Hmph. Science vs the G- Spot

[sophia jane]

Check out this article:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/01/0...+(RSS:+Top+Stories)&utm_content=Google+Reader

Women everywhere have read or heard that they may possess a secret pleasure zone inside their bodies that, if stimulated correctly, yields intense pleasure and even orgasm.
But this so-called G-spot has never been precisely identified as a concrete biological entity. Scientists are still arguing over what it is and whether it exists at all.
Researchers at King's College London in the United Kingdom have brought the elusive G-spot to the forefront with a study of more than 1,800 female twins. The study suggests that there is no genetic basis for the G-spot and that environmental or psychological factors may contribute to whether a woman believes that she has a G-spot. The new study is published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine.
But the lead study author, clinical psychologist Andrea Burri, isn't sure that the question was asked in a way that accurately got the information the researchers were seeking, as reflected in the study's discussion section.
Her team did not physically examine the women for the presence of G-spots but instead gave participants a survey asking whether they believed that they had a "so called G-spot, a small area the size of a 20p coin on the front wall of your vagina that is sensitive to deep pressure?" (A 20p coin is about the size of an American nickel.)
They found that 56 percent of respondents answered "yes" and that there was no genetic correlation. But only about 30 percent said they were able to achieve orgasm during intercourse, which may indicate that women were confused by the G-spot question because stimulation of the G-spot is supposed to induce orgasm, she said.
The definition of G-spot in the study is too specific and doesn't take into account that some women perceive their G-spots as bigger or smaller, or higher or lower, said Debby Herbenick, research scientist at Indiana University and author of the book "Because It Feels Good."
"It's not so much that it's a thing that we can see, but it has been pretty widely accepted that many women find it pleasurable, if not orgasmic, to be stimulated on the front wall of the vagina," said Herbenick, who was not involved in the study.
If at the end of the day, someone's invented something and they feel pleasure from it, then I think that's great.
--Debby Herbenick, University of Indiana researcher

The study also found correlations with personality components in women who did report having G-spots: For instance, these women tended to be more extroverted, arousable and open to experience, which may indicate a psychological component to the G-spot, Burri said.
More research is necessary to make more conclusive statements about whether the G-spot has a physiological basis, experts say.
"I don't think that these are invented experiences at all," Herbenick said. "And if at the end of the day, someone's invented something and they feel pleasure from it, then I think that's great."
The G-spot has been so difficult to identify because it is more of a physiological change -- akin to swallowing or urinating -- than an anatomic structure such as a nipple, said Dr. Irwin Goldstein, director of sexual medicine at Alvarado Hospital in San Diego, California, who oversees the peer review process for the Journal of Sexual Medicine.
But a recent study that adds credence to the G-spot concept. French researchers Odile Buisson and Pierre Foldès did ultrasounds of a small number of women having intercourse with men. By looking at the changes in the vagina, the researchers found physiological evidence of the G-spot. This study is under review at the Journal of Sexual Medicine, Goldstein said.
The G-spot is named after Dr. Ernst Grafenberg, a gynecologist known for his research on female genitalia. He described this pleasure zone of the vagina in a 1950 paper.
The 1982 book "The G Spot: And Other Discoveries About Human Sexuality" made the term "G-spot" popular.
A small study by Italian researchers in the Journal of Sexual Medicine in 2008 found that women who were able to achieve vaginal orgasms had thicker tissue between the vagina and the urethra, where the G-spot is said to reside.
A minority of women say they ejaculate when they have a G-spot orgasm. Some sex researchers say this fluid comes from a gland that's near the G-spot area.
Men also have a G-spot of sorts, below the scrotum and above the anus, Goldstein said, although it has not gotten as much attention as the more mysterious female G-spot.
Experts agree that the idea of the G-spot has put pressure on both women and their male partners to find some kind of hidden treasure that leads to orgasm from the penis alone.
"Initially, it was a good concept, because who wouldn't like the idea of 'push a button and get the best orgasm ever?' " Burri said. But those women who can't orgasm from vaginal intercourse may feel inadequate, and knowing that the G-spot may not exist can take some pressure off.
Women should explore their bodies, find out what they like, and communicate that information to their partners, Herbenick said.
"Whether you call it your G-spot or the front wall of your vagina, or if you make up a silly name for it ... at the end of the day, it's what you like and how your body works," she said.

 

[sophia jane]

This whole article really irritates me. Will be more articulate later. But am curious about others' thoughts.

 

[3113]

I do believe in the G-Spot! I do, I do, I do! http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:wOhiwCByy61I9M:http://images.zaazu.com/img/praying-animated-animation-praying-smiley-emoticon-000338-medium.gif

 

[lance gt]

I wonder how this study compares to the survey we took in your thread. Many women said some of the same things both for and against the Gspot and squirting. Maybe there is some significance to a psychological stimulation causing it and not an actual 'open you up and look at it' spot. I know there is a distinct difference in the texture of the tissue covering it, but whether that is a physical re-action from psychological stimulation or a natural occurance during sexual stimulation, I don't know.

 

[jomar]

The G-spot has been so difficult to identify because it is more of a physiological change -- akin to swallowing or urinating -- than an anatomic structure such as a nipple, said Dr. Irwin Goldstein, director of sexual medicine at Alvarado Hospital in San Diego, California, who oversees the peer review process for the Journal of Sexual Medicine.
...

