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Pregnancy Myths Cleared

Up!
Our helpline pregnancy educators receive thousands of
calls and chat each year about a variety of pregnancy
myths. Let’s debunk the most frequently asked myths.

Pregnancy Myth #1: Can

pregnancy occur if
penetration only happens
for a few seconds?
Anytime the penis comes into direct contact with the
vaginal area, there is the chance of pregnancy. The
probability is extremely low, particularly compared to if
intercourse with ejaculation took place, but there is still
a risk. The transmission of STIs can also happen through
any type of skin to skin contact like this.

Pregnancy Myth #2: Can pregnancy

occur if a woman and a guy have
faux sex or dry sex?
This is when there is no penetration, but there is skin to
skin contact of the genital area. Again, anytime the
penis and the vaginal area come into contact, there is a
slight risk of pregnancy and a risk for STD transmission.
All that needs to happen is for seminal fluid to leak
inside the vagina.

Pregnancy Myth #3: Can a woman

get pregnant from pre-ejaculation
(pre-cum)?
Pre-ejaculation is the liquid that seeps out of the penis
before ejaculation occurs. This fluid is released from the
Cowper’s gland, located at the top of the urethra. The
purpose of this fluid is to reduce the acidity in the
urethra and provide a lubricant for the sperm that is
released once ejaculation occurs. Most men have no
control over it and cannot feel it coming out.

There is a lot of conflicting data on whether this fluid

contains sperm that can result in pregnancy. Some
studies have concluded that it does contain sperm and
others have concluded that it does not. Most sources do
agree that without definitive confirmation, precautions
should still be taken to protect from pregnancy and
STI transmission. For information about pre-ejaculation
and the risks of pregnancy read this.

Pregnancy Myth #4: Can pregnancy

occur if the woman does not have
an orgasm?
Yes, pregnancy can occur even if a woman does not
have an orgasm. An orgasm is not related to an egg
being available for fertilization.

Pregnancy Myth #5: Can sperm

travel through clothing or
material?
If the clothing was completely saturated with semen
and was in direct contact with a woman’s vagina, there
is a very slight chance the sperm could enter the vagina,
but this is highly unlikely. No conclusive studies give a
definite answer on this possibility.

Pregnancy Myth #6: Can a woman

get pregnant from having sex in
water?
If actual intercourse takes place in any type of water,
pregnancy is definitely a possibility. This is because
intercourse will allow the sperm to be directly deposited
in the vaginal area, and the water on the outside of the
body would not interfere with this.

Pregnancy Myth #7: Can pregnancy

occur if ejaculation takes place in
water?
It is not likely that tiny sperm could travel through the
vast area of water that would fill a pool, bathtub, or hot
tub to reach the vagina and result in pregnancy. If
ejaculation occurred in plain warm water, sperm could
survive for a few minutes. If ejaculation occurs in very
hot water, or water filled with pool chemicals, bubbles
or other substances, sperm would not be able to survive
for more than a few seconds. Pregnancy occurring from
this is very unlikely and in most cases is not possible at
all.

Pregnancy Myth #8: Can pregnancy

occur from having anal sex?
Pregnancy cannot occur from the act of anal sex, but
because the vaginal opening and the anus are very
close together, there is the chance that sperm could
leak into the vagina and travel to fertilize an egg.
However, this is exceptionally unlikely.

Pregnancy Myth #9: Can pregnancy

occur from having oral sex?
If genitals do not come in contact with each other, and
semen does not enter the vaginal area, there is no
chance of pregnancy.

Pregnancy Myth #10: Can

ejaculating numerous times lessen
the chance of pregnancy occurring?
The number of times ejaculation takes place can
decrease the amount of sperm in each ejaculation, but
there are still millions of sperm present. Each
ejaculation contains about 2-5 mL of sperm, and each
mL can contain from 40 million to 400 million sperm.
This means that even in someone who has ejaculated
numerous times, the number of sperm can still be in the
hundred million. Only one is needed to fertilize an egg.

Pregnancy Myth #11: Is sperm dead

once it reaches the air? Does
oxygen kill sperm?
No, oxygen does not kill sperm. This is a myth that many
people believe, but it is not true! Once the sperm is DRY
it is dead and cannot travel to fertilize an egg. Sperm
can live for 3-5 days if it is in a warm, moist environment
such as the vagina or uterus of a woman. Sperm cannot
come back to life once it has dried, even if it is pre-
moistened.

I am wondering if I could be
pregnant, what do I do next?
You may have just discovered that pregnancy is a
possibility in your particular circumstance. Don’t panic;
as noted above, in most cases the possibilities of
pregnancy are extremely rare. Your next step is to begin
watching for early pregnancy symptoms. If you
experience any of these symptoms and then miss a
period, you can take a pregnancy test. You can use an
over the counter test or you can contact the helpline at
the American Pregnancy Association to locate a testing
center in your area: call 1-800-672-2296.

If you are already noticing symptoms or believe you

could be pregnant you can take a test. Keep in mind that
it is common to get false negatives before a missed
period, so even if you are having symptoms or early
pregnancy, consider waiting until you miss your period.

Compiled using information from the following sources:

1. Researchers find no sperm in pre-ejaculate fluid.

Contracept Technol Update. (1993) (10):154-6.

PMID: 12286905[PubMed-indexed for MEDLINE]

2. Sperm content of the pre-ejaculatory fluid. Hum Fertil

(Camb.) (2011)

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21155689

3. Mayo Clinic

https://www.mayoclinic.com

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