Prostate cancer
Good evening Rabbi,
I recently listened to a podcast on medicine and Dr. Shem talked about how the male body has a mechanism for ejaculating semen that is naturally produced every 4 days, and if it is not ejaculated, it returns to the prostate and can cause diseases, and she said that they studied Mormon monks (I hope I remember correctly) who were able to prevent ejaculation for a long time and had significantly higher rates of prostate cancer. My question is – assuming that this is true and the study is truly accurate (which of course needs to be checked) how does this affect the attitude towards ejaculating semen? Is it still forbidden and should people avoid it?
I don’t know the matter, but from experience it’s definitely worth checking with other experts. All kinds of experts say all kinds of things and even present it as established information, and that’s not always the case.
But let’s assume for the sake of discussion that there is indeed scientific information based on such harm, and let’s assume for the sake of discussion that the danger is tangible and the harm is significant (this is also not clear). In such a situation, in my opinion, it is definitely permissible to ejaculate, preferably with permission (but if that is not possible, then also with prohibition). It is no worse than ejaculating for the pleasure of one’s wife and oneself. It is not “for idleness.” And of course, it should be done only to the extent that it is medically necessary.
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