What Is Oral Sex?

Table of Contents
Table of Contents

Oral sex is an activity in which the mouth and tongue are used to give or receive sexual stimulation. It's often performed as foreplay leading up to sexual intercourse, but not always.

Although in some circumstances oral sex may be safer than vaginal or anal sex, this type of sexual activity also puts you at risk for certain health issues if you don't take the right precautions.

Learn about how to engage in oral sex safely and the risks you may face if you have oral sex without condoms or other forms of barrier protection.

What to Know STIs and Oral Sex - Illustration by Laura Porter

Verywell / Laura Porter

What Is Oral Sex?

This common sexual activity involves oral stimulation of another person's genitals or anus. Usually, someone is performing oral sex while another person receives it.

There are several types of oral sex. They include:

  • Fellatio: This involves stimulating the penis and testicles with the mouth and tongue.
  • Cunnilingus: This is when someone uses their mouth and tongue to stimulate the vulva, clitoris, and vagina.
  • Anilingus: Also known as "rimming," anilingus involves the sexual stimulation of the anus with the mouth and tongue.

What Is Consent?

Consent means that both parties have clearly and verbally communicated that they want to engage in sexual activity. Consent cannot be given by people who are underage, intoxicated, incapacitated due to drugs or alcohol, or who are asleep or unconscious. Sexual assault happens when a person intentionally, sexually touches another person without consent.

Risks

Oral sex will not result in pregnancy and has a lower risk of passing on HIV, but it can result in other STIs and additional health concerns.

Sexually Transmitted Infections

Having oral sex can increase a person's chances of contracting certain STIs, including:

  • Chlamydia: Both the person giving and receiving oral sex can contract this disease.
  • Gonorrhea: This bacterial STI is generally passed from the penis to the throat during oral sex, and less commonly from the throat to the penis.
  • Syphilis: This disease can only be passed on when symptoms are present, typically an open sore called a chancre. However, these sores can be easy to miss during the stages of the disease. Syphilis can be spread from the throat to the genitals and vice versa.
  • Herpes: Oral herpes (cold sores) is usually caused by herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and genital herpes is usually caused by herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2). But it is possible to get genital herpes from a cold sore—and vice versa—while performing oral sex.
  • HPV: Both parties can contract this disease, which is considered a major risk factor for oral and throat cancers.
  • HIV: Only the person performing oral sex can contract HIV, but the risk is very low, at around 0.04%.
  • Hepatitis A and B: Hepatitis A can be passed through rimming as the virus is present in the feces (stool) of people who have been infected. Although rare, Hepatitis B can also be passed through oral sex given that the virus is present in blood, semen, and other bodily fluids.

Risk factors that can increase the risk of STIs from oral sex include poor oral hygiene, ejaculating into the mouth, and having cuts, abrasions, or sores in the mouth or on the genitals.

Symptoms of STIs include:

  • Unusual discharge from the genitals or anus
  • Pain when urinating
  • Lumps or skin growths around the genitals or anus
  • Rashes around the genital area
  • Itchy genitals or anus
  • Blisters or sores in the mouth or genital area
  • Sore throat

Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)

A UTI is an often painful infection of the urinary system typically caused by bacteria. It's best to avoid performing oral sex if your partner has a urinary tract infection (UTI) or receiving it if you have a UTI. That's because oral sex can introduce new bacteria into the urethra and worsen an existing UTI. People with female genitalia are especially prone to UTIs because they have a shorter urethra.

Symptoms of a UTI include:

  • Pain or burning while urinating
  • Frequent urination and feeling the need to urinate despite having just gone
  • Bloody urine
  • Pressure or cramping in the groin or lower abdomen

Yeast Infections

Yeast infections are caused by an overgrowth of fungus and can occur in the mouth, vagina, and penis. There's a small chance that you can develop a yeast infection in your mouth (called thrush) if you perform oral sex on someone who has a genital yeast infection. Likewise, someone with thrush might pass on a yeast infection if they perform oral sex on you.

There's also a chance that performing oral sex on someone with a yeast infection will make symptoms worse and prevent the condition from healing.

Symptoms of genital yeast infections include:

  • Itching or soreness
  • Pain during sexual intercourse
  • Pain or discomfort when urinating
  • Abnormal vaginal discharge
  • Thick, white discharge

People with thrush usually have white patches on the inner cheeks, tongue, roof of the mouth, or throat.

Safety

Your chances of contracting some STIs through oral sex are lower than having sexual intercourse without a condom, but it's still possible to become infected.

While abstinence is the best way to prevent disease, there are steps you can take to make oral sex safer:

  • Cover the penis with a non-lubricated latex condom.
  • Use store-bought dental dams or make your own by cutting a square out of a condom and putting it between your mouth and your partner's vagina.
  • Get tested regularly for STIs.
  • Ask a healthcare provider if you're eligible to receive vaccines for HPVhepatitis A, and hepatitis B.

Summary

Oral sex, a common practice, refers to oral stimulation of the genitals or anus by one person to another. In some circumstances, this sexual activity is "safer" compared to anal or vaginal sex without a condom, but it is still an efficient way to pass sexually transmitted diseases like chlamydia, gonorrhea, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, herpes, human papillomavirus (HPV), and syphilis. The transmission of HIV by oral sex is considered rare but is theoretically possible.

External condoms, internal condoms, and dental dams can significantly reduce the risk of STIs through oral sex.

7 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
  1. RAINN. What consent looks like.

  2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. STD risk and oral sex - CDC fact sheet.

  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. STD risk and oral sex.

  4. National Health Services. Sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

  5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Urinary tract infection.

  6. Office on Women's Health. Vaginal yeast infections.

  7. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Candida infections of the mouth, throat, and esophagus.

By Elizabeth Boskey, PhD
Elizabeth Boskey, PhD, MPH, CHES, is a social worker, adjunct lecturer, and expert writer in the field of sexually transmitted diseases.