The Loyal Lover and the Mysterious Miasma

A faithful, uncircumcised guy feels embarrassed by a fishy smell when he makes becomes intimate with his beloved. He cleans it thoroughly, but the smell remains. What's happening? More importantly, how can he fix it without doing permanent damage or alienating his lover? Read on, get the facts, and find out!

Case #: 1636

Concern：

Hi, I'm 28 years old and have only had one sexual partner my entire life, the one whom I lost my virginity to. I have been with my partner for over 7 years and I get very uncomfortable when we have sex. The reason why I feel uncomfortable is because when we perform sex, every time I retract the foreskin on my penis there is a really strong fishy smell. She is clean and has got tested and always has regular checkups. I am really embarrassed about the smell and when I clean it, I make sure that I do it thoroughly and I haven't noticed any discharge or anything. Is there something that can help make the smell go away?

Discussion：

Human skin, technically referred to as the “epidermis”, is a lot like the paint on the outside of your house. It provides protection from external forces that may harm the inner structure or the contents, and it's a significant part of how people perceive the whole; e.g: “the blue house next to the white one” or “he's got an uneven tan from hiking”. Part of how skin keeps itself and you healthy is by constantly renewing itself. The skin you see on the surface of your body was actually formed about six weeks ago, and the entirety of your outer skin is completely replaced over the span of about two months.

The Price Of Good Skin

Unfortunately, those dead skin cells don't just evaporate. They usually come off in small clumps (larger flakes can be known as dandruff or psoriasis), and then go where local conditions dictate. The expression “ring around the collar” refers to a dark stain commonly found on the inside of stiff shirt collars; it consists of decomposing skin cells from your neck getting ground into the stiff collar of your shirt as you move your head around.

How Does That Explain This Smell?

Now, consider what might be happening between the underside of your foreskin and your glans. That's two skin-shedding surfaces, pressed together almost constantly, and kept in an environment where residue from sweat, ejaculation, and even urine can combine with cast-off skin cells to produce a veritable smorgasbord of food for bacteria and fungi. Which in turn, produce their own waste-products, and these are what you smell.

But I Clean It Thoroughly!

Much like how you can over-clean your hands and leave them dry, cracked and even bleeding, you can pursue penis hygiene with more effort than necessary. I recommend that you discuss the matter with your health-care provider and a qualified dermatologist specializing in skin problems of the genitals to get some finer points on what you may be doing wrong.

Without knowing more details of your specific regimen the only thing I can suggest at this point is to stick with a simple combination of warm water, mild (non-antibacterial) soap. In terms of usage, only scrub as firmly as you would on, say, your eyelids or earlobes, and for about the same duration. Scrubbing yourself raw can actually give invading microorganisms easier access to the still-living layers of skin below the “dead” epidermis, or even your bloodstream, as well as cutting down on the beneficial microorganisms that live on your skin.

You might also consider using an all-natural herbal supplement, designed to boost your immune system and reduce the odor-causing substances found in leftover prostate fluid. (TRY: Penis Odor Fighting Herbal Formula) While you'll still need to figure out where the optimal frequency of washing your penis happens to be, this supplement will work from the inside out to help reduce the presence of odor-causing substances in your semen. Good luck!