For as long as we can remember, semen taste has been linked to what guys put in their diet. And, while many of aren’t sure if that’s particularly true or not, there are loads of guys — see what we did there? — who try to avoid stinky foods like asparagus and onions before a big date that might lead to oral sex. But is semen taste really determined by your diet?

To answer this question, we basically searched Google for countless hours, trying to gather as much information about the topic as humanly possible to get the right answer and, more so, find the foods that are best and worst to eat. What we found was pretty interesting, so here are some thoughts based off a Healthline article we found about the topic.

How does diet impact semen taste?

Per the aforementioned Healthline piece, while a person’s diet does, in fact, impact how bodily fluids taste, many of the proven research has been about the effect on things like sweat, saliva and breast milk. However, when it comes to semen taste, there’s no cold hard proof that what you eat makes your semen more tolerable.

What foods are said to impact semen taste?

Although there’s no scientific proof that your diet impacts your semen taste, that’s not to say there aren’t a few theories about it — hey, that’s why we’re writing this article in the first place!

Per Healthline, here are some of the main culprits that are believed to either make your semen taste better or worse.

Foods that are perceived to make semen taste bad:

  • garlic
  • onions
  • broccoli
  • cabbage
  • leafy greens
  • asparagus
  • meat and dairy products

Foods that are perceived to make semen taste good:

  • celery
  • parsley
  • wheatgrass
  • cinnamon
  • nutmeg
  • pineapple
  • papaya
  • oranges

Is there actually a way to make your semen taste better?

One of the biggest questions out there is how guys can make their semen taste better. And, one of the biggest theories is drinking pineapple juice. Is this true? Well, according to a recent Men’s Health article about the topic, Nelson Bennett, MD — a urologist at Northwestern Memorial — said the rumor is partially true.

“The rumor is partially true,” says Bennett. While there have not been any scientific studies on the matter, any sugary liquid or food may skew the fructose and glucose content or the pH of the semen just enough to be perceptible.”

Because pineapple is pretty acidic, eating a lot of it or drinking a lot of pineapple juice can help cut down on the bitter taste of semen. That’s true for other acidic fruits like lemons and cranberries as well. “Cranberries help balance the pH levels in semen, making for a better taste,” says Dr. Bennett.

While there isn’t 100 percent certainty that sugary or sweeter foods will make your semen taste better, there’s knowledge around foods impacting other bodily fluids, so it’d be smart to think your cum would be impacted, too. So, for those guys who hate fruit, it might be time to start drinking smoothies prior to a date — assuming you want the girl to want seconds at some point.

(H/T Healthline, Men’s Health)