Men also have a G-spot of sorts, below the scrotum and above the anus, Goldstein said.

Sheesh. No wonder he can't find the female G-spot, he can't even find his own.

 

[Stella_Omega]

Yeah, if you push deep enough into your perineum, guys, you might hit your prostate. It's easier to find with a finger up your butt, of course.

Honestly, how did this dude get his degree, much less his directorship?

 

[sophia jane]

I can't decide what bothered me more about this article-

that a mainstream media outlet does an article about sex that turns out to be crap?

that researchers are suggesting that difference in perception on women's sexuality and sexual responses means that the gspot must not exist?

or there's this- "The study also found correlations with personality components in women who did report having G-spots: For instance, these women tended to be more extroverted, arousable and open to experience, which may indicate a psychological component to the G-spot, Burri said."
Does it not occur to anyone that besides the psychological component (which is definitely a valid part of all sexual response), women who are more open to experience are probably more likely to try new things, explore their bodies and so are more apt to know what the hell their gspot is than a woman who (for example) only has missionary sex once a week. That alone will cause a big difference in experience and perception.

I think what most irked me was this bit- ""Initially, it was a good concept, because who wouldn't like the idea of 'push a button and get the best orgasm ever?' " Burri said. But those women who can't orgasm from vaginal intercourse may feel inadequate, and knowing that the G-spot may not exist can take some pressure off."
Yeah, we should totally say it doesn't exist so that some women won't feel inadequate. Nutballs like this guy who spout of stupid shit from their "research" are part of the reason women think there's a right/wrong way to feel and a right/wrong way to be a sexual being.

 

[3113]

Nutballs like this guy who spout of stupid shit from their "research" are part of the reason women think there's a right/wrong way to feel and a right/wrong way to be a sexual being.

Hush. I find this all very optimistic. If I believe hard enough, I'll have a g-spot and it'll work....

Hm. Not working yet. Maybe if I clap my hands? It brought Tinkerbell back to life....

 

[JamesSD]

It's a shame when the media runs with pretty questionable science.

I'm actually shocked there was no genetic correlation, if only because genetic factors often correlate strongly with traits like sexual openness. For example, I would expect a genetic correlation for belief in conspiracy theories. If the G-spot was totally made up, you really should still see at least some genetic correlation in perception.

I'm actually in the camp that believes the g-spot is really part of the clitoris, and just as some women have larger or smaller clitorati, some women are going to have more or less intense or accessible g-spots.

 

[Stella_Omega]

Do you also believe that your prostate is a part of your penis, James? All of those functions are interrelated, but not necessarily homogenous, yanno.

However, if you want to search for it, never stop!

 

[CopperSkink]

I find it difficult to believe that the G-spot is something women "made up" because they wanted "instant orgasm." I've stimulated my woman many different ways, but never so well as the one spot where the G-spot supposedly doesn't exist. That would mean she got the instant orgasm because I wanted it to be so.

 

[glynndah]

So, if I believe I don't have a pancreas, it doesn't exist?

 

[TE999]

So, if I believe I don't have a pancreas, it doesn't exist?

If that would work for an appendix or kidney stones a lot of doctors would go broke.

 

[sophia jane]

This article is now the top story on cnn. Boo.

 

[voluptuary_manque]

It'll be gone in a month or so. Science has become nothing more than a way to get your name in the papers. Sad . . .

 

[3113]

That would mean she got the instant orgasm because I wanted it to be so.

Ah-HA! So I'm not the one who has to believe, it's my husband who has to believe! He's the one whose kept me from a G-spot orgasm by not believing in G-Spots!

 

[Stella_Omega]

This article is now the top story on cnn. Boo.

The comments are pretty funny...

 

[Huckleman2000]

So, what did women do before men discovered your orgasms?

 

[Stella_Omega]

So, what did women do before men discovered your orgasms?

A friend of mine wrote a story in which the sweet princess has never had an orgasm because she's lived in a harem and there were no men to give her one, so it never occurred to her to masturbate, because only men think of those things, evidently. Or maybe only in the company of women?

So I wrote a sequel that set the record straight, and the sweet princess taught another woman about fisting.

 

[CopperSkink]

If it helps any, my woman just confirmed that whatever it was, there was indeed a spot, and I had "hit it again and again." No squirting, though. You'd figure the squirting was a lot more rare than the G-spot, so that should be what science is trying to call a myth.

 

[3113]

So, what did women do before men discovered your orgasms?

Knitted. Made quilts. Invented language, fire, the wheel a few other things.....

 

[Stella_Omega]

Knitted. Made quilts. Invented language, fire, the wheel a few other things.....

Cooked a hella filet mignon.

 

[Trinique_Fire]

Interesting article. May explain a lot about how the human brain works.

 

[Handley_Page]

Last I heard, the medics with the knives were still finding little bundles of nerve fibres in places where they'd hitherto not been sought, particularly in and around the region known as the G-spot.

The jury is still out, folks. . . . . .

 

[sophia jane]

The comments are pretty funny...

Yeah, the comments are pretty enlightening. And totally another example on the differences in perception.