Can a boy have erections at any age?
Question:
Can a boy get an erection at any age? Can they get an erection from the time they are born, even though there is no sperm production?
Answer:
Boys experience erections even before they are born. They start as early as 16 weeks into pregnancy. These erections are not like those experienced by adult males. While the penis becomes stiff, it doesn't swell. Nor does a young boy's mind connect such stiffening to sexual feelings, though you will find plenty of psychologists making this absurd claim.
About a year past puberty, a boy begins experiencing erections that are accompanied by sexual feelings. However, early on a boy will not realize what those feelings are. In addition, the erections are much more pronounced in that the penis changes size and length during the erection. The feelings and the discomfort from the changing size is a source of extreme embarrassment for most boys, mostly because they are unable to control the events. These frequent uncontrolled erections are referred to as spontaneous erections. Even then, a boy still hasn't matured enough to produce semen. Sperm production and ejaculation generally begin later.
Therefore, it is not a particular age but a particular stage of development. Dr. Tanner developed a scale for both boys and girls to determine how physically mature they have become. Boys develop erections where the penis swells during stage 2. They gain the ability to ejaculate either in the middle of stage 2 or in stage 4 of development. The average age to reach stage 2 is about 12. I have written a small calculator to help boys determine what stage they have reached. It is at Tanner Stage Calculator for Boys. The girls' version is at Tanner Stage Calculator for Girls.
Response:
Thank you for this information. I am a teacher of sex education and child development for high school students who have a lot of questions. I appreciate your response and will pass this information on to my curious students. I want them to know factual information versus them hearing rumors from their friends.
Answer:
You're quite welcome. The book Growing Up in the Lord: A Study for Teenage Boys came from the desire of parents in the Washington, D.C. area who wanted sexual information taught to their children from a biblical viewpoint. I spent several years researching the material and I continue to keep abreast with material written. If you ever need references to facts, just let me know. I am also more than happy to answer any question, and I've gotten some wild ones over the years. One took me three months to find the answer and I finally found it in a medical journal, but the boy received his answer. I will even consider making a guest appearance.
