Does urinating kill sperm leftover in the urethra?

Doctor's Answer

Pre-cum can contain sperm (especially by picking up sperm left behind in the urethra from a previous ejaculation), but if you urinate between sexual encounters, nearly all the remaining sperm in the urethra will be flushed out.

Interestingly enough, even though I couldn’t find any literature on whether urine kills sperm, one could assume that it does, extrapolating from the theory that pre-cum is alkaline to neutralize the acidic remnants of urine present in the urethra (in order to create a “safe passage” for your sperm). Hence, the converse must also be true – ie the acidity of your pee damages/kills sperm.

So if you’ve urinated several times between ejaculations, the likelihood is that your pre-cum will contain so little sperm that it wouldn’t present any pregnancy risk (which is what I presume you are asking about).

Having said that, about 73% of couples who use the “withdrawal method” become pregnant within 1 year. Something to bear in mind, if you want to avoid a pregnancy!

Cheers

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