Every few weeks, Dr. Joe DeOrio, a urologist in Chicago, tackles questions about male sexuality here on EMandLO.com. To ask Dr. Joe your own question, click here.
Dear Dr. Joe,
My yoga teacher recently told me that 2% of all men fart when they ejaculate. She’d just learned about this in a sex ed course she was taking, but she forgot the name of the disorder. Have you ever heard of this? Is it true?
— Just Curious (No, Really)
Dear J.C. (N.R.),
Oh right, the ol’ shoot-and-poot? Yah, never heard of it – at least not until you asked. In ten years of urology practice, no one had ever asked me this question. But the idea seemed possible, since, at the moment of ejaculation, there is involuntary muscle contraction, and an increase in intra-abdominal pressure. The anal sphincter should contract as well to compensate for this force, but if one had a weak sphincter, I suppose that some gas could escape.
My initial literature searches were magically fruitless, but imagine my surprise when I stumbled across an article entitled “Flaturia: passage of flatus at coitus.” It was published in 2007 out of Cairo University. But it’s not in men; it’s in women. The mechanism of flatulence is not clear, but the theory is that, during vaginal intercourse, the penis puts repeated pressure on the lower anal canal. In some women, this buffeting causes relaxation of the internal anal sphincter, and eventual uncontrollable farting.
A Google search of “flaturia” brings up a bunch of results, but they all predominantly refer back to this article.
Stay curious,
— Dr. Joe
Dr. Joe earned his undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology from Princeton University. After attending the Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine, he completed his residency training in urological surgery at the Los Angeles County Medical Center. He lives and works in Chicago, IL. Keep an eye out for his upcoming blog at docjoe.net.
Did anyone else laugh until their sides hurt at “Oh right, the ol’ shoot-and-poot!” line?
It’s actually happened to me three times, right at the time of orgasm. If I’ve got a little gas and am going at it then at the moment of release, when absolutely nothing is on my mind I’ll let one rip accidentally. It’s usually pretty loud as you said the anus is clenched at that point.
hey I am actually one of these men. I dont fart at the exact same time but usually within about 5 minutes. after ejaculating I feel very relaxed and when I let my body relax I rip some seriously raunchy farts. Like I fart sometimes and its what ever, but the after sex farts smell like something died in my colon. Its actually very embarassing. I actually farted on a woman while she was down there giving me head one. It has more to do with tighening of the abs and a general feeling of being relaxed. its very embarassing. I have found that if I ‘go to the kitchen to grab water’ after sex its a convenient way to get out of the room.
I’m a men and I noticed that two days after having sex I always fart when I’m asleep. I’m just wondering why ? Could this be normal ? I mean I only fart after having sex , clearly something is wrong.
No way. I’m sure it’s happened at some point in the history of male orgasm, but I can’t imagine this happening regularly to any group of men.
Ejaculation – and the exertion it takes to get there – tighents the ass. It causes a sort of clenching, inward butt-suction. It’s basically the opposite of letting one rip.
Right after an orgasm, on the other hand, I could see happening. Nothing a little self-control can’t overcome though.