Dear Julian,

What’s all this I hear about food and sex? Heck, some of the internet memes ask about sex w/ vegetables, and I always hear about the sexiness of strawberries & whipped cream, not to mention chocolate body paint. Do people really do that? Is it a good idea?

Thanks,
B aka not sure if I’m hungry

People have been mixing food and sex for eons—the Romans even did some documentation on this—and we’re not just talking about olive oil as lube. The fact is that humans have a tendency to utilize phallic-shaped objects, and a lot of produce is quite phallic. Let’s start with that. Other than the basic factors of cleanliness and smooth surfaces, there aren’t a lot of risks involving sexy time with the produce section, particularly of the vegetable variety. There are people that utilize nature’s bounty out of convenience or experimentation, to spice things up a bit, and then there are those who have a specific affinity for food play.

Fetishizing playing with your food has its own special medical label, sitophilia. There’s also a subset of the fetish culture that uses the term “sploshing” for the messier, food all over the place type of play. Kiddie pools filled with pudding, laying out tarps out for food fights and strawberries and cream a la 9-1/2 Weeks is a pastime for many adults and even theme parties. Some are in it for the taboo; others, the texture and sensations, and some people just like it without thinking much about why.

There are some safety concerns when it comes to food play. Sugars and sensitive bits really aren’t designed to mix. Sugars introduced internally into orifices other than the mouth can feed infection and throw of the balance of your natural bacterial flora. Yeah, that’s right, we all have happy bacteria that co-exist with us and keep us healthy. When you add elements, sugar in particular can cause nasty infections when left to hang out. Cleaning up after play is the best preventive medicine. Some people never have issues, and some have them the first time out; every body is different. Whipped cream, chocolate body paint and flavored lube (check those ingredients) can be a great time, just make sure that you pay attention and round up the afterglow with some sexy shower time. Alternatively, if it was Jell-o wrestling, cake sitting or a custard bath, you might want to start with a nice hosing off.

All in all, mixing sex and food can be a good time and a lot of people do it. Think about this- most people use food as foreplay. Expensive dining or a candlelight dinner at home can lead to eating off of each other forks, or tasting sauce on each others fingers- such actions are frequently portrayed on screen during romantic moments on film. Expensive dining or a candlelight dinner at home almost always leads to the bedroom, on or off film.

B, I hope I answered your questions and remember, there are a plethora of ways to have a deliciously good time.

Enjoy yourself,
Julian