Incontinence, bleeding and STIs among the consequences, say two surgeons, who want doctors to have open chats with patients on the topic
Incontinence, bleeding and STIs among consequences, say two surgeons, who want doctors to raise the topic with patientsPhotograph: Chinnapong/ShutterstockPhotograph: Chinnapong/ShutterstockWomen in the UK are suffering injuries and other health problems as a result of the growing popularity of anal sex among straight couples, two NHS surgeons have warned.
In the journal, they said “anal intercourse is considered a risky sexual behaviour because of its association with alcohol, drug use and multiple sex partners”. “Women have less robust anal sphincters and lower anal canal pressures than men, and damage caused by anal penetration is therefore more consequential.
“It is no longer considered an extreme behaviour but increasingly portrayed as a prized and pleasurable experience,” wrote Hunt, a surgeon in Sheffield, and Gana, a trainee colorectal surgeon in Yorkshire. NHS patient information about the risks of anal sex is incomplete because it only cites STIs, and makes “no mention of anal trauma, incontinence or the psychological aftermath of the coercion young women report in relation to this activity”.