The things you might not know about sex...

by Olivia Foster

The majority of us have done it and let’s be honest, if we haven’t done it we’re still all talking about it.

In the simplest terms it is what keeps the earth populated, and in it’s most complicated, it can make or break the most important relationships in our lives.

Once a taboo, now you are just as likely to discuss your sex life over a cup of coffee as you are the weather.

Sex is something we speculate about.

When we don’t have it we want it and when we do have it we’re constantly debating over how good it is, how bad it is and whether we’re doing it as much as everybody else.

As with most talked-about subjects with gossip, come rumours, lies and often downright myths. Here we uncover the truth about some of the most common:

Women don’t watch porn:

OK, so not every woman sits at home with her erotica collection on a Saturday night, but with porn companies out there especially marketing their movies for a female audience, porn for women is a big industry and it’s getting bigger.

Only if her collection starts to surpass yours do you need to worry she’s taken the habit a little bit too far.

If you’re ‘good’ in bed you can satisfy anyone:

Really this should be entitled "there is no such thing as being 'good' in bed."

How good you are depends on the person you are doing it with. Get to know your partner.

What works for one person won’t always work for another.

The average penis size is eight inches:

This is a slight exaggeration, but the supposed average penis size changes depending on who’s telling you.

The actual figure is five to six inches, erect, which is lucky as the average depth of a vagina is five to seven inches.

How convenient.

Most women orgasm through intercourse:

Probably not something men want pointing out but in actual fact only 30 per cent of women can orgasm through penetration alone.

However, never fear, all it takes is a little stimulation elsewhere and you will be well on the way to helping her achieve the big O.

You can’t get Sexually Transmitted Infections through oral sex:

Pretty scary, as most people believe this to be true.

While it is well known that herpes can be passed merely on a skin-to-skin basis, other diseases can be caught through exposure to bodily fluids.

These include Hepatitis A and B, and Chlamydia. Before you get down there, make sure you get checked out.

You won’t get pregnant if he pulls out:

You would think after years of science lessons and lectures on how to correctly put on a condom and the miracles of birth control people wouldn’t still believe this one.

Although your partner may not have actually ejaculated inside you, pre-cum – and we don’t need to be graphic here, you all know what that is – can still make you pregnant.

The random but true facts:

Having 30 minutes of active sex – we don’t mean acrobatics but you have to be moving a bit – can burn an average of 200 calories.

Shoe and foot fetishes are the most common fetishes in western society.

All the more reason to keep those tootsies looking polished.

Though most women don’t find stubble rash appealing, bizarrely a man’s beard grows faster when he is anticipating sex.

Humans are the only creatures in the animal kingdom to have sex face to face, although not all the time.

The average life of a condom is two years.

So, if you’ve been carrying one around since secondary school it’s probably about time to throw it away.