Lubricants can make sex play fun, slippery and exciting. There are lubes out here to suit every purpose, from a simple massage to safe, enjoyable anal penetration. Everyone needs it, and for a variety of reasons.

If you use baby oil or Vaseline, put them away for good. Both can carry bacteria and can damage sex toys and condoms. This solves the mystery of surprise pregnancies when a couple had engaged in protected sex. Real lubricants make safe sex safer.

If you use insertable sex toys, lube is always a must for easier use. Some women might use lubricants because they suffer with vaginal dryness due to menopause, need a little extra to accommodate a very "gifted" lover, or just want to use lube just to use it. Lube is extremely necessary for anal sex, because the anal cavity has no natural lubrication and is delicate. Anal lube helps protect the lining from tearing and makes penetration easier and more enjoyable. An anal lube is always thicker than vaginal lube. Never substitute when it comes to the backdoor.

Lubes come in a variety of types and can be water-based or silicone-based. If you use it for your sex toys, be sure to match up the right lubricant to the right material your toy is made of; otherwise, your happy days together will be shortened considerably.

Lubes can be jellies or creams, and also come in a number of delicious flavors. Flavored lubes can help those who don't like the taste of oral sex enjoy it more. Nearly every possible flavor can be found: Banana, cinnamon, chocolate, watermelon... the list goes on and on.

And then, there are "warming" lubes that heat up when applied. These can be flavored as well. Of course, you can purchase lubricants that are both odorless and tasteless.

How to Choose a Lubricant

Basically, choose your lubricant based on what it will be used for:

Massage - Buy a nice massage oil
Vaginal Intercourse - Purchase a vaginal lubricant
Anal Intercourse - Buy a thick anal lubricant.
Sex Toy - Purchase a sex toy lubricant to protect your investment

Remember there is a standby lubricant that has been around for years that is water-based, condom-safe and sex toy safe. It's available in most drug stores and supermarkets. Good old-fashioned KY Jelly. Your great-grandmother may have used this lube, disturbing as that mental image might be. KY Jelly is good for everything except anal lubrication.

So, although you have a wide enough selection of lubricants to slide around the world if you wanted to, selecting the right one is relatively simple if you consider exactly what it is to be used for. Lubricants add a bit of slippery fun and spark to your sex life whether going it alone or with a partner. Flavors, base and other factors are just extra options subject to personal taste. What really matters is that you lube up and enjoy yourself immensely.