Anal sex has long been on the rise: A 2010 survey found that 40 percent of women aged 20 to 24 had tried anal sex, up from 16 percent in 1992. The survey also revealed that the number of women aged 20 to 39 who engaged in anal during the past year doubled to 20 percent.
More recently, a 2017 survey of more than 3,000 sexually active millennials found that 36 percent engage in female anal sex and 15 percent in male anal sex “at least some of the time.” PornHub data also shows that the number of searches for “anal” increased by a whopping 120 percent from 2009 to 2015, suggesting that our obsession with anal sex is continuing to flourish (we humans have a tendency to do as the pornographers do).
Besides porn, the popularization of backdoor action can be attributed to the cushy portrayal of butt stuff in popular culture — including ass eating. In her 2014 hit single “Anaconda,” Nicki Minaj gleefully describes a suitor who “toss my salad like his name Romaine.” That song dropped less than two months after the internet erupted with rumors claiming that Drake appreciates being on the receiving end of analingus.
Anal is now so common, some people are even doing it accidentally.
As for pegging? We’ve already peaked.
So where do we go from here?
All signs point toward technology. “Sex robots are the next hot ticket,” says clinical sexologist and certified sex coach Sunny Rodgers. “Films like Ex Machina and the growing presence of artificial intelligence have encouraged men to become more interested in tech sex than ever before.”
This isn’t surprising, considering sex robots are becoming increasingly more advanced (and lifelike): The makers of RealDoll, for example, recently announced a new line of emotional sex dolls that come with a range of character traits — from shy to intellectual to sexual.
According to Rodgers, sex robots have also become increasingly attractive, because they allow users to live out their wildest fantasies. “Many people want to have a threesome, but don’t want the emotional baggage that comes with it,” she explains. “They also want to try sexual activities that their current partner isn’t interested in — maybe they’re too freaky or dangerous — so they turn to a sex robot to indulge in those activities.”
Perhaps this explains why an Austrian brothel was recently forced to purchase a second $10,000 sex doll after the first one became more popular with their clientele than the actual human sex workers.
Rodgers also believes that technologically advanced sex toys will soon make their way into more bedrooms across the U.S. “Male masturbation products are becoming just as technical as intimate pleasure products for women,” she says. “They offer vibration, suction, rotation, air compression and jelqing [a recently-popularized penis-enlargement technique].”
Chelsea McCain, sex toys and novelties manager for the online adult retailer and entertainment website Adult Empire, is of the same opinion. “More and more people are going to get into sex toys,” she says. “They now know the feeling of sex, anal sex and masturbation without the aid of toys — I imagine people who are new to expressing sexuality or craving a different sensation want to amp up those feelings.”
According to McCain, sex toys provide endless possibilities, which suits the needs of a post-anal society. “Men can buy vibrating prostate toys that make anal play even more glorious,” she explains. “Women can experiment with double penetration, and discover why clit toys are making a huge wave in the sex toy world right now.”
Once more sex toys enter the equation — again, opening up pandora’s sexual box — McCain believes BDSM will enter the mainstream as well. “People who are a little more experienced and sexually open will dabble in light BDSM and fetish play,” she says. “Maybe that means getting a footjob from your partner, or attempting some light tying-up and spanking.”
Rodgers and McCain agree that group sex is also due for a boom. “If people enjoy BDSM, that could lead them to fetish-specific websites, where they may meet other people into the same things that they are,” McCain says. “They can talk, open up and maybe have a casual threesome or sexual encounter.”
But above all, our experts think we’re headed toward a generally sexually-open society. “I like to think that, in this day and age, we’re opening up sexually and trying new things with open minds — we just want to find ourselves and understand our bodies,” McCain says. “I love how sexual health is becoming more mainstream and easy to talk about, no matter what you’re into — even super kinky things or unique fetishes.”
I for one, look forward to meeting all my friend’s sex robots in the near future.
Ian Lecklitner
Ian Lecklitner is a staff writer at MEL Magazine. He mostly writes about everyone's favorite things: Sex, drugs and food.
