Fellatio is oral sex performed on a penis by a woman or by a homosexual man.

Cultural and spiritual significance

The practice of fellatio was said to have been introduced by the women of Lesbos, who were said to whiten their lips as though with semen.^[1]

The Ancient Indian Kama Sutra, dating from the first centuries AD, does describe oral sex,^[2] discussing fellatio in great detail and only briefly mentioning cunnilingus. However, according to the Kama Sutra, fellatio is above all a characteristic of eunuchs (or, according to other translations, of effeminate homosexuals or transwomen similar to the modern Hijra of India), who use their mouths as a substitute for female genitalia. The author states that it is also practiced by "unchaste women," but mentions widespread traditional concerns about this being a degrading or unclean practice, with known practitioners being evaded as love partners in large parts of the country. He seems to agree with these attitudes to some extent, claiming that "a wise man" should not engage in that form of intercourse, while acknowledging that it can be appropriate in some (unspecified) cases.

The religious historian, Mircea Eliade, speaks of a desire to transcend old age and death, and achieve a state of nirvana, in the Hindu practice of Tantric yoga. In Tantric yoga, the same emphasis is placed on the retention and absorption of vital liquids and Sanskrit texts describe how semen must not be emitted if the yogi is to avoid falling under law of time and death.^[3]

In Islamic literature, the only two forms of sex that are explicitly prohibited within marriage are anal sex and sex during menstrual cycles.^[4] Still, the exact attitude towards oral sex is a subject of disagreements between modern scholars of Islam. In Islamic terminology, the practice hasn't been described as haram (forbidden), but some have claimed that it is makruh (undesirable).^{[citation needed]} The authorities that consider it objectionable do so because of the contact between the supposedly impure fluids, emitted during intercourse, and the mouth.^[5][6] Others emphasize that there is no decisive evidence to forbid it.^[7]

Ingestion of semen

Semen contains water, small amounts of salt, protein, zinc^[8] and fructose sugar. It is slightly alkaline (particularly in vasectomized men), which causes some to find the taste bitter or brackish, but genital fluids are not in themselves harmful to a sexual partner, apart from concerns of STDs.

Urban legends sometimes describe semen as nutritious and a good source of protein. However, semen contains only a small amount of protein and in any case is typically available only in small quantities during oral sex.

Link to reducing pre-eclampsia

It has been suggested that fellatio may have a beneficial role in preventing dangerous complications during pregnancy. Specifically, a research group^[9] reported that pre-eclampsia, a life threatening complication that sometimes arises in pregnancy, is much less frequent in couples who have practiced oral sex, and even more rare in couples where fellatio ended with the semen swallowed. Both results were statistically significant. This is consistent with other evidence that semen contains an agent that prevents preeclampsia, and with the theory that preeclampsia is an immunological condition.^[10][11][12] According to that view, preeclampsia is caused by a failure of the mother's organism to accept the fetus and placenta, which both contain "foreign" proteins from the father's genes. Regular exposure to the father's semen might cause her immune system to gradually "grow accustomed" to their proteins. Other studies also found that, while any exposure to the partner's sperm during sex appears to decrease the chances of various disorders, women in couples who have practiced "other sex acts" than intercourse are half as likely to suffer pre-eclampsia. It is not known whether this represents a protective effect of "other sex acts" including oral sex, or a correlation between these sexual practices and some other protective factor: for example, greater overall frequency of sex.^[10] The standard way to resolve such questions (confounding) in medical science would be through a randomized trial, but there are unique challenges to research in sexual health.^[13]

When reporting the findings of the first research group mentioned above, New Scientist magazine thought it worth mentioning that some of the research team were women (including the lead author). Candidates for a protective agent in semen may include serum hormone leutinizing agent and transforming growth factor beta.^{[verification needed]}

Technique

A common technique of fellatio is to take the glans of the erect penis in the mouth while rhythmically caressing the shaft of the penis with the hands. The foreskin may also be rolled forward or back, with stimulation of the lips and tongue on the outside or the inner membrane. The sensitive frenulum can be stimulated with the tongue, as can the testes. Suction is often used to increase the pressure and friction exerted on the penis. As the performance of fellatio progresses, the receiver may contribute pre-ejaculatory fluid to the saliva of the giver, resulting in a more lubricated penis and enhanced erotic experience. This fluid is produced by the Cowper's glands and is not semen, although it may contain live sperm.

