Partly. A large Finnish twin study estimated that genes explain about 28% of the differences in premature ejaculation between men. The rest comes from other factors, and a genetic tendency still leaves room to train.
I’ve always had premature ejaculation, from my very first times. So it’s a fair question for someone like me: was I simply born with it? Here’s what the research says.
What twin studies found
The best way researchers have to separate genes from everything else is to compare twins. In Finland, a team led by Patrik Jern studied 1,196 male twins aged 33 to 43 and estimated that genes accounted for about 28% of the variation in premature ejaculation between men. A later, larger study by the same group, with almost 4,000 twins and their siblings, found the same moderate genetic effect.
So genes play a part, but a modest one. About 28% means the larger share comes from other things: anxiety, habits, health, the relationship, and plenty that researchers can’t pin down.
Why serotonin comes up
When people talk about a biological side to premature ejaculation, serotonin is usually mentioned. It’s a brain chemical involved in the ejaculation reflex, and Cleveland Clinic lists low serotonin among the possible biological causes. It’s also why some antidepressants, which act on serotonin, delay ejaculation. The idea that some men are wired with a faster reflex fits with lifelong premature ejaculation, the kind that’s there from the start.
What “partly genetic” means for you
It doesn’t mean nothing can change. Plenty of things with a genetic share, like fitness or blood pressure, still respond to what you do. In my case, the tendency was clearly there from the beginning, and I still gained real control. It’s not perfect, but it moved.
If you’ve always had it, you may well have a quicker reflex than average. That’s a starting point, not a verdict. If, on the other hand, it appeared later in life, genes are an unlikely explanation and a doctor is the better place to start. More on the two kinds in lifelong vs acquired premature ejaculation.
Sources
- Premature and delayed ejaculation: genetic and environmental effects in a population-based sample of Finnish twins, Jern et al., Journal of Sexual Medicine, 2007
- Premature and delayed ejaculation: prevalence, heredity and diagnostic considerations, Patrik Jern, doctoral thesis, Åbo Akademi University
- Premature ejaculation, Cleveland Clinic
The whole theme in one read: What causes premature ejaculation (and why it isn’t your fault)