Is Semen Nutritious?

The other day a friend of mine sent me an IG post claiming that swallowing semen was good for our health. I replied with the appropriate ‘🙄’, but misogyny aside, I was curious: is it actually true?

So I googled it (technically google scholar, but same same).

I came across this interesting study done in 2002 ‘Does Semen Have Antidepressant Properties’. Articles that cite this study claim that it concluded that semen does in fact have antidepressant effects. In reality, the study shows that hetero sex with a partner you trust (aka don’t wear a condom with) correlated with less depression in women.

I don’t think we needed a 300 person study to tell us that.

Other articles (that I found on regular google) claim the benefits of ingesting semen range from whiter teeth to increased cognitive function and decreased anxiety. Try as I might, I couldn’t track down any studies to support these claims.

I did, however, go down a deep rabbit hole of semen research. During which, I learned that the term for healthy sperm is normozoospermia. I personally can’t wait to drop that in a casual conversation soon (there’s a joke here about how it doesn’t roll off the tongue but I won't go there).

Another fact I discovered that you might not be aware of: it’s possible to have a semen allergy. Although it affects a small percentage of the population, this allergy is non-gender specific and can cause symptoms such as rash, pain, and swelling. Clearly not super beneficial to ingest semen if you're allergic to it.

In closing- although I struggled to find science-based research on the health benefits of semen, given that it is composed of minerals and proteins, it can have it's benefits. Unfortunately, the average penis ejaculates a teaspoon or less at a time, so we can't really rely on it as a sufficient source of nutrients… but it absolutely can support a healthy lifestyle.