There are lots of myths that circulate the internet about semen. There are blogs, articles in men’s magazines, and just good ol’ fashioned gossip telling you how to change the taste or smell of your excretions.

There is some truth to this, considering that what your body excretes is of course effected by what you put into it.

But there’s more than just STDs and pineapple flavor that can be exchanged during fellactio. What could be potentially scarier than the clap?

Anaphylactic shock.

Recently, a woman from Spain ended up in the hospital with anaphylactic shock after swallowing her partner’s semen. When she arrived it was unclear what could have caused it. But with digging, it was found that her hives, ‘abundant’ vomiting, and shortness of breath were due to the blowjob she preformed shortly before.

A rare semen allergy (where an individual is allergic to specific proteins in sperm) was ruled out after confirming she had never suffered any symptoms in previous sexual encounters. It turns out her 32 year old partner had taken amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, which is a form of penicillin, to treat an ear infection he had developed.

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Doctors at Hospital General Universitari d’Alacant concluded her allergic reaction was caused by ‘seminal transfer of amoxicillin‘. There are a few reports of medication being transferred through sexual intercourse, and there is a specific report stating that amoxicillin can be transferred through kissing, but this is the first report of it’s kind that shows transfer through oral sexual.

The Daily Mail gives us details provided by Susana Almenara, lead author of the report:

We urge anyone with known drug allergies to ‘be aware’ of the potential risk and ensure they use condoms. She said: ‘We think that as clinicians it is important to be aware of this phenomenon so was to inform and prevent potentially serious reactions in sensitised patients. ‘We also recommend condom use during treatment with drugs that can induce hypersensitivity responses in partners.’ Ms Almenara added: ‘This is the first case reported of a suspicion of amoxicillin-induced anaphylaxis in a woman after a sexual contact with a man who was taking the drug.’

With a shot of adrenaline, steroids, and salbutamol her shortness of breath was resolved within six hours and she had a full recovery a week later. The hospital requested a follow up with the woman to study her case further, but she did not show up to the appointment.

Given that this is just one case, how certain can we be that allergies can be transferred through sexual activity? This case seems to have reached it’s conclusion with the process of elimination.

Reach MD states in their article here about whether you can have an allergic reaction due to you partner consuming those allergens here:

It would seem that the answer is ‘probably.’ The most widely reported case of an allergic reaction which occurred after intercourse is that of a woman from Surrey who developed symptoms consistent with an allergic reaction after having sex with her boyfriend who had eaten Brazil nuts a few hours earlier. The case was reported by the Daily Mail in 2011, although it was documented in a scientific paper four years previously, in 2007. The paper records that ‘The patient’s partner was aware of the patient’s very significant nut allergy and had bathed, brushed his teeth and cleaned his nails immediately before intercourse as he had consumed mixed nuts roughly two to three hours earlier.’ The patient’s symptoms included significant itching and swelling of her vagina and vulva, feeling faint, and a shortness of breath. Her condition improved after taking medication. In order to test the hypothesis that it was the boyfriend’s semen which had been the agent for the transfer of traces of Brazil nut, doctors at the Department of Immunology at St Helier Hospital in Carshalton, Surrey performed standard allergy skin tests using semen before and after Brazil nut consumption. They report that the tests ‘confirmed the presence of an allergenic nut protein.’

So it seems that traces of a consumed allergen can be found in semen after its been metabolized. So you can be allergic to your boyfriend’s nuts after he eats nuts. This is a scary thought to those with life threatening allergies.

The Daily Mail continues to quote Ms. Almenara on the case of the woman allergic to penicillin here:

She admitted it is often difficult to find the causative agent of some allergic reactions but said drugs are the most common cause of anaphylaxis in adults. She added: ‘In cases of anaphylaxis, it is essential to make a correct and early diagnosis in order to initiate adequate treatment and to avoid fatalities.’ Ms Almenara quoted figures from another study that showed around one in 250 penicillin treatments result in an anaphylactic shock. Ms Almenara added even the smallest presence of an allergen, such as penicillin, in semen could lead to anaphylaxis.

So needless to say if you have an allergy, wrap it up or have an EpiPen nearby.

BAYBEE, if you’ve got allergies, you better be more careful out here! I’m highly allergic to shellfish and I can’t imagine…https://t.co/GEiOSb3aZr — It’s Pisces Season! (@cocoakeke) March 13, 2019

Reportedly there are up to 12% of women with a semen allergy though it seems as in a few highlighted cases it’s related to another allergen in the fluid – brazil nuts in another case about 2011 – women are really getting sick of men! — Derrick Mapp (@6dm4) March 12, 2019

reminder for you all with pollen allergies that pollen is basically plant semen. you are literally allergic to sex — Fiora (@FioraAeterna) September 24, 2015

imagine if semen was carbonated — cinque khalifa (@eskimocityflex) March 14, 2019