Gay porn is surprisingly popular with straight men, according to a recent study.

While you may not expect boy on boy action to be a hit among a hetero male demographic, research by Youporn tells a compelling tale of straight guys getting their kicks from watching same-sex couples get it on.

According to Youporn, a whopping 23 percent of the time, straight men watch gay porn and 39 percent of the time, self-identifying straight females choose to watch gay porn too.

Related: Gay and lesbian couples are happier than straight couples

Perhaps more confusingly, 24 percent of “straight” men have actually had gay sex, while 36 percent of “straight” women have had sex with another woman, according to the survey.

So why might straight men watch gay porn? We asked Radio 1’s resident sexpert, Alix Fox, alongside a raft of health professionals, ranging from doctors to wellbeing coordinators, for their thoughts.

Turns out there are three main reasons…

1. Rebelling against gender stereotypes

One argument is that same-sex relationships are aspirational as they don’t abide by traditional gender stereotypes.

“Individuals in same-sex couples generally are more equitable in the ways in which they allocate domestic work, including childcare,” say Francisco Perales and Janeen Baxter from the University of Queensland.

“It’s interesting that a significant number of straight men watch gay porn because it seems so unlikely,” explains Doctor Sam Miles, social science researcher at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

However, he reasoned: “If you think about it, there’s no reason why they wouldn’t. Some gay men watch straight porn, so it should not come as a surprise that the reverse can also be true. It stands to reason that some of these men want a different ‘flavour’ sometimes”.

Related: Study shows that women really like watching gay men have sex

A wider tide of openness and acceptance, coupled with the #MeToo movement also means “some straight men might find the way that women are treated in straight porn demoralising”, says Doctor Sam Miles.

“Gay porn tends to have a less obvious power imbalance between actors” and offers a fresh perspective.

Doctor Martin J. Downing, a research scientist for Public Health Solutions, also reckons straight-identifying men watch gay porn to switch things up.

“One’s sexual identity does not always reflect his or her sexual attractions and experiences,” he said.

“Some heterosexual-identified men may experience sexual arousal from the homosociality or patterns of male bonding (including BDSM) inherent to gay male pornography”.

“It is important to note that the type of porn you watch doesn’t determine your sexuality,” insisted Ruby Stevenson, education and wellbeing coordinator at Brook.

“There’s such a huge variety of porn available that it’s no wonder consumers are switching up their viewing habits and watching a variety of content”.

According to Ruby, straight men watch gay porn because they are simply being inquisitive. “Watching a variety of porn can be a healthy way for people to explore fantasies without or before they explore something in real life,” notes Ruby.

Alix Fox, sexual health expert for BBC Radio 1 and ambassador for ONE condoms and Brook young people’s sexual health charity, told PinkNews: “I’ve lost count of the number of queries I’ve received from straight-identifying men who’ve been watching gay porn and are confused about the implications that may have regarding their sexuality”.

2. Straight men watch gay porn to see what other male bodies look like

Straight men also find solace in fantasising about being with another man even if they aren’t gay, because of the curiosity derived from the close platonic bonds between men.

Dr Sam Miles told PinkNews: “Gay porn tends be based on a narrative of hypermasculinity – often very ‘manly’, muscular men – and this might appeal to straight men as an intriguing and different kind of sexual relationship to what they normally see in their regular porn.”

Related: Age checks for watching online porn to be delayed

Alix Fox agrees. “Gay porn offers a convenient, discreet way to look at what other people are packing,” she explained.

“Plenty of men find it compelling – and perhaps reassuring – to be able privately take their time examining a variety of other dudes’ body types and genitalia too.

“Many folks wonder whether their own dangly ballsack/circumcision scar/twink bod is ‘normal’, but it’s not seen as socially acceptable to closely examine other men’s parts in public situations”.

3. Some straight-identifying men are actually gay or curious

The Office of National Statistics (ONS) said in 2017 that the number of gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender people in the UK had hit 1 million for the first time. A landmark figure for the community, the high – but not high enough – figure also tells a sadder tale.

Many LGBTQ+ people are closeted and watching gay porn in private. The actual number of gay people in Britain is likely to be 10 percent, says the Kinsey report.

Related: This Tumblr hack makes it super easy to search for porn on your phone

Stonewall asserted: “It is also important to recognise the context of this kind of research… Although people may feel comfortable answering an anonymous survey, they may struggle to open up about their identity with friends, family or colleagues.”

Alix Fox is campaigning for an end to “misleading” and “overly binary” distinctions between heterosexual and homosexual

“I sometimes joke that when it comes to sexuality, most of us sit somewhere on the perineum… the delightfully fuzzy space between two more distinct places!

“Some men might legitimately fall into such camps as ‘Straight, but also gets off on watching two bears barebacking’, or ‘Inclined towards making love with ladies, but perhaps wouldn’t say no to a BJ from a bloke.’

“For a proportion, yes: watching gay porn could indicate a repressed or hitherto unexplored part of their sexual identity”.

“But you know what would be good for all those men, though, in all those circumstances? Continued work to remove the unwarranted shame and stigma that sadly still surrounds gay, bisexual, curious and queer identities and interests.

“Whatever a straight-identifying man feels when he watches gay material, he should not feel ashamed.”