How To Use Anal Beads

What Are Anal Beads?

Anal beads are sex toys with graduated circles or ovals that are inserted into the anus and go into the rectum for sexual pleasure. There are two different types of anal beads. There are anal beads held together by a string or cord, and there are anal beads that are connected by a shaft.

Are Anal Beads Healthy?

Anal beads are typically healthy if they do not contain toxins and are well made. Unfortunately, some sex toy retailers and sex bloggers promote anal beads that are potentially harmful to consumers. We focus not only on empowering sexual health education but make certain that the sexual products are carefully selected to provide the healthiest body safe options.

Anal Bead Safety

We do not carry anal beads with strings that can break and are also porous (they can harbor bacteria). All of our sex toys, including our anal beads, are nonporous body safe materials.

Anal beads typically increase in size from a half of an inch to one inch or more at the largest point, which is usually the base. They are ideal for beginners who are first starting to explore anal toys as they tend to be small and easy to use of they are on a shaft.

Anal beads, like other sex toys, they are sold as adult novelties, which means that the FDA does not regulate them for sexual health. Thus, there are toxins in some of the anal beads that are being sold to consumers. Toxins can leech into your body, especially the rectum, as it is a mucus membrane, and this may cause health issues.

Because we value your health, we only carry phthalate-free, body safe sex toys. This includes all of our body safe anal beads. We research sexual products so that you can easily access only the healthiest, best quality sex toys available.

We have the highest health standards in the sex toy industry, so that means that any anal toy that we carry meets the following criteria to be considered anal safe:

• All of our anal toys, including anal beads, have a flared base or ring that will prevent it from becoming irretrievable. Because the rectum creates suction when an anal toy is placed inside, this is an incredibly important feature.
  
  
• All of our anal beads and anal toys are made from nonporous materials (silicone, metal, glass, etc.), which allows for healthy disinfecting and cleaning.
  
  
• All of our sex toys, including anal beads, are body safe and phthalate-free. We ensure this as it is essential to keep harmful toxins in sex toys from entering the bloodstream.
  
  
• Our anal beads and all of our anal toys have a body safe shape.

Choosing an anal toy designed to keep the end of it on the outside of the anus like a ring or flared base, is imperative. One of our physicians that we work with provided this real CAT scan below of a non-anal safe sex toy stuck in the rectum. This patient required an operation to retrieve the sex toy, so you should only buy anal-safe sex toys when you plan to use them for anal penetration.

Non-Vibrating & Vibrating Anal Beads

Some anal beads come in a vibrating option. If you want to learn specifically about choosing vibrating anal beads, make sure to see our How To Choose A Vibrator article to help you explore essential factors when considering anal beads that vibrate.

Why Anal Beads Feel Good

• Anal Beads can stimulate the rich amount of nerve endings around the anus (opening) by creating mild pressure and sensation. They can also create a feeling of release when pulled out, especially at the moment of climax.
  
  
• Anal Beads can be used while a woman is also penetrated vaginally with a penis, dildo, or fingers, thus providing simultaneous stimulation vaginally and anally for intensified sexual pleasure.
  
  
• Anal Beads plugs can also be used for women who desire simultaneous clitoral stimulation through oral sex, finger stimulation, or a vibrator.
  
  
• Anal Beads can be used for men who desire to have simultaneous penis stimulation through anal sex, oral sex, handjobs, or sex toys such as masturbation sleeves or a male vibrator.

How To Insert Anal Beads

The anal bead string or cord style of anal toy is more challenging to insert as each bead must be individually put inside the anus. The anal beads that are connected by a flexible shaft may be inserted by simply gently pushing the anal bead wand inside the rectum.

Before insertion, make sure to lubricate anal beads thoroughly with water-based anal lubricant and slowly insert each bead into the rectum using a downward 45-degree angle.

Anal beads are only safe to use, if they have a ring or other stopper, such as a flared base to keep them from traveling too far up the rectum. The ring or base of the anal beads makes it easier for the beads to be pulled out.

Why Water-based Lubricant Is Important

The anus and rectum do not produce enough natural lubricant for safe anal penetration, so it's essential to use a water-based lubricant when using anal toys, including anal beads. We do not recommend using oil-based lubricants as they can trap harmful bacteria in the rectum. We also do not recommend silicone lubricants as we are concerned that they may cause autoimmune and rheumatic responses (i.e., silicone-reactive disorder) much in the same way silicone breast implants are linked to in such medical issues.

To make inserting a lubricant easier, you may wish to use a lubricant injector (lube shooter, lubricant applicator). It is a syringe-style insertion tool that inserts lubricant inside the vagina or rectum, which also keeps lubricant off your hands and sheets.

We do not recommend using desensitizing lubricants as they may cause you not to recognize pain signals from your body. Listening to your body's discomfort is essential to good health, and by using a numbing lubricant to dull pain may keep you from knowing that you are causing damage to sensitive tissue.

How To Use Anal Beads

Anal beads provide pleasure by inserting them and removing them. Inserting them can be a form of foreplay, and removing them slowly, one by one can also add to sexual stimulation. Anal beads removed at the point of orgasm are a popular way to use them for an intensified sexual release feeling.

When inserting anal beads, you will want to use care. It is helpful to use a 45-degree angle with plenty of lubricant while slowly rocking them back and forth until you can get it in. They are typically easy to put in as they are small and easily pushed through the sphincter muscles.

Once the anal beads are in place, they will stay inserted as the sphincter muscle will naturally hold them in. Anal beads are not intended to be thrust in and out, but they can be when they are on a bendy shaft. Just make sure to be gentle in doing so to prevent damaging the rectum.

How To Clean Anal Beads

An anal toy's material, including anal beads, must be nonporous to be appropriately disinfected as it can carry harmful bacteria from fecal matter and transmit sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV, from the body fluids of one person to another. This is why we do not carry anal beads with a string that cannot be adequately disinfected.

You may clean anal beads using a sex toy cleaner to disinfect them and rinsing off. What you use to disinfect and clean your anal beads or any sex toy depends on the material from which it is made. For more information on this, please see our How To Clean Sex Toys Guide for specific sex toy cleaning information.

Anal Beads Can Be Healthy & Pleasurable

If you have any health concerns, we always recommend discussing them with your doctor. Because understand that doing so may feel uncomfortable, we have put together a helpful guide on How To Talk To Your Doctor About Sex.

Anal beads and other anal toys can be sexually pleasing and safe to use when you are educated about using them. Always make sure to take it slow, be patient, and listen to your body when using anal toys. Make sure to contact us with any questions or concerns about anal toys and enjoy!