Six weird facts about semen

Semen, that milky fluid that's supposedly teeming with little swimmers more formerly known as spermatozoa. Many women are quick to scrunch up their noses at this messy result of sex, but semen has a vast range of amazing qualities that you might not know about.

Here are six weird and wonderful benefits and facts about this "man-made" stuff.

Get all your vitamins

Semen might taste weird, but it's highly nutritious. Not only is it high in protein, the stuff contains Vitamin B12, zinc, calcium and magnesium! What's more, a single teaspoon of the stuff will give you as much Vitamin C as one whole orange.

You can be allergic to it

Known as human seminal plasma hypersensitivity, this allergy affects a small number of women. About five percent, to be exact. Symptoms include genital itching, swelling, blisters and welts. In bad cases, difficulty breathing, hives and generalized itching can occur. Using a condom is the best way to avoid this, but in mild cases repeated exposure to the semen can help to alleviate this reaction over time.

It could act as an antidepressant

A 2002 study conducted by psychologist Gordon Gallup has found that women who are exposed to semen are less likely to be depressed because of the mood-lifting hormones present in the fluid. He found that women who had sex without a condom were more likely to initiate sex, and to go out in search for a new partner after a break-up - a response which Gallup believed had something to do with chemical dependency on semen - controversial, but interesting…

Secret agents love the stuff

Semen makes for rather brilliant invisible ink - when held under ultraviolet light, that is. In fact, British Secret Intelligence Service (also known as M16) Captain Sir George Mansfield Smith-Cumming (yes, that really was his name) said of the discovery, "Every man (is) his own stylo."

It's not great for your teeth

A blowjob might be his favourite thing, but best you get him to pay your dentist bills in exchange for them because semen contains acid-loving bacteria which slowly breaks down the enamel that protects your teeth. It can also do damage to your gums, eventually causing gingivitis. That's assuming that you spend a lot of time giving blowjobs and is far more likely to happen if you don't rinse your mouth out and brush your teeth afterwards…

Assists pregnancy in more ways than one

Frequent exposure to your man's semen will help you fall pregnant a lot easier. More specifically, giving him a blowjob and swallowing his semen gives your immune system time to get used to the foreign DNA that will ultimately take seed in your womb. A study published in The Journal of Reproductive Immunology has shown that not only does it help you fall pregnant it also helps you stay healthy during the pregnancy, avoiding high blood pressure resulting from preeclampsia.