The Truth About Pre-Cum And Pregnancy

Pre-cum, also known as pre-ejaculate, is the clear bodily fluid released by the Cowper's glands, a pair of pea-sized glands located under the prostate and next to the urethra. Acidic environments kill sperm, and by neutralizing the urethra’s acidity, pre-cum creates a safer pathway for sperm on their way through the penis during ejaculation. It doesn’t contain sperm in and of itself, but it might push sperm still in the urethra from a previous ejaculation forth to the tip of the penis — so yes, there is a slight chance that you can get pregnant from pre-cum.

Urination usually clears the urethra of sperm, though, so if you are using the pull-out method, also called withdrawal, make sure that the penis-owner urinates in between ejaculations. The pull-out method gets a bad rap and is indeed less effective than condoms, but it’s absolutely better than nothing. Planned Parenthood reports that only 4% of women whose partners use withdrawal and always do so correctly will become pregnant over the course of a year. That figure jumps to 27% for women whose partners use withdrawal and don’t always do so correctly, however. Efficacy of the method increases with couples’ trust, experience, and self-control.