The science behind popular and bizarre sex tips

Sex hacks.

We’ve all seen them floating around on the internet: those tips about what positions to use to reach climax, and which foods to chow down on to get into the mood.

But what advice works, and what’s just online mythology?

To clear things up, here are a few hacks with some actual science behind them.

Pull your socks up

A Seinfeld episode comedian Kevin Hart swears by it, and it even appeared to be employed by a 2019 “Love Island” contestant who created some suspicious sheet movement with a castmate whilst his covered feet dangled from the end of the bed.

The idea that leaving your socks on during the act makes for better sex has been around for a long time.

Long enough, in fact, that in 2015, researchers at the University of Groningen decided to put it to the test by looking at brain scans of couples during sexual stimulation, with and without socks on.

And their findings suggest you’re more likely to reach the Big Oh if you have warm feet.

Admittedly, the study was only small (it included just 13 couples), but the theory behind it does seem to hold water.

Science has long known about the powerful connection between our minds and our genitals (author Naomi Wolf even famously coined it the “brain-vagina loop”). That connection means any kind of environmental stress or discomfort can inhibit blood-flow to our nether regions, making orgasm less likely. So simply ensuring you don’t have cold extremities by slipping on some socks before getting down to business could improve your chances of getting off.

Pillow talk

If you have a vulva, you’ve undoubtedly had a pillow thrust beneath your hips at some point during sex. Internet forums and blogs have been touting angled sex as a targeted way of hitting the G-spot during penetration since the dawn of Reddit, and they’re definitely onto something.

Though there are still some G-spot non-believers, anyone who’s lived to tell the tale of having theirs stimulated (the rest are still regrouping and remembering how to access speech) knows this erogenous zone holds within it the power to deliver the kind of orgasms that can turn even the most hardened atheist spiritual.

Located roughly an inch to an inch and-a-half inside the front wall of the vagina, the G-spot can be a little tricky to get to, though – which is where the pillow trick comes in.

Propping the pelvis up puts the G-spot at an angle that essentially assures it’s hit during sex. It’s not foolproof, but it’s reliable enough to turn most people into believers.

A good egg

The “egg yolk method” is the latest sex craze to take TikTok by storm, and – as weird as it sounds – it’s grounded in common sense.

Don’t be put off by the name either; this hack doesn’t involve breaking an egg over your partner. Instead, it uses the yolk merely as an analogy for explaining how to correctly pleasure a vulva.

In a clip that’s racked up over 13 million views, a woman gently circles a raw egg yolk with her thumb, showing that, when she applies even the tiniest bit of pressure, the yolk immediately breaks. The instructive here being, to approach the clitoris like a yolk you’re carefully trying to avoid rupturing.

And this just makes good sexual practice, given the clitoris is home to an estimated eight thousand nerve endings, making it incredibly sensitive to overstimulation.

Cup of Joe

Last year, a hack suggesting drinking coffee directly before sex to have stronger orgasms went crazy-viral on TikTok. The theory behind it seemed to stem from the idea caffeine is a vasodilator (which essentially means it causes blood vessels to dilate, subsequently allowing more blood to flow through them), and so could help boost blood-flow to the genitals, thereby enhancing climax.

Though there are no scientific studies to prove the efficacy of shooting an espresso before getting it on, Melbourne-based gynecologist Dr Joseph Sgroi did weigh in on the trend at the time, suggesting it may have a mild effect.

“Interestingly, the effect of caffeine on blood vessels varies. Blood vessels in the brain and lung tend to constrict, whilst those in the stomach tend to dilate. Add this to the effect on the brain as a stimulant, and you might get the sensation of improvements with your orgasms,” Sgroi explained.