"Sex toys are out there, they're being used, and for that reason it would be nice to have some kind of oversight," Shindel says. "But for the time being, people have to take charge and say, 'I'm not going to rely on a government agency to make sure the thing is safe for me. I'm going to learn about it myself.'"
Sexual chemistry
Perhaps the most obvious safe-sex-toy discussion starts with the question, "Exactly what chemicals am I exposing my nether regions to?" Sex toys come in a variety of materials—plastic, rubber, glass, wood and various combinations thereof. Glass just seems silly (although, in fact, what's used is supposedly shatterproof). But "safe" isn't always easy to define.
One possible villain: phthalates, a group of controversial plastic-softeners on California's Proposition 65 list of toxic chemicals, which has been linked with cancer, neurological and reproductive issues. In 2006 Greenpeace organizations in the Netherlands and U.K. called for the European Union to ban phthalates in sex toys.
Some shops, including Good Vibrations in San Francisco and Smitten Kitten in Minneapolis, have stopped carrying products with phthalates. Others, such as Babeland in Seattle, have started providing customers with information about products' materials and alternatives.
Yet research conducted by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency suggests a less-alarming story. Its experiments—involving simulated saliva, sweat and vaginal lubrication—found that using sex toys with phthalates was deemed to pose no excessive health risk, as long as use was limited to no more than one hour a day. (Pregnant and breast-feeding women were safe up to 15 minutes a week.) The study found other potentially toxic chemicals (such as cadmium and trimethyltin chloride) in a random selection of sex toys, but here also the exposure was too low to be dangerous.
Still, the easiest way to protect users from leaching chemicals (or just general dirt and germs) is to put a condom over the dildo or vibrator, experts say. Beyond that, choose lubricants wisely: In the Danish study, the leaching of chemicals was 100 times slower (and therefore less harmful) when used with water-based lubricants compared with oil-based ones.
Playing well
As any parent knows, a toy is only as safe as the crazy things its owner tries to do with it. Since many sexual devices do not come with instructions, here is some information to keep in mind:
Insertables: Losing one's grip is the biggest concern with internal devices. Vaginal toys cannot go too far astray, thanks to women's bumper-top cervix. But they can be difficult to retrieve, and can poke and tear tissue while lost. Best to use blunt, penis-shaped objects with a flared base, says gynecologist Leah Millheiser, director of the Female Sexual Medicine Program at Stanford University.
Anal objects, however, can easily get lost. During orgasm, powerful rectal muscles contract and can suck an object up and up, potentially obstructing the colon. A toy might be harmlessly flushed out, but it might also perforate tissue, leading to bleeding or infection. Use toys with a flared base or a string, Shindel says. Apply lots of lubricant, and choose toys designed for anal use because sharp ridges on vaginal dildos can tear more sensitive anal tissue. Hemorrhoid sufferers should be extra careful.
Size does matter: Gargantuan dildos might seem a fun idea but can tear delicate skin at the entrance to the vagina or anus, especially when enthusiastically inserted. In those moist environments wounds heal slowly, inviting re-injury or infection, Millheiser says.
External vibrators: These are not usually an emergency room affair, but unsafe clitoral stimulation is common. A 2009 Indiana University study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine found that 53 percent of all women have used a vibrator, and 18 percent of those have had numbness, pain and other side effects. Known in the occupational-safety world as "vibratory strain injury," these problems may at first merely frustrate but can develop into chronic conditions.
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7 Comments
Add CommentThanks for this fabulous article. It's great to see Good Vibrations's leadership in the question of materials safety acknowledged -- we were also the company that urged the ingredient nonoxynol-9 be removed from lubricants. As Staff Sexologist and a part of the company for over 20 years, I just want to say that one enormous challenge and frustration is the inability of most sources to give clear information about product safety. There is no one stakeholder in charge of determining this, specifically *sexual* health and safety. In a world more comfortable with sexuality, that would likely change; and hopefully our world is moving in that direction.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIf I may, a couple of points: a dildo does not need to be "penis-shaped"; it can have no visual comparability to a penis and still be perfectly safe. Call it "rocket-shaped", perhaps. While plenty of women, men (and everyone) would prefer not to use a toy that reminds them of a penis, others want such a toy for exactly that reason -- because they eroticize and identify with it. In toy use as in cuisine preferences, it takes all kinds.
