The 3 Scientific Benefits Of NOT Masturbating

Let's face it: masturbation isn't only fun, but has a number of other benefits, such as helping to prevent cancer by flushing out disease-causing toxins in the urogenital tract, upping your immunity by increasing the levels of the hormone cortisol, and relaxing you.

But is the flip side also true — are there benefits to not masturbating? In a piece in Vice, writer Ed Smith talks about abstaining from self-pleasuring for approximately 21 days.

He discovered that, as well as tidbits from the Reddit discussion board No Fap, the benefits of not self-gratifying include music sounding better, chores being easier to perform, and a lack of craving for sugar and alcohol.

1. Your productivity increases.

In the three weeks that Smith abstained, he wrote 20 articles, built a bed, wrote, and started eating better. But when started masturbating again, all his productivity seemed to disappear. He wondered if there was a direct correlation between semen and drive. If one didn't ejaculate would they have more testosterone?

Professor Jim Pfaus, Ph.D of Montreal's Concordia University says, "Holding semen in does not increase the likelihood that any of the constituents will leak back into the blood. However, if you are holding it in, that means you are not having sex or masturbating, which could increase your arousal in anticipation of actually having sex.

I think this is the energy that purveyors of tantric sex tak about. Learning how to maintain an erection and hold off ejaculation makes the orgasm experience more intensely pleasurable. So the increase in energy is more psychological and belief-driven than anything else."

2. You're better able to focus and your cognitive skills improve.

Life-hacking guru Tim Ferriss calls the trend to stop watching porn and quit masturbating as NOBNOM (No Booze, No Masturbating), and says there are many pluses to going without self-stimulation, one being that your head is clearer. The NoFap Redditors say that by abstaining from self-pleasuring you have clarity of mind, better short-term memory, an urge to expand your mind, and can see the big picture of life.

3. You'll feel freer. 

Some adult men still feel guilty when they masturbate. But if you abstain from it, you'll be guilt free (at least about rubbing one out). Some people become addicted to masturbating, so taking a break from it can actually be a very good thing and help you break the compulsion.