What is preejaculate? sperm or not? Can you start from it? Are the risks high? Is there anything else besides pregnancy? Let's talk about everything in order.
What is preejaculate?
Pre-ejaculatory, pre-ejaculatory, pre-sperm, also Cooper's fluid - this is a transparent secret that is released from the penis during sexual excitement. Cooper's and Littre's glands, located near the urethra, the same tube through which sperm and urine leave the male body, are thought to produce presperm.
Amin Gerati, MD, a urologist at Johns Hopkins University, explains that pre-cum prepares the urethra for sperm to pass through. The fact is that urine creates an acidic environment that is very unfriendly to sperm. Preseminal fluid is needed to neutralize residual acidity and make the path safe for the seed. In general, think of the precum as an artist who opens before the headliner of the show.
Wait, so premena has sperm?
No, they don't live there. But these little sources of trouble can remain in the urethra if your partner ejaculated before sex—especially if he didn't urinate afterward. And if all the stars line up, Cooper's fluid is very good at getting live sperm into your vagina.
"Usually it's not enough, " says Dr. Geraghty. "The chance of preterm pregnancy is very low, but never zero. "
There is not as much research on this topic as we would like. In 2013, the journal Human Fertility published one of their results: scientists tested 40 pre-ejaculatory samples from 27 men. Live sperm were found in the presperm of 41% of the participants. True, it cannot be called first class: only 37% were mobile enough to make their way to the uterus.
The authors of the study noted that all but one of the "samples" contained up to 23 million sperm. It sounds ominous, but there's really no need to fear. In 2010, the WHO examined the sperm of 1, 953 men who had a pregnant woman in the past year, and theseonly 2. 5% of men had fewer than 23 million sperm in their semen.
And why are we talking about preejaculate at all?
The question of presperm usually arises in connection with the method of interruption (aka coitus interruptus - just like the name of the dinosaur, right? ), which couples often use for contraception. It involves a man pulling his penis out of the vagina just before ejaculation to minimize the risk of pregnancy.
As you can probably guess, this is not the most effective defense method: its reliability is only 78% with "normal" (not ideal) performance. And it certainly doesn't protect against STDs. But precum is hardly to blame for the dubiousness of the "do it yourself" method: there are no studies that answer the question of when pregnancy occurred due to sperm, and when - due to sperm, a drop of which still ended. up into the vagina due to man's carelessness.
So the problem is not that the pre-sperm contains a lot of sperm that can cause you to get pregnant. The point is that it is very difficult to use the interrupt method perfectly. If you're worried about two lines, choose a condom with a 2% failure rate. Also, make sure your partner puts on the condom before the penis enters the vagina.
If you resort to breaking up, remember: this requires trust in your lover. Do you know for sure that he is in control and always follows the rules agreed upon together? Discuss emergency contraception: remember that it is more expensive than condoms, and if the interruption is chosen out of economy, you can get into trouble.
And of course there are STDs. If we were both tested and did not live unprotected with others, then you have done everything possible to avoid such diseases. But if these two points are not fulfilled, then it must be taken into account: without barrier contraception, something unpleasant can very easily be picked up.
And the infection happens regardless of ejaculation. For example, gonorrhea and chlamydia often have secretions from the genital tract that can transmit infection, and for some STDs, skin-to-skin contact is sufficient. The condom does not protect against the latter, but it helps to reduce the number of contacts.
Well, let's sum it up. Precum is a pretty interesting thing that serves a specific purpose. Science still cannot confidently answer the question of what the risk of pregnancy is due to it, but it does not matter. The bottom line is that if you rely on the interruption method and don't use a condom, you're putting yourself at risk for pregnancy and STDs. If this idea scares you, talk to your doctor: he or she will help you choose the best protection tools for your lifestyle.