Choking Craze: Majority of Under-35s Admit to Risky Sexual Practice

According to a recent study by the Institute for Addressing Strangulation (Ifas), the practice of "choking" during sex has become alarmingly prevalent among young people in the UK. The research found that more than two in five (43%) sexually active 16- and 17-year-olds have either been strangled or strangled someone during sex, despite the serious dangers of the practice.

The survey also revealed that over half of people under the age of 35 have experienced choking, with nearly a third wrongly believing there are safe ways to strangle someone. Disturbingly, the study showed a consent gap, with more perpetrators believing their partner had consented to it in advance than those who had experienced it.

The research also highlighted the crisis of distress among those on the receiving end, with 36% saying they felt scared during the experience and 21% suffering dangerous physical symptoms, including dizziness and even loss of consciousness. Numerous studies have shown brain changes in women who have been repeatedly "choked" during sex, including markers for brain damage and disruptions in brain hemispheres linked to depression and anxiety.

Experts are calling for a national campaign to raise awareness of the real risks and harms of the practice, which could occur even when there was no visible injury. The UK government has also taken action, introducing non-fatal strangulation as a stand-alone criminal offence in 2021 in response to the rise in the use of the "rough sex" defense among men who murdered women during sex or rape.