Depending on the preference of the participants, this stimulation may produce an orgasm and ejaculation of semen, or may just be used as a precursor to sexual intercourse (see foreplay). If the semen is accepted into the mouth it may or may not be swallowed (hence the slang phrase, spit or swallow). Certain factors, particularly diet, may adversely affect the taste of semen; while other factors may improve its flavor.^[14] If the person performing fellatio is averse to receiving semen in their mouth, they can shift stimulation from mouth to hand once the receiver's orgasm is imminent. An infrequent side effect of receiving ejaculate into the mouth is gagging.

While the use of the mouth to stimulate the penis, especially the glans, is a central feature of fellatio, often the partner simultaneously stimulates the shaft of the penis with his or her hand to provide the receiver with the feeling of the penis being enclosed. Some authorities (such as Franklin, The Ultimate Kiss, p. 62) recommend this as the preferred and most satisfying method. Another technique is to have the penis head go in and out of the mouth very quickly (without going down to the shaft). Also, some men find it another extra pleasure if the giver runs the tips of their fingernails on his erect shaft at the same time they are using their mouth, they say it offers a "tickling sensation."

Some receivers regard receiving oral sex as an ego boost, believing that such an act is a form of dominance over their sexual partner because of the overt submissive nature of the act; the giver must often be on their knees before the receiver to perform the act of pleasure.^[15] On the flip side, the receiver is willingly placing their genitals in an environment filled with teeth so the dominance could work both ways with a suitably aggressive giver, particularly if the receiver is restrained (in bondage, perhaps).

One form of fellatio has become popularly known as deep throating, after the 1972 pornographic film Deep Throat. This technique involves repressing the gag reflex and taking the entire erect penis in the mouth, the shaft bending slightly to allow the head of the penis to slide partially down the throat of the person fellating. A deep throat session may even go 'balls-deep', a colloquial expression denoting that the provider of fellatio has fit the entire penis in their mouth, with deeper engorgement prevented only by the girth of the testicles (which some advanced practitioners of deep throating are actually able to lick while the penis is inside the mouth).

The common slang term blow job technically is a misnomer, as true "blowing"; i.e., the expelling of air through the mouth, is not used in fellatio as it would not be pleasurable. It is most commonly thought to reflect an intentional conflation of "suck" and "blow," technically antonyms but both equally suitable as vulgar terms describing oral sexual activity. Further, the act of giving a blow job is generally not properly defined as "sucking"; rather, the mouth is tensely moved up and down the penis' shaft, with the giver neither sucking nor blowing. At times, the giver may in fact use a sucking motion on the head of the penis, but this is generally not the sole form of fellatio.

STD risk

Chlamydia, human papillomavirus (HPV), gonorrhea, herpes, hepatitis (multiple strains), and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) — including HIV — can be transmitted through oral sex.^[16] While the risk of transmitting HIV through fellatio is unknown, it is suspected to be fairly rare. Any kind of direct contact with body fluids of a person infected with HIV (the virus that causes AIDS) poses a risk of infection. The risk from most of these types of infection, however, is generally considered far lower than that associated with vaginal or anal sex.

If the receiving partner has wounds or on their genitals, or if the giving partner has wounds or open sores on or in their mouth, or bleeding gums, this poses an increased risk of STD transmission. Brushing the teeth, flossing, undergoing dental work, or eating crunchy foods such as chips relatively soon before or after giving fellatio can also increase the risk of transmission, because all of these activities can cause small scratches in the lining of the mouth. These wounds, even when they are microscopic, increase the chances of contracting STDs that can be transmitted orally under these conditions. Such contact can also lead to more mundane infections from common bacteria and viruses found in, around and secreted from the genital regions. Because of this, some medical professionals advise the use of condoms when performing or receiving fellatio with a partner whose STD status is unknown. Flavoured condoms may be used for this purpose.

HPV and oral cancer link

In 2005, a research study at the College of Malmö in Sweden suggested that performing unprotected oral sex on a person infected with HPV might increase the risk of oral cancer . The study found that 36 percent of the cancer patients had HPV compared to only 1 percent of the healthy control group. ^[17]

Another recent study suggests a correlation between oral sex and throat cancer. It is believed that this is due to the transmission of human papillomavirus or (HPV) because this virus has been implicated in the majority of cervical cancers. The study concludes that people who had one to five oral sex partners in their lifetime had approximately a doubled risk of throat cancer compared with those who never engaged in this activity and those with more than five oral-sex partners had a 250% increased risk.^[18]

See also

• Safe oral sex technique

References