Doctor's Advice - Sperm count worries

A. There is no need for you to fret. A lot of people have the belief that a male has only a limited number of orgasms available, or a limited number of sperms in his body. This concept seems to arise from Hindu beliefs, and I have often noticed that it is especially young men of Indian origin who worry about it.

But in fact, men do not have a limited number of orgasms, or a limited number of sperms, in their lifetimes. So there is no danger that you are using up your supply of either orgasms or spermatozoa. However, I do hope that you will take care to practise safe sex.

Q. Please don't laugh at me, doctor, but I am 19-year-old university student, and I am in the difficult situation of not knowing where my clitoris is. I am quite serious about this. My mother told me very little about sex, and I must have missed out on the relevant biology lessons. I have tried to look at my body, but I just don't know where this organ can be.

A. Quite a few young women have similar concerns. So let me try to explain the basic anatomy. The opening of the female genitals is called the vulva. It is mainly made up of two sets of lips - the major and the minor ones. The minor lips are located inside the major ones.

The clitoris is located just where the two inner lips meet at the front. In most women, that is around eight inches straight downwards from the navel. To locate it, I would recommend getting a small mirror, and using it in the privacy of your bedroom.

You will find that the clitoris is like a little bump. The visible part is very small indeed - in fact, it is usually smaller than a gungo pea. It is pink in all races of humanity. If you still have difficulty finding it, why not go and have a chat with a sympathetic female doctor?

Q. I am a guy of 19, and two weeks ago I had sex with a girl in Portland. For me, it was the first time ever. But for her, I don't think it was. Now I have got intense itching between my thighs, and the skin is flaking off, just next to my scrotum. Is this a sexually transmitted infection, Doc?

A. Definitely not. In fact, I do not think it is anything to do with the fact that you had sex with the young lady in Portland.  Sounds like you have a fungal infection between the thighs. Such infections are extremely common in young men because of the fact that fungi love hot, sweaty conditions. And in males, there are several 'nooks and crannies' in which a determined fungus can find a home - particularly the areas on both sides of the scrotum.

What you should do now is this:

1. Whenever you take any exercise or get hot, you should then take a nice cool shower - making sure that you spray the water between your thighs;

2 After each shower, you should dry yourself real carefully between the legs, patting the area with a clean towel - and paying particular attention to the zones on both sides of the scrotum;

3. Then you should shake a little talc into the crotch area;

4. Also, you should buy yourself a tube of anti-fungus cream from any pharmacy and apply it between the thighs, three times for the day, over a period of a week.

If these measures do not work, which is unlikely, have a doctor inspect the skin.

Q. Does the Pill make a woman sexier, as my aunt assures me?

A. In the early days of the Pill, which was probably when your aunt was young, it was believed that the Pill did indeed increase a woman's sexual desire. But eventually it became clear that this was not true.

In fact, researchers then discovered that a small number of women do seem to feel turned off sex when they go on certain brands of the Pill. However, I must stress that there are very few such patients. Furthermore, it is often possible to help them by changing the brand of Pill, which they are taking.

It is now clear that for the great majority of females, the Pill has no direct effect on sexual desire. Nevertheless, quite a lot of young women feel real reassured by knowing that they are on the Pill. And as a result, they are able to relax and enjoy sexual activity.

Q. I am 20 years old and female, and I have been with my boyfriend for two years. I recently got diagnosed with genital herpes. So I told my boyfriend, and he got checked and his test was reported as negative. He did a couple more tests, and they were also negative. How is this possible?

A. Herpes is caused from a virus, which is transmitted by sex. But is a rather strange sort of virus. Oddly enough, when one partner has it, the infection sometimes does not spread to the other partner. However, usually it does.

The other point I would like to draw to your attention is that tests for herpes are not always reliable. The blood test for herpes antibodies can often be misleading. For instance, a positive result may just mean that the person has had a cold sore on the lip, as that is caused from another type of herpes virus.

As your boyfriend has had three negative tests, it seems highly probable that he has not got the infection. But are you absolutely sure that you really have it? What tests were done to prove that you are infected? I feel that you should go back to the doctor who diagnosed herpes, and ask him to confirm that it is absolutely certain that you have the virus.

Q. I am 19. I tried to have sex with a girl in Port Antonio last Saturday night, and to my alarm I could not get an erection. Could this be connected with the fact that I drank a lot of beer that evening over a period of around four hours?

A. Most definitely. At your young age, the only common causes of erectile failure are anxiety and excess alcohol consumption.  Alcohol is very definitely the enemy of erection. Small amounts do not interfere with the ability to get erect, but larger amounts can make it almost impossible for a guy to attain a degree of stiffness, which is sufficient for penetration.  So clearly, you should cut down on your drinking. And you should also take care to practise safe sex. Kindly note that having sex while you are under the influence of alcohol is real risky because the drink clouds your judgement.

Email questions to Doc at saturdaylife@gleanerjm.com and read more in the Outlook Magazine tomorrow.