Sex Makes Me Sneeze – Am I Allergic?
Q: Lucas called The Cooper and Anthony Show to say he sneezes when he thinks about sex. Is this normal, or is he allergic to sex?
A: This is a thing. There was a famous study back in 2008 where British doctors discovered that thinking about sex can trigger sneezing and that its likely hereditary. This happens because the nose is more intimately connected to the genitals than any other organ. It has to do with your autonomic nervous system, where certain functions that are automatic get a bit confused in the brain—like your genitals and your nose. For some people the mere thought of sex causes severe bouts of uncontrollable sneezing!
British scientists said they had one patient whose wife divorced him because of it. She said it was because they would go to the house of one particular friend of theirs for parties and he would sneeze uncontrollably despite denying he was attracted to her.
So it’s like a human lie detector for some people.
MORE ON SEX THOUGHTS AND SNEEZING
The autonomic nervous system controls involuntary bodily functions like heart rate, digestion, and respiratory rate. Sometimes, sexual thoughts or arousal can lead to increased activity in the autonomic nervous system, which might cause certain physiological reactions, but sneezing is not commonly reported in this context. It happens, but it’s rare. Lucas is just unlucky . . . or lucky.
