Study: Some Men Allergic to Own Semen

Wednesday, 19 January 2011 | by Pat's Picks

Wow, it doesn’t get any worse than this: According to a recent study, certain men appear to be allergic to their own semen. The Denver Post picks up the story this morning, reporting that a group of men studied by Dutch researchers showed flu-like symptoms after ejaculating.

The condition is called POIS or post-orgasmic illness syndrome. After first thinking POIS was psycho-somatic, researchers say they concluded it was an allergy after noting that the symptoms only appeared when semen came in contact with the skin; men who masturbated without ejaculating were void of symptoms. The LA Times says a therapy is in the works, which involved injecting men with concentrated doses of their own semen in an attempt to build up immunity. Let the jokes begin.

Read an abstract of the study, published in the most current edition of the Journal of Sexual Medicine