Semen - Health Effects

Health Effects

In addition to its central role in reproduction, some studies have made claims that semen may have certain beneficial effects on human health:

• Antidepressant: One study suggested that vaginal absorption of semen could act as an antidepressant; the study compared two groups of women, one of which used condoms and the other did not.
• Cancer prevention: Studies suggested that seminal plasma might reduce breast cancer by "not less than 50 percent." This effect is attributed to its glycoprotein and selenium content, with apoptosis being induced by TGF-Beta. A related urban legend parodied these findings and claimed that performing fellatio at least three times a week reduced the risk of breast cancer.
• Preeclampsia prevention: It has been hypothesized that substances in semen condition a mother's immune system to accept the "foreign" proteins found in sperm as well as the resulting fetus and placenta, keeping blood pressure low and thereby reducing the risk of preeclampsia. A study shows that oral sex and swallowing semen may help make a woman's pregnancy safer and more successful, because she is absorbing her partner's antigens.

• Increased libido: Another hypothesis has emerged that absorption of the testosterone contained in semen through a woman's vaginal walls during sexual intercourse (or even through the act of swallowing semen) may increase her sex drive.

Other studies claim adversarial effects:

• Cancer worsening: seminal plasma has prostaglandin elements that could accelerate the development of an already existing cervical cancer.