TheCable Fact Check
  • Home
  • Fact Check
  • Fake News
  • Check Am For Wazobia
Reading: FACT CHECK: Can swallowing semen relieve stress, alleviate psychological issues?
Share
Latest News
CableCheck wins IFCN global fact check fund
Íhé ńgósị́ ébé Peter Obi sékpù àlà n’íhú Tinubu bụ̀ ǹkè é jìrì AI nwóghàrị̀á
Hoton Peter Obi ya durkusa ma Tinubu a Rome na hadi ne
Foto wey show as Peter Obi dey kneel down for Tinubu inside Vatican na photoshop
Peter Obi kò kúnlẹ̀ fún Tinubu ní Rome
FACT CHECK: No, Abia government didn’t block arrest of 59 youths by EFCC
Video wey show ‘bandits’ wit bundles of moni no be from Nigeria
Nàìjíríà kọ ni àwọn jagidijagan ti se àfihàn beeli, beeli owó nínú fídíò ti ṣẹlẹ̀
Advertisement
Aa
TheCable Fact CheckTheCable Fact Check
Search
  • Home
  • Fact Check
  • Fake News
  • Check Am For Wazobia
Follow US

FACT CHECK: Can swallowing semen relieve stress, alleviate psychological issues?

Jesupemi Are
By Jesupemi Are Published September 21, 2022 5 Min Read
Share

A Twitter post claims that swallowing semen can help regulate sleep, relieve stress, boost mood and alleviate anxiety.

“Swallowing semen can help deal with depression; swallowing semen can boost mood; swallowing semen can help with stress; swallowing semen can help deal with anxiety; swallowing semen can help regulate the sleep cycle,” the tweet reads.

Swallowing Semen can help deal with depression
Swallowing semen can boost mood
Swallowing semen can help with stress
Swallowing semen can help deal with anxiety
Swallowing semen can help regulate sleep cycle
Don’t Read Without sharing

— Dr Penking™🇳🇬🇦🇺 (@drpenking) September 6, 2022

The post gathered over 8,700 likes and more than 4,300 retweets.

The post was shared on a couple of Facebook accounts including Nurse Practitioner.

Semen, also known as seminal fluid comes out from the male reproductive tract during sexual activities. The jelly-like fluid which is whitish-grey in colour contains sperm cells capable of fertilizing the female’s eggs.

Semen is made up of multiple components including vitamin C, B12, ascorbic acid, calcium, citric acid, fructose, lactic acid, magnesium, zinc, potassium, sodium, fat, and other proteins.

WHAT DOES RESEARCH SAY?

Although there has not been much research into the health benefits of ingesting semen, many articles making similar claims can be found online.

Many of the ascribed benefits of swallowing it have been tied to some studies on the components of sperm and the benefits of these components to the human body.

Checks by TheCable showed that the most common study used to back up claims like these is one from 2002 which involved 293 sexually active women and suggested a link between semen exposure and mood. The study found that women who had direct exposure to semen had fewer symptoms of depression.

However, the study which was focused on vaginal intake of the semen rather than oral, notes that results are “preliminary and correlational in nature and as such are only suggestive”.

Another commonly quoted study is a 2015 study which noted that semen contains melatonin which is the natural hormone the body releases to regulate sleep cycles. The study strictly focused on the effects of this melatonin on male fertility. The study did not in any way touch on the effects of this melatonin when semen is swallowed.

WHAT DO EXPERTS SAY?

The Cable reached out to medical experts to confirm if there is any scientific evidence to back up these claims.

Best Ordinioha, a professor of public health and community medicine, said it is untrue that swallowing semen can help deal with any of these issues as claimed.

“If there is any advantage, it’s probably from the sexual act and not due to the intake of the sperm itself. The semen actually does contain nutrients, but these nutrients are to help the sperm on its journey to fertilize the egg. The nutrients are not to the extent that they can be used for nourishment. We’re talking about just a few calories here,” he said.

“The person that made the claim was probably trying to encourage people to engage more in oral sex especially as certain persons may feel uncomfortable with swallowing it. Some of these claims need to be taken with consideration of the motive of the person who made the claim.”

Ayo Ajeigbe, a clinical psychologist, said these claims are not true as there is no concrete research to back them up.

“Most of these claims just pick one or two things and relate them to each other. Just because sperm contains melatonin does not mean it has any effect when swallowed,” he said.

“It is not backed up by any research because if it is, it would have been a solution to most problems people are going through. They would have made a medication that contains it so people can use it.”

The psychologist added that most of the studies used to buttress these claims have limited participants, which is inadequate to come to such a conclusion. Also, secreted semen from the male reproductive organ is too small for the nutrients therein to have any discernible health effect when swallowed.

VERDICT

The claim that swallowing semen can help deal with depression, boost mood, reduce stress and anxiety, and regulate sleep is unproven. There is no sufficient scientific research to back up the claims.

TAGGED: anxiety, depression, health Fact-Check, semen, sperm

Please send your feedback, claims to fact check and corrections requests to [email protected]

Jesupemi Are September 21, 2022 September 21, 2022
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Email Copy Link Print
Leave a comment Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

POPULAR POSTS

Advertisement

CableCheck wins IFCN global fact check fund

CableCheck, the fact-checking initiative of the Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation (CNJF), has been awarded the…

May 30, 2025

Íhé ńgósị́ ébé Peter Obi sékpù àlà n’íhú Tinubu bụ̀ ǹkè é jìrì AI nwóghàrị̀á

Ótù ihe ngosị nke a na-ekesa na soshal midia na-egosị ebe Peter Obi, onye jiri…

May 24, 2025

Hoton Peter Obi ya durkusa ma Tinubu a Rome na hadi ne

Wani hoton da ya yi zagayen a shafukan sada zumunta ya nuna Peter Obi, dan…

May 24, 2025

Foto wey show as Peter Obi dey kneel down for Tinubu inside Vatican na photoshop

One foto wey don waka for social media show as Peter Obi, presidential candidate of…

May 24, 2025
Advertisement
Advertisement

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

CableCheck wins IFCN global fact check fund

CableCheck, the fact-checking initiative of the Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation (CNJF), has been awarded the BUILD 2025 grant by the…

Fact CheckTop Stories
May 30, 2025

FACT CHECK: No, Abia government didn’t block arrest of 59 youths by EFCC

A Facebook user has claimed that the Abia government blocked officers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from…

Fact Check
May 24, 2025

FACT CHECK: Viral image of Peter Obi kneeling before Tinubu in Rome photoshopped

An image making the round on social media depicts Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in 2023,…

Fact Check
May 22, 2025

FACT CHECK: Video showing ‘bandits’ with bundles of cash NOT from Nigeria

A video circulating on social media is purportedly showing bandits sharing bundles of cash in Nigeria. In the nearly two-minute…

Fact Check
May 20, 2025

CableCheck seeks to provide reliable tools and resources for readers to tackle the menace of fake and misleading materials constantly pushed into the public space from various sources. We monitor the accuracy of claims made in traditional and social media. We also provide a tracker to hold politicians and policymakers accountable for the plans and promises they make to the public. CableCheck is a project of the Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation (CNJF), supported by the MacArthur Foundation and implemented by TheCable newspaper.

Follow US: 

LINKS

  • Contact
  • About Us
  • Non-Partisanship Policy
  • Funding
  • Correction Policy
© Copyright TheCable. All Rights reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?