Attractive Women Receive Oral Sex More Than Their Peers

Oral sex was considered a taboo subject up until the sexual revolution of the 1960s, thanks in part to a conservative lens caused by fear of World War II and the importance of reproduction as a means to pass on traditional family values and increase population size during a time of war.

What do we know now about the benefits of engaging in oral sex?

Men married to more attractive women spend more time performing oral sex on their partners

A 2013 article by Pham and Shackelford explored the notion that sperm competition, or a man's biological need to pass on his genetic code to offspring, may be related to the attractiveness of their female partner.

Two hundred and thirty-one male college students who had been in committed relationships for a minimum of one year responded to a relationship satisfaction questionnaire comprised of four subsections (sexual satisfaction, emotional satisfaction, overall satisfaction, and commitment to partner) as well as a self-report measure of sexual practices.

Men who reported their partners as more attractive (and therefore more desirable to other men as well) spent more time performing oral sex on their partner. This held regardless of the length of the relationship and how happy the men were in their current relationship.

Interestingly, a follow-up study in 2015 found that performing oral sex on your (female) partner may increase the odds of your partner staying with you, also known as mate retention.

Oral sex improves women's perception of relationship quality

A 2018 study examined the relationship between (giving and receiving) oral sex and the perceived quality of the romantic relationship among 884 couples between the ages of 57 and 85. Results indicated that the more frequently a husband performed oral sex on his wife, the more likely the woman was to report being satisfied in the relationship.

Also, the more oral sex the woman received, the more likely the wife was to perform oral sex on her husband. When it comes to fellatio amongst older adults, it certainly seems that what goes around comes around.

Semen boosts your libido and your mood

A 2002 study by Gallup, Burch, and Playtek analyzed the relationship between depression (as assessed by the Beck Depression Inventory) and sexually active college students. Females who did not use condoms as contraception reported lower levels of depression, potentially due to the presence of semen in their reproductive tract.

Furthermore, these women's depressive symptoms and suicidal thoughts were proportionate to the consistency of their use of condoms. Women who didn't use condoms tended to get more depressed based on the amount of time that had passed since their last sexual encounter.

Yes, you heard that right. There is some evidence that semen can help ward off feelings of depression.

Surprised? Don't be.

Semen contains testosterone, endorphins, oxytocin, and prolactin, which can affect libido when ingested. Opioids, the naturally occurring feel-good substances in your body, are also found in semen.

Oral sex is empowering

A 2012 study by Fava and Bay-Cheng sampled 418 undergraduate females to explore the relationship between the age at which the woman initiated both cunnilingus and fellatio, the sexual "motives" behind this decision, whether or not sexual coercion occurred, and indicators of psychological functioning. The age of the woman when she began to initiate oral sex with her partner (or partners) was not connected to being coerced into sexual activity or having negative psychological health.

The majority of women reported that the decision to engage in oral sex was related to a desire to experience sexual pleasure and feelings of empowerment.

College-aged women report less guilt from oral sex

A 2015 study by Lefkowitz, Valisenko, and Leavitt asked 253 undergraduate students in their first year of college to discuss their sexual activity and identify any positive or negative consequences of this behavior. Participants reported less intimacy and lower levels of physical satisfaction from oral sex.

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On the upside, participants reported feeling less guilty and worried less about consequences such as sexually transmitted diseases when they engaged in oral sex.

Conclusion

Over 300 animal species engage in non-reproductive sexual behavior, such as oral sex, for a variety of different reasons, including social bonding, resolving conflicts, showing affection, and asserting their authority in the animal kingdom.

There are many surprising mental health benefits to be had by engaging in oral sex, which helps to explain why humans aren't the only ones enjoying this extracurricular activity.