The white, creamy fluid that appears during sex is normal vaginal lubrication mixed with natural cervical and vaginal secretions. When a woman becomes sexually aroused, blood flow to the genital area increases, and the vaginal walls essentially “sweat” a slippery fluid through a process called transudation. This combines with secretions from several glands in and around the vagina, producing the visible, often white or milky discharge that many people refer to as “creaming.” The amount, color, and consistency vary from person to person and even from one sexual encounter to the next, and almost always it signals that the body’s arousal response is working exactly as it should.
Where the Fluid Actually Comes From
Vaginal lubrication is not produced by a single source. During arousal, increased blood flow causes congestion in the tissues surrounding the vagina. Plasma from this engorged blood seeps through the vaginal lining and coats the vaginal walls, forming the bulk of what you feel as wetness. On top of that, the Bartholin’s glands (two small glands near the vaginal opening), the cervix, and the uterus all contribute their own secretions.1PubMed Central. Physiologic Measures of Sexual Function in Women: A Review The result is a blend of fluids with slightly different compositions depending on where you are in your cycle, how aroused you are, and your individual biology.
The white or creamy appearance that gives “creaming” its name comes from the mix of these various fluids with the vagina’s resident cells and natural bacteria (mostly lactobacilli). On its own, vaginal fluid is often clear to slightly cloudy. When it combines with cervical mucus, dead epithelial cells, and the friction of intercourse, it can thicken and turn visibly white. This is the same basic discharge you might notice on underwear throughout the day, just produced in larger quantities because arousal ramps up the process.
How the Menstrual Cycle Changes Things
If you’ve noticed that the amount or texture of this fluid changes throughout the month, your hormones are the reason. Estrogen drives cervical mucus production, and its levels fluctuate across the menstrual cycle. In the days leading up to ovulation, estrogen rises and the cervix produces increasing amounts of clear, stretchy, egg-white-like mucus. After ovulation, progesterone takes over and causes a sharp drop in mucus secretion, making discharge thicker, stickier, and less abundant.2PubMed Central. Cervical mucus patterns and the fertile window in women without known subfertility: a pooled analysis of three cohorts
During sex, these baseline changes in mucus production interact with arousal-driven lubrication. Around ovulation, the combination of abundant cervical mucus and arousal fluid often means noticeably more wetness and a slipperier texture. In the luteal phase (the second half of the cycle, after ovulation), some women find they produce less visible lubrication even when fully aroused. Neither pattern is abnormal; both reflect the same hormonal machinery running on its regular schedule.
Pregnancy, hormonal contraceptives, and menopause all shift these baselines further. Oral contraceptives suppress the estrogen surge that normally happens mid-cycle, which can reduce cervical mucus production and leave some women feeling drier. During pregnancy, increased blood flow to the pelvis and higher estrogen levels tend to produce more discharge overall. And after menopause, declining estrogen can thin the vaginal walls and reduce lubrication significantly, though arousal-driven transudation still occurs.
Creaming Versus Female Ejaculation Versus Squirting
These three things get confused constantly online, but they are different phenomena with different sources and compositions. “Creaming” is the vaginal lubrication described above. Female ejaculation and squirting are both expulsions of fluid from the urethra, not the vagina, and they differ from each other in volume, appearance, and chemical makeup.
Female ejaculation in the strict sense involves a small volume of thick, whitish fluid, typically a few milliliters. This fluid comes from the Skene’s glands, also known as the paraurethral glands, which sit on either side of the urethra and are considered the anatomical equivalent of the male prostate.3PubMed. Morphological characterization of the female prostate (Skene’s gland or paraurethral gland) of Lagostomus maximus maximus The fluid contains high concentrations of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and has a chemical profile that looks like prostatic fluid rather than urine.4PubMed. The female prostate revisited: perineal ultrasound and biochemical studies of female ejaculate Because this ejaculate is whitish and exits from the urethral opening (which is very close to the vaginal opening), it can easily be mistaken for vaginal lubrication.
