Does Your Penis Shrink As You Get Older? (Answer: Yes)

Like the rest of his body, a man’s penis changes as hits middle age. And research indicates those changes can include shrinkage.

With abdominal weight gain common in older men, your penis could be buried under what is known as a “large prepubic fat pad.” (Sexy, no?)

“One way I motivate my overweight patients is by telling them that they can appear to gain up to an inch in size simply by losing weight,” Dr. Ronald Tamler, director of the men’s health program at Sinai Hospital, tells WebMD.

But it’s not just your spare tire that will make your willy look wimpy—there is actual visible shrinkage in a man’s erection as he ages.

In both length and girth.

And it’s irreversible.

“If a man’s erect penis is 6 inches long when he is in his 30s, it might be 5 or 5-and-a-half inches when he reaches his 60s or 70s,” Goldstein says.

Why? Two reasons: First, plaque builds up in the tiny penile arteries, which clogs blood flow to the shaft. No less blood to the shaft, less erection. Second, over the decades scar tissue builds up within the tissue around the erectile “chamber.” Again, less blood to the shaft.

But, hey, it was never all about penis size to begin with, right?

Right?