Have you ever wondered what exactly ejaculation is, what semen is made up of and how it is produced in a man’s body?
What Is Ejaculation?
Ejaculation is the discharge of semen from the penis that most often occurs together with orgasm. Ejaculation typically occurs after the release of a small amount of pre-ejaculate.
This pre-ejaculate consists of two drops of alkaline fluid from the bulbourethral glands. Its alkalinity is needed to neutralize the acidity remaining in the urethra since recent urination. This fluid, also known as pre-cum, occurs on the head of the penis when a man is sexually aroused.
The release of pre-ejaculate is followed by the orgasmic explosion. Although men may sometimes achieve dry orgasms, when they do not ejaculate, an erection normally leads to ejaculation, which indicates the final stage of male arousal. When ejaculation occurs, semen gushes from the urethra, and then diminishes in volume.
Semen, or ejaculate, consists of 90% of water and 10% of sperm that creates its opacity and milky appearance. If the concentration of sperm in semen is higher, its opalescence increases, as well. Around 65% of the semen a man ejaculates comes from the seminal vesicles, or seminal glands, while about 35% of the semen is a prostate fluid that provides its characteristic smell. The rest of the semen is made up of fluids from other glands.
During ejaculation, a man may release 1 to 5 millilitres of semen, where the average is 2-3 millilitres or a small teaspoon. To compare, an adult wild male boar ejaculates about half a litre of semen at once.
Besides, an ejaculate fluid can travel to the distances between 7 and 10 inches (17 to 25 cm) on average. However, in some cases, ejaculate can travel up to three feet or even more.
Male Multiple Orgasms
Usually, men are less capable of achieving multiple orgasms than women, and not all men have an ability to ejaculate repeatedly. Besides, this ability begins to diminish as soon as a man reaches complete sexual maturity. Most times, a man is able to ejaculate once per one to two hours. However, some men can have a second ejaculation within two hours. There are also those who are capable of achieving three or four orgasms, but this is quite rare. According one sex research, there was one who reported having six to eight ejaculations in a single session. However, this is rather a unique case.
Semen Quality and Fertility
In fact, volume and distance of ejaculation do not affect a man’s ability to impregnate his partner. Impregnation is possible even with a small amount of semen. However, if a man is suffering from infertility, he will need to undergo a semen analysis in order to see, if this dysfunction has anything to do with the semen itself.