Squirting is something else entirely. It involves a much larger volume of clear, watery fluid. A recent systematic review and meta-analysis found that squirting fluid has a median volume of about 60 mL (though it can range from 15 mL to over 900 mL), and its chemical composition closely resembles dilute urine, with urea and creatinine levels comparable to what you’d find in a urine sample.5The Journal of Sexual Medicine. Female Ejaculation, Squirting, and Coital Incontinence: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Biochemical, Imaging, and Urodynamic Diagnostic Criteria Ultrasound imaging has confirmed this: a study that had women empty their bladders before sexual stimulation found that the bladder refilled rapidly during arousal and emptied again at the moment of squirting.6PubMed. Nature and origin of “squirting” in female sexuality A separate experiment used blue dye injected into the bladder and confirmed that the expelled fluid was blue in every case.7PubMed. Enhanced visualization of female squirting
The picture gets slightly blurry because both phenomena can happen at the same time. Some squirting fluid also contains PSA, suggesting that Skene’s gland secretions mix with bladder fluid during expulsion.6PubMed. Nature and origin of “squirting” in female sexuality A narrative review characterizing the two concluded that female ejaculation and squirting are “similar but completely different phenomena” that happen to share the same exit route.8PubMed. Female ejaculation and squirting as similar but completely different phenomena: A narrative review of current research So if someone tells you they “cream” during sex, they almost certainly mean vaginal lubrication. If they describe a gush of clear fluid during orgasm, that’s likely squirting. And the small amount of whitish fluid released at orgasm from the urethra is female ejaculation proper.
How Common Is Each Experience
Vaginal lubrication during arousal happens in virtually all premenopausal women to some degree; it is the default physiological response. The question most people are really asking is how common the more dramatic fluid releases are.
Estimates of female ejaculation and squirting prevalence vary widely depending on how the question is framed. A systematic review reported that the prevalence of female ejaculation ranges from about 10% to 54% across different study samples.9PubMed. Female ejaculation orgasm vs. coital incontinence: a systematic review More recent large-scale surveys put things in sharper focus. A probability-based survey of U.S. women found that roughly 40% reported having squirted at least once in their lifetime, with a median frequency of three to five times total.10PubMed. Vaginal Squirting: Experiences, Discoveries, and Strategies in a U.S. Probability Sample of Women Ages 18-93 A Swedish cross-sectional study found that 58% of women had experienced ejaculation or squirting, and among those who hadn’t, about a third expressed interest in trying it.11PubMed Central. Women’s experiences of female ejaculation and/or squirting: a Swedish cross-sectional study
The Swedish study also found that women with non-heterosexual orientations were more likely to report having experienced ejaculation or squirting than heterosexual women.11PubMed Central. Women’s experiences of female ejaculation and/or squirting: a Swedish cross-sectional study This may reflect differences in sexual practices, communication styles, or comfort with exploring arousal responses rather than any biological difference, but the research hasn’t pinned down a clear explanation.
The Role of Pelvic Floor Muscles
Your pelvic floor muscles, the hammock of muscle that supports the bladder, uterus, and rectum, play a surprisingly active role in sexual response. Research has found that women who are sexually active tend to sustain pelvic floor contractions for longer than those who are not, and women who experience orgasm show stronger sustained contractions compared to those who don’t.12PubMed Central. Pelvic floor muscle strength is correlated with sexual function These contractions are part of what creates the rhythmic pulsing sensation during orgasm, and they also help push fluids outward, whether that’s vaginal lubrication, ejaculate from the Skene’s glands, or the bladder contents involved in squirting.
Strong pelvic floor muscles don’t guarantee more lubrication or a different sexual response, but they are linked to more intense orgasmic sensations. Kegel exercises, which involve repeatedly contracting and relaxing the pelvic floor, are often recommended for improving sexual function for this reason. The muscles are trainable like any other, and many women notice changes in the intensity of their arousal response after consistent practice over weeks or months.
When Less Fluid Appears Than Expected
Reduced lubrication during arousal is common and usually doesn’t point to anything medically worrying, but it can interfere with comfort and pleasure. The most frequent culprits are straightforward: dehydration, stress, insufficient foreplay, and the hormonal shifts discussed earlier (especially around menopause or while using hormonal birth control). Certain medications also play a role. About one in six women in the United States takes antidepressants, and a large proportion of them report some disturbance of sexual function, including reduced lubrication and difficulty with arousal.13PubMed Central. Antidepressant-Induced Female Sexual Dysfunction SSRIs and SNRIs are the most common offenders, though the effect varies between individuals and between specific drugs.
