Background
Testosterone is the primary androgen in men. It supports sexual function, muscle and bone growth, and influences mood. Testosterone levels show daily (diurnal) rhythms and react rapidly to sexual stimuli or competitive situations. Abstinence refers to refraining from ejaculation (through masturbation or intercourse). Claims that abstaining from ejaculation dramatically increases testosterone and improves masculinity are common on social‑media communities (e.g., NoFap), but the scientific evidence is more nuanced.
How testosterone responds to sexual stimuli
- Immediate spikes from sexual activity or cues – Sexual stimuli such as erotic films, contact with an attractive woman or smelling fertile female odors can trigger rapid increases in testosterone. In a naturalistic study where men visited a sex club, salivary testosterone increased by about 36 %, with those engaging in sexual intercourse showing ~72 % increases compared with 11 % in observers . A controlled experiment had men converse briefly with a woman and found that salivary testosterone increased significantly compared with talking to a man . Other work shows that smelling peri‑ovulatory female odors raises testosterone within 15–30 min , and watching erotic films also produces temporary rises . These increases peak within minutes and return to baseline within 10–30 min, indicating acute and reversible hormonal responses.
- Masturbation‐induced changes – A randomized crossover pilot study measured total and free testosterone in young men during masturbation, viewing erotic images without ejaculation, or resting. Masturbation and visual stimuli slightly counteracted the circadian decline in free testosterone but did not change the ratio of total testosterone to free testosterone . A later study monitoring salivary testosterone around ejaculation found a sharp rise during orgasm with levels returning to baseline within 10 min . These results show that masturbation does not produce a sustained testosterone rise.
Short‑term abstinence (days)
Several studies looked at abstinence periods of a few days to weeks. Key findings are summarized in Table 1 below.
Table 1 – Key studies on abstinence and testosterone