A sexual health expert has revealed the one habit millions of Americans practice in the bedroom but shouldn’t.
According to studies, about 40 percent of people admit to using their own saliva (or that of a partner) as lubricant during sex.
Some studies show that this percentage is almost 90 percent among men who have sex with men.
But Dr Danae Maragouthakis, a sexual health expert at the University of Oxford in Britain, said in a TikTok video: ‘While saliva can always be available to you, it should not be used in place of lubricant .’
But Dr. Danae Maragouthakis, a sexual health expert based at the University of Oxford in Britain, explained in a TikTok video why saliva shouldn’t be used in place of lubricant.
Dr. Maragouthakis explained in the clip, which has been viewed more than 719,000 times, that saliva contains enzymes that break down food but can also lead to skin irritation.
When the enzymes are introduced into the vagina, they can disrupt the vaginal microbiome: the healthy gut bacteria in the organ that help fight infections.
This puts you at risk of developing a fungal infection, such as thrush or bacterial vaginosis.
These occur when the balance of yeast and bacteria that naturally occur in the vagina is thrown off.
Sometimes saliva can also cause inflammation that leads to itching and burning.
It’s also not an effective lubricant because it evaporates and dries quickly, gynecologist Dr. Felice Gersh said. Health.com.
Saliva can also transmit STDs, according to Dr. Maragouthakis.
Saliva can transmit infectious gonorrhea, but scientists don’t know how much saliva is needed to transmit gonorrhea.
Gonorrhea is a bacterial infection spread when semen, vaginal fluids, or saliva get on or in your genitals, anus, or mouth.
Less commonly, chlamydia is also present in saliva and can be spread through kissing, as well as through oral-genital and genital-genital contact, said infectious disease specialist Dr. Sara Bares.
Syphilis is less likely to spread through saliva, but the bacteria that cause syphilis can be present in mouth sores and so can be transmitted through kissing.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has previously described the U.S. sexual health situation as an “STD epidemic,” with a record 2.53 million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis in 2021.