Antihistamines, which are designed to dry up mucous membranes (that’s how they stop a runny nose), can also dry vaginal tissue. The same goes for some blood pressure medications and certain chemotherapy agents. If you notice a sudden change in lubrication that coincides with starting a new medication, it’s worth bringing up with your prescriber. There are often alternative options or adjunct strategies, and in many cases a water-based or silicone-based lubricant handles the problem without needing to change anything pharmacologically.
When the Fluid Looks or Smells Unusual
Normal vaginal discharge ranges from clear to white, can be thin or slightly thick, and has a mild scent that shifts subtly with the menstrual cycle. During sex, it often appears whiter and thicker than usual because it’s mixing with dead cells and being aerated by friction. None of this is cause for concern.
A few changes are worth paying attention to, though. Discharge that turns green, grey, or distinctly yellow, especially if it comes with a strong fishy or foul smell, may indicate bacterial vaginosis or a sexually transmitted infection. A cottage-cheese-like texture with intense itching is a classic sign of a yeast infection. And any discharge that is accompanied by pelvic pain, burning during urination, or bleeding outside your period deserves a visit to a healthcare provider. These situations aren’t related to the “creaming” seen during arousal; they represent an underlying infection or irritation that happens to change the appearance of vaginal fluid regardless of what you’re doing.
One common misconception is that more discharge means something is wrong, or that the amount of fluid is a reliable measure of how aroused or sexually satisfied someone is. Neither is true. Some women produce very visible lubrication with minimal mental arousal (a phenomenon called arousal non-concordance), and some women feel intensely aroused while producing relatively little fluid. The body’s lubrication system is influenced by hydration, hormones, medication, and individual anatomy in ways that don’t map neatly onto subjective desire.
An Evolutionary Angle
Researchers have speculated about why female ejaculatory fluids evolved at all, separate from vaginal lubrication. One hypothesis proposes that the secretions from the Skene’s glands serve a reproductive function by raising the pH inside the vagina. The vaginal environment is naturally acidic, which is good for warding off infections but hostile to sperm. Ejaculatory fluid from the Skene’s glands, this hypothesis argues, may help neutralize that acidity to levels more hospitable for sperm survival, while also releasing substances that support sperm transport toward the egg.14Medical Hypotheses. Female ejaculation enhances reproductive success This remains speculative, as the journal itself signals in its title, but it’s a plausible framework for why the Skene’s glands would have been conserved across evolutionary time.
Vaginal lubrication itself has a more obvious adaptive explanation: it reduces friction damage to vaginal tissue, makes penetration comfortable and therefore more likely to continue, and creates a fluid medium that facilitates sperm transport. None of this means that the presence or absence of lubrication is a signal of fertility in any given encounter. It means the systems that produce lubrication were likely shaped, over long stretches of evolutionary time, by reproductive pressures alongside the immediate goal of preventing tissue injury.
Historical Recognition of Female Ejaculation
The idea that women produce fluid during orgasm isn’t remotely modern. Descriptions appear in Chinese Taoist texts dating back to the fourth century, where female ejaculation was discussed as a phenomenon independent of reproduction. Ancient Indian writings also documented it.15PubMed Central. The history of female ejaculation Western physicians and anatomists have described it intermittently over the centuries as well, though it was periodically dismissed or confused with urinary incontinence, a confusion that persists in some clinical settings today.
That persistent conflation with incontinence has real consequences. Some women who experience squirting during sex feel embarrassed or worried that something is wrong, and clinicians who aren’t familiar with the research may reinforce that anxiety by treating it as a bladder control problem. The research over the past decade has done a lot to clarify that squirting and stress incontinence are distinct, even though both involve fluid from the bladder. Squirting is tied to the arousal response and orgasm, involves rapid bladder filling during stimulation, and is frequently accompanied by pleasure rather than distress. Stress incontinence, by contrast, involves leakage during physical exertion or pressure without any connection to arousal. The distinction matters both medically and psychologically, because misdiagnosis can lead to unnecessary treatment or shame where reassurance would be more appropriate.