Experts have criticized America’s obsession with incest porn, as data suggests videos with inter-family themes are becoming one of the most popular genres of adult material.
The country’s largest porn website revealed that in 2023, videos featuring foster relatives or MILFs (a vulgar slang word for a mother one finds sexually attractive) were among its most popular search terms.
Meanwhile, an analysis of porn habits by Danish sex toy company BedBible said half of videos uploaded to porn websites were now incestuous.
Psychologists tell DailyMail.com that porn addiction is so rampant that people are having to watch more and more taboo material to get the same thrill.
But it comes amid growing concern about the terrifying extent of incest in the United States, which estimates say could affect up to one in seven families.
The above is a thumbnail of a video on Pornhub. It claims to show a stepmother sleeping with her stepson in a hotel room. DailyMail.com found many similar videos after checking porn sites.
The three largest porn sites in the US had designated categories for incest-related videos, sometimes known as “daddy fantasy.”
The map above shows alleged incest hotspots, according to World Population Review.
DailyMail.com browsed the home pages of three popular adult websites and was immediately bombarded with disturbing videos such as “mom sleeps with son” and “I had sex with my attractive half-sister.”
All three sites had designated categories for incest-related videos, sometimes known as “step fantasy.”
Dr Peter Kanaris, a Long Island psychologist and sex therapist, told DailyMail.com: “If something is forbidden, it’s much more exciting.”
‘Initial interest in incest porn is taboo, so excitement around it increases.
‘The United States also has a less open society (when it comes to talking about sex) than other countries.
“This is because it is about religion and a series of inhibitions that only increase interest in taboo.”
Dr Ian Kerner, a therapist and sex and relationship expert, also said incest-themed pornography was on the rise because of its “novelty”.
“It’s an expression of our broad psychological need for novelty,” he said.
‘Sex is about getting excited. Excitement is excitement.
‘So many sexual scenarios have been normalized that it makes sense that we continue searching for the forbidden fruit.
“Incest remains one of the last taboos, so it makes sense that it is such a popular source of fantasy and psychological arousal.”
Incestuous behavior is an almost universal taboo in all cultures around the world.
This is partly due to the dislike people have for the topic, and also concerns about how it would alter family dynamics and the risks of genetic problems, with children born to closely related parents being at higher risk of suffering from genetic defects.
Incest has also often been linked to sexual abuse of children, or of parents towards their children.
Incestuous behavior has also recently appeared in pop culture, with shows like Game of Thrones having two main characters, Jamie and Cersei Lannister, who are twins but also have a sexual relationship.
According to experts, this may have increased interest in the topic.
The image above shows three members of the Whittakers, said to be the most endogamous family in America.
A portrait of the ‘blue’ Fugate family rendered by artist Walt Spitzmiller for a 1982 issue of Science magazine. Family turned blue after becoming inbred, reports suggest
Experts repeatedly say that many of the people who watch these videos have no intention of committing incest in real life.
But studies suggest there is an alarming amount of incest in the United States: Up to 15 percent of families have experienced incestuous events.
Dr David Lawson, a therapist in Texas who works with victims of sexual abuse, told DailyMail.com that the true figure was “probably higher”.
“They’re probably conservative estimates,” he said, “because these things are not things that people tend to report.”
In a book on the subject, titled Healing the Incest Wound: Adult Survivors in Therapy, Dr. Christine Courtois said the prevalence among women puts incest in up to 20 percent of all American families, although this prediction is now 40 percent higher. years.
But a review of hundreds of studies by a sexual health company earlier this month estimated that 15 percent of American families have had an “incest event.”
The results come from an analysis conducted by sexual health company BedBible, not a university or research team, and the methodology has not been made public.
There are no firm estimates of incest cases in the United States because it often involves sexual abuse of a child and goes unreported.
But the new figure is not entirely out of sync with other estimates.
An estimated 32 million Americans have been victims of incest as children, but only 20 percent of incest victims report the crime to authorities, according to the report.
Despite the taboos, incest remains legal in 19 states in the United States, where two first cousins ​​are still allowed to marry. These are mainly found on the coasts and in the south.
One person who discovered the disturbing truth about her family history was Victoria Hill, 39, who at a high school reunion chatted about family trees with an ex-boyfriend with whom she was once intimate.
His family composition was similar to hers and he said he would take the same exam as her.
A text message he sent later confirmed what they both feared: “You’re my sister.” Hill says she is still traumatized to this day.
Incestual relationships appear to be more common in areas that tend to be further away from larger metropolises. About half of adults who commit incest have been found to be unemployed.