Some women in Central Africa, South
Africa, and Indonesia go through harmful practices to “dry” their
vaginas because of a cultural belief that doing so increases the sexual
pleasure of men they sleep with.
According to Daily Mail, these
women insert materials like sand, chalk, pulverized rock, herbs,
sponges, or paper before sexual intercourse. In addition, they douse
their privates in bleach, alcohol, detergents, antiseptics. Women in Java, Indonesia are said to “smoke out” their privates, by standing over burning herbs.
In addition to the belief that the
practice will give men pleasure, it is also believed that the dryness
will make the vagina firmer, as men are thought to reject women whose
privates have been “stretched out” due to sex.
However, drying makes intercourse extremely painful for the
females, and can lead to cuts, sores and inflammation in the vagina, and
increases the likelihood of condoms breaking. This in turn puts the
women at a higher risk for contracting HIV.
Speaking on the practice, a South African doctor named Marlene Wasserman, says:
“It’s definitely a class issue. Basically, a woman’s reputation depends on the size of her vagina. Among
women who are less informed and less educated, there’s an unbelievable
ignorance around the idea the vagina adapts to the penis.
There is
also an incorrect cultural belief that if a woman has a partner with a
large penis, her vagina will remain permanently ‘stretched’ – and future
partners will think she is promiscuous.”
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