What's the deal with anal sex and how can you  stay safe when you're having it? I'm Dr Rena   Malik urologist and pelvic surgeon and today  we're going to talk all about anal sex. Anal   sex is the process of inserting a penis into the  anus of another partner and people often engage in   anal sex for sexual pleasure or because they want  to avoid an unwanted pregnancy and it's becoming   more and more common among young heterosexual  couples in the United States they estimate that   about 37 percent of men and 30 percent of women  have engaged in anal sex and when compiling much   research together it's estimated that about  10 percent of sexually active women regularly   engage in anal intercourse some people find anal  sex to be more intimate than vaginal intercourse   or other forms of sex some enjoy the variety or  novelty of anal sex others find Joy or excitement   in doing something that's more taboo or forbidden  other people enjoy the control or domination that   they perceive during anal intercourse and others  enjoy kind of the pain slash pleasure Sensation   that they feel with anal sex and lastly some  people just do it as a part of their relationship   with their partner and interestingly anal sex  in particular in between heterosexual couples   has been depicted as far back as 300 A.D these  were specifically seen on Peruvian pots and in   the 16th and 19th centuries it was seen in Chinese  hand Scrolls and prints and then later in French   lithography and photography in the 19th and 20th  centuries so it's been happening for a long time   so is anal sex safe yes when done correctly and  safely it can be very very safe but what are the   things that you need to know to have safe anal  sex well first and foremost you want to make sure   you and your partner are on the same page that  requires communicating with them and sometimes   it's not always just verbal communication you  want to pick up on their body language and   their cues to really understand if they really  want to participate in this or they're kind of   feeling a little bit forced also the anal Canal  does not make its own lubrication so you need a   lot of lubricant I've made an entire video about  lubricants but things that you should know is that   the pH for the anus is different than the pH for  the vagina which is why water-based lubricants   typically are designated as lubricants for anal  sex it's also important to know that water-based   lubricants dry out and you may need to reapply  other options are silicone based or oil-based why would you need to use a condom there's no  risk of pregnancy with anal sex I've talked   about this before in a video about the only  FDA approved condom for anal sex is that anal   sex can put you at risk for sexually transmitted  infections and this is a serious problem because   very few people are actually using condoms  with anal sex and anal sex the anal tissues   and the lining of the rectum is very very thin  and friable meaning that it easily bleeds and   then you can be exposed to each other's bodily  fluids like blood which can transmit sexually   transmitted infections including HIV HPV syphilis  gonorrhea chlamydia so if you are not sure about   your partner's STI status or you want to protect  yourself It's always important to use a condom   you can also use a dental dam when using oral to  anal intercourse and no matter whether you use   a condom or not always use sufficient lubricant  because you want to make sure the experience is   not only comfortable but it's also safe also make  sure if you go from anal to vaginal on penetration   that you change condoms take off the condom that  you use for anal penetration and use a new condom   for vaginal penetration so what about using  toys very often when you're starting to foray   into anal intercourse or anal play it's often  recommended to start with something smaller than   a phallus so using a lubricated finger or a sex  toy what kind of toys can you use safely in the   anus well there are very specific things that are  marketed for anal intercourse that usually have a   flared base or a some sort of ring or string  at the back that you can easily pull out the   device that you're inserting so those are the  ones you want to use there are so many things   on the market like butt plugs anal beads dildos  but you again want to make sure that these are   designated for anal play you definitely don't want  to use something that might be used for vaginal   play that doesn't have a flared bass because  unfortunately these things can get lost in the   rectum and you don't want to spend your fun kinky  sexy night in the ER because you lost your sex toy   also after you've used any sort of toy for anal  play make sure you sanitize that toy before you   use it again if you're ever having pain during  anal sex it's really important to stop especially   if you're having significant bleeding or pain  that's not going away it's extremely rare but   sometimes anal sex can lead to injuries of the  anal sphincter the anal sphincter is the ring   of muscles that surrounds the anus that helps  control bowel movements and if that's injured   you can develop things like fecal incontinence  or accidents with stool again this is extremely   rare but these things only happen when you're  having unsafe anal sex meaning you're not using   lots of lubricants you're not listening to your  body and you're forcing things to move forward   when your body's not ready for it so I hope you  guys found this video helpful and so you can go   on and have safe sensual enjoyable anal sex  with your consenting partner if you'd like to   look at the FDA approved anal condom check it  out in the description below below and please   stay safe stay healthy as always I'm going to take  care of yourself because you're worth it [Music]