TEEN VOGUE: "Health Benefits of [Teen] Masturbation"

We've written a number of posts about the use of teen masturbation in pop culture as a form of entertainment. 

For example, we wrote about Erica Garza's Getting Off, which is a memoir about Garza's addiction to masturbating to pornography that began when she was 12-years-old.

We wrote a post titled "Hulu's PEN15: Middle School Girls | Masturbation, Thongs and Handys" where an actress playing 13-year-old Maya discovers masturbation and gets so overwhelmed that she can’t stop touching herself - even grinding away in her middle school's bathroom stall.

And we wrote about TBS's The Detour  where Delilah, a nymphet, got The Big O while riding Suzy, a snow machine. She shared with her father that she spends "a lot" of time with Suzy, because Suzy gives her the "greatest feeling" in her life. Subsequently, Delilah's dad purchased her a Rapid Bristle electric toothbrush that came with a card that read "For your "teeth" Love, Dad" that gave Delilah the ability to masturbate privately in the comfort of her bedroom instead of in front of the house upon Suzy. 

The latest example is Sammy Nickalls' Teen Vogue article "Health Benefits of Masturbation: It's a win-win" (APRIL 1, 2020). Here are the purported health benefits:

1. It relieves stress

“During a time when everything is chaotic and the public is facing a high level of anxiety [due to COVID-19], masturbation is a private and safe technique to relieve that stress,” Dr. Wiggins [sex expert and owner of Health Over All] tells Teen Vogue.

2. It improves immune function

Dr. Wiggins also cited improved immune function as an essential benefit of masturbating [...] some studies have shown that orgasm can give your immunoglobulin levels a boost, thus strengthening your immune system and fending off illness 

3. It strengthens pelvic floor muscles

Masturbation can tone those same muscles, which leads to better [teen] sex and less of a risk of uterine or bladder prolapse! Both of those things are good, but one is admittedly sexier than the other.

4. It alleviates pain

“Orgasm can be a natural pain reliever,” Dr. Wiggins explained, highlighting that it can also relieve headaches and menstrual cramps.

5. It helps you sleep

According to Women’s Health Network, through both hormonal and tension release, masturbation can help prevent insomnia due to the calming effects of good ol’ oxytocin and endorphins, which can help you drift to sleep.

Thus, it appears that, unlike the feminists who lobbied the government to have the age of consent laws passed, Teen Vogue is cognizant of teen sexual desires and is using that knowledge to sell a lot of magazines.