Have you been wondering When Is It Safe to Have Sex after COVID? Scientific American has got you covered:

Nelson Bennett, a urologist at Northwestern University School of Medicine, and Justin Dubin, a urology fellow specializing in male sexual medicine and infertility at Northwestern University School of Medicine, both say that while they hope to see more research in this area, the risk of transmitting COVID via sexual activity is “very low.”

The virus has been detected in stool samples of patients with COVID-19, and more studies are needed to determine whether one might spread the virus during anal sex or such sexual activities as rimming (placing the mouth on the anus).

Even after 10 days and even after vaccination, “there is some risk of viral transmission via air or saliva,” says A.J. te Velthuis, a virology and molecular biology expert at Princeton University. But if you’ve tested negative after a lateral flow assay — a rapid antigen test — that risk is limited, and “sexual activity should then also be no problem,” he adds.

According to NASTAD, the National Coalition of STD Directors, you should make sure three things have happened after you have recovered from COVID before you resume sexual activity with a household partner: no fever for three days without the use of fever-reducing medications; improvement of other symptoms; and the passage of 10 days since your symptoms began.

Michael Mina, an expert on rapid tests and chief science officer at EMed, says that if you had COVID but then posted two negative rapid tests 24 hours apart, you’re “very, very unlikely” to pass the virus either through kissing or by having sex. “I’d argue it is not even necessary to wait the full 10 days,” Mina says.

There is, of course, much more nuance and detail in the full article.

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