5 Ridiculous Myths About Sex

Sex is natural, sex is good. Not everybody does it. But everybody should. Or so goes the 80s god of sass, George Michael. Now that I’ve implanted that song in your head for the rest of the day, let us continue. If you were born before the age of the Internet, you might get to thank George Michael for introducing you to sex. Because thanks to the Victorians and/or repressed American culture, a person’s best sex education seems to come from TV, film, and other confused teenagers.

The upside of sex and its shroud of mystery? Here’s a look at some really awesomely bad myths roaming around our minds and the internet.

1. Men think about sex every seven seconds.

This is FALSE. According to the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction, 54 percent of men think about sex everyday or several times a day. This also includes “43 percent a few times per month or a few times per week, and four percent less than once a month.” This means that while it is impossible to determine exactly how many times sexual thoughts flash though a dude’s brain, it is unlikely that it is happening every seven seconds.

2. Semen has a lot of calories.

This is FALSE and probably thought up by some clever dude who wanted to skip the dinner in the dinner date. Seminal fluid contains vitamin C, water, sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, zinc, citrate, chloride, protein, and fructose. But a normal male ejaculation only contains around six calories, making it harmless to a restrictive diet. However, some women are known to have a severe allergy to semen, resulting in itching, redness, and blisters.

3. All women are innately bisexual.

This is FALSE and we can probably thank reality show TV for this one. Despite the abundance of girl-on-girl kissing in Jersey Shore hot tubs, the Kinsey Institute reports that only 6.2 percent of men and 4.4 percent of women are attracted to people of the same sex. Further, five percent of men and three percent of women consider themselves bisexual. Sure, that means a lot of women are bisexual. Just not necessarily the entire female gender.

4. Most women orgasm through intercourse.

More FALSE. Only 30 percent of women orgasm through just intercourse. The Kinsey Institute reports that women are much more likely to orgasm while alone. But among women in a partnered relationship, 62 percent say they are satisfied with the consistency and frequency of their orgasms. Interestingly, 14 percent of women reported that simultaneous orgasm with their partner is a “must.”

5. You can’t get pregnant if your partner pulls out before ejaculation.

This is FALSE FALSE FALSE. I’m saying it triple time because when I Googled it, I found the question on a lot of teen forums and chat rooms. Listen up! (Especially you young ones!) When a man is aroused, he has drops of semen on the tip of his penis. This helps lubricate it. Even one drop of semen contains a million sperm, and it only takes one sperm to knock you up. Even after your partner ejaculates, sperm can be present. The only fool-proof way not to get pregnant is to abstain from sex. Other than that, use birth control.