If you’re trying to start or grow your family, you may have heard that some sexual positions make it easier or harder to conceive. Let’s cover how fertilization happens and why positions are not the key.
An overview of fertilization
You may remember this from health class: a lucky spermatozoon meets and penetrates an egg, fertilizes it, and a zygote forms. Easy, right? Not necessarily.
Conventional wisdom suggests we should do everything possible to assist the spermatozoon in its journey. Some believe that sexual positions in which the woman’s pelvis is elevated may put gravity in their favor, and women find themselves in all kinds of contortions or staring up at the ceiling. The truth is that conception is not that simple, and other factors determine whether fertilization occurs.
Why positions don’t matter
Because sperm cells can move on their own (that's why they have a tail), the male reproductive cells enter the cervix seconds after ejaculation. There, they come across cervical mucus, which is their first barrier. Only the strongest sperm cells will penetrate that mucus, regardless of the position the woman is in during sex [2]. Sperm then responds to the call of the egg cell, which sends out chemical signals. Again, it is not the force of gravity that matters but the speed and mobility of the sperm. Within 15 minutes (regardless of the position), the sperm cells will find themselves in one of the fallopian tubes, where one of them will fertilize the egg [3].
How to increase your chance of fertilization and conception
Doctors may recommend that women or couples with fertility issues try reproductive technologies for fertilization, such as artificial insemination (where sperm is placed directly in the uterus) or ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection, which introduces sperm directly into the egg), which are effective, and common interventions. But for most women, pregnancy will happen within the year of having regular sexual relations, regardless of the position they choose for intercourse.