And women who notice any clitoral and vulvar numbness with vibrator use might be conscious of how hard they are pressing the toy against themselves. If you lean on one hand long enough, that pressure will (without any vibration at all!) make your hand go numb.
Really the bottom line with toy use is: How do people get information about safety and pleasure? Surely not from US sex education, which is not inclusive of this kind of detail. That's why Good Vibrations has always made education and knowledge provision a key part of its mission; visitors to our stores will find staff members (we call them SESAs, "sex educators/sales associates") who can speak comfortably about sexuality and sex toys, answer questions, and help customers maximize their knowledge. Website visitors to goodvibes.com, too, will find info pages as well as products.
We need to get rid of quite a few double standards so we can talk honestly about such things. For a start, replace "Be fruitful and multiply" with "Make (create) love, not babies, and doublely reduce the causes of war."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhat about the correct use of a hamster?
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thiswell, let's see. lawyer zach says nobody is embarrassed to use a hair dryer. or, self-servingly, to call a lawyer in case of defects (vs a sex toy), truly begging the question as to what one should be embarrassed about.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisurologist alan synonymizes "maturity" with product regulation - but no word on self-regulation, or even the product regulatory mechanism known as 'the market'. which, btw, does provide gorgeous to the point of artistic sex toys (in materials such as stainless steel and borosilicate glass, jade), as well as more pedestrian, but safe, medical grade silicone. there are also some amazing, in terms of effect, examples of sex toys intersecting the industrial revolution (like hitachi's handheld vibe, or the sybian, which might be the result of exposing a typical vibe to gamma rays...). paternalists and their attempts to corner the market on "maturity". tsk, tsk, tsk.....
the lady from 'good vibrations' has the right idea.
Thank you to Dr. Nuzzo for bringing more widespread attention to this important topic. Thank you also to Dr. Carol Queen (a personal friend of mine) for her comments on safe and responsible use of sexual enhancement devices/toys. Dr. Queen, the staff at Good Vibrations, and employees of many other responsible vendors of sexual enhancement products have been educating customers on safe and effective use of these devices for decades. I applaud their work, and there is no doubt in my mind that their efforts have limited the number of injuries suffered by sex toy users.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe myriad of devices and objects that we use in our daily lives grow increasing complex year by year. Personal responsibility is of course paramount and no one should rely on regulatory standards alone if they are to use any object safely and effectively…I am quoted as saying as much in this article. However, I don’t believe it is unreasonable to suggest that some minimum level of safety standards for devices used in and on the human body is warranted. This already applies to cell phones, hair dryers, personal hygiene products, kitchen appliances…should devices that are used on the most sensitive parts of our anatomy not be held to a similar high standard of quality/safety?
Editorial restrictions invariably limit what an author is able to accommodate in any written material; Dr. Nuzzo did an outstanding job highlighting the thoughts Dr. Aaronson (my co-author on the Journal of Sexual Medicine editorial) and I articulated in our manuscript. Readers interested in perusing the original editorial may contact my office at the University of California, Davis Department of Urology for a PDF copy of the document.
The author writes:
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this'It's entirely possible that someone's favorite cyclotron vibrator can shell-shock nerves, penis rings might lead to a grievous case of penile gangrene or those little vibrating beads could slip upstream and become tragicomically lost in bodily cavities while still in the "on" position'.
Hmm - the author does not even have any evidence that this IS a problem. There are many real problems in this world SciAm should concentrate on those.
" ... no word on self-regulation, or even the product regulatory mechanism known as 'the market'."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thistanstaafm, or, there aint no such thing as a free market. the only safe or fair (or safe) market is a well regulated market.
there is a name which best describes believers in a free market - suckers.