When it comes to sex, the less you know, the more you’re at risk. Get the facts on 9 of the biggest sex myths out there. Plus, test your sexpertise with our quiz…<\/p>\n
Myth #1: You can\u2019t get pregnant if you do it standing up.<\/p>\n
Fact: Sperm are Olympic-class swimmers with a single-mission mentality \u2013 find the egg and fertilize it.<\/p>\n
The myth’s underlying assumption \u2013 that it\u2019s harder for sperm to swim against gravity, making it more difficult for you to get pregnant \u2013 is wrong,\u201d says Aletha Akers, M.D., MPH, assistant professor of gynecology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. \u201cSperm can swim in any direction, and they swim pretty darn fast.\u201d<\/p>\n
Myth #2: You can\u2019t get pregnant if he pulls out.<\/p>\n
Fact: You\u2019d think that if a guy doesn\u2019t ejaculate inside you, there would be no sperm to hook up with the egg. Wrong.<\/p>\n
Men produce a tiny bit of liquid called \u201cpre-ejaculate\u201d that\u2019s teeming with sperm. They can release it any time during sex without even realizing it.<\/p>\n
Even if your partner pulls out right before ejaculation, he\u2019s probably already deposited sperm, Akers warns.<\/p>\n
Myth #3: Douching is the best way to keep clean down there.<\/p>\n
Fact: About 20%-40% of women douche \u2013 and half do so weekly.<\/p>\n
But the best way to keep your nether region clean is to leave it alone, gynecologists say.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople think it\u2019s like cleaning any other part of your body, but your vagina has its own self-cleaning mechanism,\u201d Akers explains. \u201cIt produces its own fluids that help to wash things out while also keeping the right bacteria around in the right proportions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Homemade or store-bought douches (usually solutions of water, vinegar, baking soda or iodine) upset the vagina\u2019s natural bacteria balance and increase the risk for yeast and other vaginal infections.<\/p>\n
Because douching can push bacteria from the vagina higher into the reproductive organs, it may also contribute to pelvic inflammatory disease, a major cause of infertility.<\/p>\n
Myth #4: You can get herpes only if you have sex when your partner has an outbreak.<\/p>\n
Fact: Transmission risk is highest during an outbreak, but because carriers can always shed herpes virus, they can also infect their partners at any time during unprotected sex, says Ashlyn Savage, M.D., assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.<\/p>\n
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 11% of men and 23% of women have genital herpes; 56% of men and 60% of women have oral herpes, which can spread to the genitals through oral sex.<\/p>\n
To prevent its spread, avoid sex during outbreaks and always use condoms for intercourse and dental dams for oral sex.<\/p>\n
Won\u2019t condoms protect during an outbreak too? Not always.<\/p>\n
\u201cHerpes is a skin infection, not something transmitted by bodily fluids like HIV or gonorrhea,\u201d Savage says. \u201cIf either partner has an open sore outside the area covered by a condom, they could transmit herpes even with a condom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Myth #5: If you\u2019re aroused, you shouldn\u2019t need lubricant.<\/p>\n
Fact: Needing more lubrication than your body produces doesn’t mean you’re not aroused.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of people equate wetness with how turned on they are, but that\u2019s not necessarily an accurate barometer,\u201d says Anne Semans, co-author of Good Vibrations Guide To Sex (Pleis Press).<\/p>\n
Your monthly cycle, pregnancy, illness, menopause, medications (such as antihistamines and decongestants) can affect lubrication, no matter how much water you drink.<\/p>\n
And if you\u2019re using condoms \u2013 including lubricated ones \u2013 you\u2019ll need extra lube.<\/p>\n
Latex doesn\u2019t slide well even if you’re naturally lubricated, Savage says.<\/p>\n
Myth #6: You can become addicted to your vibrator.<\/p>\n
Fact: Even if you climax faster and more easily with battery-powered assistance, a vibrator won\u2019t ruin your ability to achieve orgasm with your partner, sexperts say.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can still have orgasms if we take the time, but we\u2019re so used to the quick response we get from the vibrator that we get impatient and give up,\u201d says Ellen Barnard, a sex educator\/counselor and co-founder of A Woman\u2019s Touch in Madison, Wisconsin <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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