My penis is not growing bigger

Dear Enoch,
A number of men though may have a penis of normal size complain that their penis is too small. This complaint is usually due to comparisons with penises of peers and the fact that they are worried about their ability to have a meaningful sex life.

One’s penis size is largely determined by what he inherits from his parents. Unfortunately, men think their penis is always smaller than that of others forgetting that determination of size is done by looking down which reduces penile length, especially if one is obese.

The best measurement of the penis is from the lowest portion of the abdomen, just above the base to the tip of the penis which may be difficult to measure let alone measure the sizes of those we are comparing with. Looking at the penis in the mirror, however, gives a better size estimation.

It is true that during puberty (which starts and ends differently for each person) the testicles grow bigger and start producing more male hormones that result into growth in size and length. The penis typically reaches its final size four to six years after the testicles enlarge and at 25 years, your penis should have reached maximum adult size. A number of men whose penis size is said not to improve during puberty may be because of related obesity or simply if one is comparing with others using wrong measurements or it is simply “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence”.

That said, a few people said to have really small penises (micro penis) that do not increase in size at puberty, have either hormonal problems or genetic abnormalities (a few cases of Klinefelter’s syndrome XXY). An adult penis with an erect length of less than 7cm, but otherwise formed normally, is referred to as a micropenis and requires consulting a doctor early for treatment. At 25 years when puberty is over, hormone treatment is unlikely to help.

Despite the claims of exercise techniques and herbal remedies, none of these really increase the size of the penis and may actually cause bad side effects, especially when taken in high doses.

Fortunately, even if the size of the penis was relatively smaller, with an erection it is likely to increase in size more than the bigger one. Remember it is the fight in the dog rather than the dog in the fight that mostly matters in terms of sexual abilities.