Which glands produce fluid during female ejaculation and what do studies show about their composition?

1. Skene’s glands: the anatomical suspect with a prostate-like fingerprint

Modern anatomy and reviews conclude that female ejaculate originates from the paraurethral or Skene’s glands, a cluster of ducts and glandular tissue beside the urethra that is homologous to the male prostate; microscopic and biochemical studies support the glands’ secretory role during sexual arousal and orgasm ^{[1] [3] [6]}.

2. What the fluid contains: prostate markers, enzymes and sugars

Analyses of the milky, small‑volume ejaculate repeatedly find biochemical markers common to male prostatic fluid—most notably PSA and acid phosphatase—as well as carbohydrates such as fructose and glucose, indicating that the Skene’s gland secretion is chemically distinct from ordinary urine in many tested women ^{[2] [7] [3]}.

3. Two phenomena: “ejaculate” versus “squirting” — and why that matters

Researchers draw a critical distinction: the small, viscous, whitish ejaculate linked to Skene’s glands is separate from the larger‑volume squirting that expels mostly bladder fluid (often containing urine). Several studies and reviews caution that conflating the two has driven confusion in the literature and public discourse ^{[5] [4] [1]}.

4. Evidence strengths: converging signals but limited sampling

Multiple reviews and small clinical studies agree on Skene’s gland origin for the milky ejaculate and its prostate-like composition, giving the hypothesis consistent support ^{[1] [2]}. But much of the literature relies on small sample sizes, selective cohorts and variable collection methods, so the precise prevalence, quantity and consistency of biochemical markers across all people with vulvas remain incompletely quantified ^{[1] [8]}.

5. Open questions and contested points in the field

Debates continue about why only some people produce measurable ejaculate, how gland size and anatomy vary between individuals, and what physiological function—if any—this secretion serves; hypotheses range from a vestigial prostatic remnant to potential roles in lubrication or antimicrobial protection, but definitive functional proof is not settled in the reviewed literature ^{[8] [9] [10]}.

6. Clinical and practical implications: diagnosis, language and expectations

Clinicians and educators now often use “Skene’s glands” or “female prostate” to explain small‑volume ejaculate while explicitly separating that from squirting tied to bladder release; this distinction matters for counseling, infection workups and patient reassurance because the fluids can have different origins and compositions ^{[11] [4]}.

7. Where claims are strongest — and where reporting has overreached

Claims that Skene’s glands definitively “produce” all fluids described as female ejaculation are supported for the small, milky secretion by multiple biochemical studies detecting PSA and related markers ^{[2] [3]}. However, popular accounts that collapse all orgasm‑associated expulsions into a single phenomenon ignore evidence that many large expulsions are mostly urine from the bladder ^{[5] [4]}.

8. Bottom line for readers

Available evidence from anatomical reviews and biochemical studies shows that Skene’s (paraurethral) glands secrete a prostate-like fluid containing PSA, acid phosphatase and sugars in some women—this is the classic “female ejaculate”—while larger‑volume “squirting” episodes more often reflect bladder fluid and urine ^{[1] [2] [4]}. Limitations in sample size, inconsistent terminology and overlapping phenomena mean more rigorous, standardized studies are still needed to map prevalence, composition and function across populations ^{[1] [8]}.