis length and girth.

The surgery often leads to damage of tissue between the prostate gland and colon. This aftereffect can reduce blood flow to the penis, leading to erectile dysfunction. And most men who have erectile dysfunction will indulge in sexual activity less frequently.

As mentioned already, reduced sexual activity can lead to atrophy of the tissue in the penis, leading to shrinkage over time.

How To Treat a Small Flaccid Size

Now that you’ve had a look at the myriad reasons for a small flaccid penis, let’s go over how you can increase the flaccid size or prevent penile shrinkage.

Exercise Regularly

While regular exercise doesn’t directly correlate to an enlarged penis, it will resolve many of the issues that contribute to penis shrinkage in the first place.

It would be best to ensure you’re doing both cardiovascular and strength training to maximize the effectiveness of your workout. While cardio can help you shed weight, strength training enables your body to burn fat even when you aren’t working out.

Adding an exercise regime to your lifestyle will help keep the weight off and improve blood circulation, increasing blood flow to all areas of your body. You can avoid having your penis look small due to a protruding belly by staying trim and fit.

Regular strength training will also help boost testosterone levels in the body, which will, in turn, improve penile function, giving you harder, longer-lasting erections.

And as mentioned, just like any other muscle in the body, your penis follows the ‘use it or lose it’ philosophy. By exercising your penis through regular erections, you can keep your flaccid size steady and avoid shrinkage in the long run.

Improve Your Diet

Improving your diet can significantly decrease the likelihood of shrinkage and contribute to a healthier, standard flaccid size. Diets rich in meat, dairy, and other products with saturated fats tend to clog arteries and reduce blood flow to the penis.

As you’re aware by now, reduced erectile function leads to atrophying of the various muscle tissues in your penis. By unclogging your arteries and improving blood flow to your nether regions, you can improve your erections, leading to normal flaccid size.

It’s best to ensure you’re eating plenty of nuts, seeds, and plant-based foods, so essential micronutrients are circulated throughout your body. Studies have also shown that a whole-foods plant-based diet contributes to better erections in the long run.

Additionally, a plant-based diet also drastically reduces the risk of prostate cancer, ensuring that your flaccid size isn’t affected by a life-changing surgery.

Make Lifestyle Changes

If you’re a smoker, consider giving up the habit to improve the health and size of your penis. While it can be challenging to quit, the benefits associated with a nicotine-free life go beyond a bigger flaccid penis.

It would be best to integrate frequent sexual activity into your life to increase blood flow and lead to better, long-lasting erections. You may do so in private through masturbation or with a sexual partner.

However, when masturbating, it’s important to avoid watching too much porn as it can reduce sexual satisfaction, leading to fewer erections.

Use Penis Pumps

A penis pump helps to create a vacuum that draws blood into the penis, causing it to swell, so your penis gets temporarily longer and harder.

It’s advised that you use a penis pump in consultation with a medical practitioner who can prescribe how to use one effectively.

Use Penis Pumps

A penis pump helps to create a vacuum that draws blood into the penis, causing it to swell, so your penis gets temporarily longer and harder.

It’s advised that you use a penis pump in consultation with a medical practitioner who can prescribe how to use one effectively.

Use Penis Stretchers

Penis stretchers are perhaps the most effective way to increase the length of your penis gradually. A study published by the Journal of Sexual Medicine proved that stretchers could help improve the average flaccid length of a penis when used over some time.

These stretchers are usually attached to either end of the phallus and pull on both ends, stretching out the tissue and creating micro-tears along the penis.

This process is similar to a strength workout, where torn or strained muscles grow back bigger and stronger. So stretchers can, in effect, enhance size and improve erections.

However, there’s a caveat. The men involved had to perform this activity for almost three months to notice even a tiny change in the length of their members.

Take Medication

Some pills can help increase penis size for a short period, both when flaccid and erect. It’s worth mentioning again that most men fall within the category of standard penis size, and regularly using pills for a larger penis can be detrimental in the long run.

Medicines like Epimedium, better known as Horny Goat Weed, can help improve sensation, enhancing blood flow during sexual activity. This increase in blood flow can prevent shrinkage and improve flaccid size.

Cialis is another medicine that helps improve blood flow to the penile area, resulting in a larger penis during intercourse.

Get Penis Injections

Penile injections have been used before to enhance penis girth and length. In the case of reconstructive surgery, injections may be required to supplement the procedure.

However, penile injections are futile to increase size as the fatty tissue that goes into your penis tends to dissolve quickly, making this a temporary solution.

More importantly, injections can leave you with a deformed penis or scarring, effects that aren’t worth the incremental increase in size.

Final Thoughts

The size of a man’s penis will vary based on several factors, and there has been no correlation between flaccid and erect size.

It’s important to remember that each person’s body is unique and embrace that uniqueness, even if you feel like your penis is below average size (even though this is likely not the case).

And if you can gain and maintain an erection and use it to satisfy a sexual partner successfully, your flaccid size shouldn’t make much of a difference to your sex life.