One of the most dangerous sex acts is also one of the most popular with Gen Z, expert warns

Heed this warning before taking your lover’s breath away.

The latest research shows that sexual choking, also known as erotic asphyxiation, is on the rise among teens and young adults — and that has experts concerned for the safety of sexually inexperienced Gen Zs.

“There is no zero-risk way of engaging in choking,” warned Dr. Debby Herbenick, a public health professor at Indiana University and author of “Yes Your Kid: What Parents Need to Know About Today’s Teens and Sex,” in a recent statement. “Though deaths from consensual choking are rare, they do happen.”

Sexual choking is a kink that often incorporates the dominant/submissive sexual dynamic, using strangulation to enhance the sexual experience by applying external pressure to the neck, enough to hinder healthy breathing and blood flow. Those who enjoy being deprived of air during sex report feeling heightened arousal and more intense orgasms.

However, the sadomasochistic role play isn’t without its real-life risks. An estimated 250 to 1,000 Americans die annually after attempting to choke themselves during masturbation (autoerotic asphyxiation). Meanwhile, unsafe sexual choking with a partner can lead to loss of consciousness, serious injury, brain damage and, in rare cases, accidental death.

“We need to be talking about this with young people,” said Herbenick in an interview with SexandPsychology.com, a website dedicated to the work of prolific sexual researcher Justin Lehmiller and his colleagues in the field, about her work — noting that partnered sexual choking has boomed in the past 15 years.