Mothers Haven

Can You Get Pregnant From Precum?

Until recently, teenagers were always taught in sex education classes that a woman could become pregnant from precum. In fact, recent scientific studies now refute this long-held belief and instead suggest that precum, or pre-ejaculate as it is scientifically known as, only contains dead sperm, if any sperm at all. With that, the idea that a man could get a woman pregnant even without ejaculating no longer holds any worth in the scientific and medical community. By all accounts, a man must penetrate and ejaculate into the vaginal canal in order to get a woman pregnant.

 

Even so, when it comes to answering can you get pregnant from precum, the smallest window of opportunity may still exist, although no official scientific study can pinpoint a pregnancy that occurred in this manner. In debating this vague, but still theoretical possibility, scientists concede that if pre-ejaculate contained even a single sperm, conception may still occur. In theory, if a man’s body produced sperm prior to precum forming or sperm were still lingering in his body from a recent and prior sexual encounter, he still may get a woman pregnant without ejaculating if that sperm were to make its way into his precum. However, scientists admit that this possibility is extremely low and in fact may be more of an impossibility than most people realize. For now, they continue to urge people to use protection as needed, but understand that pre-ejaculate more than likely cannot get a woman pregnant.

 

With that, because sex education teachers are tasked with teaching safety first, they often back up scientists’ warning by telling students to use condoms to safeguard against pregnancy, even the rarest of pregnancies caused by precum. Women who want to become pregnant, however, may also benefit by knowing that they must encourage their partners to achieve ejaculation if they hope to conceive a baby.

While On Your Period Can You Get Pregnant From Precum?

While many women do not like to have sex while on their periods, others find this time of the month to be perfectly acceptable for sexual activity. If a couple is not using protection, however, the question of whether or not you can get pregnant from precum may come to mind. Just as with any other time of the month, conception may be rare, if not entirely impossible, if a couple relies solely on pre-ejaculate.

 

 

Scientific studies on a host of pre-ejaculate samples found that only dead sperm can be found in this fluid; in fact, some samples contained no sperm at all. Assuming that these samples are typical of all males, it would be safe to reason that you cannot get pregnant from precum on your period. Again, however, science does allow for rare cases, although these cases often exist more in theory than in reality.

Further, while ovulation can technically take place any time during a woman’s cycle, a period usually is interpreted as a sign that her monthly ovulation is past and her body is getting ready for the new month’s cycle to begin. In some cases, however, a woman can ovulate on her period, although this occurrence is relatively low. Even so, if a couple wants to avoid getting pregnant from precum or ejaculate, they may be advised to use a condom if they plan on having sex during the woman’s period.

 

Without Penetration Can You Get Pregnant From Precum?

 

Another common misconception that persists today is the belief that you can get pregnant from precum without penetration. Again, scientists believe that the likelihood is non-existent simply because sperm are so fragile that they must be deposited into the vaginal canal in order to survive for their intended journey. If a man’s pre-ejaculate does not make its way inside the female body, she more than likely will not get pregnant simply because the few, if any sperm cells that exist in the fluid will not live long to successfully make their way into the vaginal canal.

 

Again, however, science does allow for rare, if not entirely improbably, circumstances to happen. If a single sperm were to live in a small amount of precum and this fluid made its way to the very near of a woman’s vaginal canal, it is highly unlikely, but still theoretically possible for the single sperm to make its way into the female’s body and cause pregnancy. Given how hostile the inside of the vaginal canal actually is to sperm, however, the single sperm cell would have to overcome great adversity to actually unite with the woman’s egg to cause conception.

 

As such, scientists admit that the chances of this happening are actually very low, if not entirely non-existent. As much as teens and inexperienced people in general may believe that they can get pregnant without penetration, the real truth is that penetration and full ejaculation must occur. Science contends that these are the ideal conditions for conception and that anything that falls outside of these conditions simply does not line up with what science has discovered and proven in repeated studies. Even so, people who ultimately want to avoid becoming pregnant may be advised to use protection even if they do not plan on penetration occurring.