FDA Approves Latex Underwear to Protect Against STIs

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given its stamp of approval to Lorals—the maker of ultrathin underwear intended to prevent sexually transmitted infections during oral sex. It’s the first time that the FDA has approved underwear to be used to prevent STIs.

According to The New York Times, the Los Angeles-based company was cleared by the FDA on Thursday, about four years after it was founded by its current CEO, Melanie Cristol. The brand offers a range of bikini and “shortie” undergarments made from “ultra-thin, silky-smooth” latex. According to the Lorals website, the products are intended to provide the desired sensation of oral sex without the skin-to-skin contact, effectively reducing the risk of STIs and harmful pathogens.

The company did not have to conduct clinical trials; however, Cristol said that in order to receive FDA authorization, the Lorals team had to prove their products were as effective as dental dams—a thin rubber sheet that provides a barrier between the mouth and genitals during oral sex. 

“We had to meet physical requirements like dimensions, thickness, elasticity, strength, and lack of holes,” Cristoll told the outlet. “Then it had to be tested for compatibility with the human body. So we ran toxicity tests, irritation tests, and sensitization tests.”