On December 1st, the global community celebrated World AIDS Day. This day was meant to raise AIDS awareness, promote safe sexual behaviors, and raise funds to apply towards finding a cure. In the spirit of safe sex and the Holiday season, I have decided to highlight a few unwanted Christmas “presents” and how to avoid the dangerous gifts. The first holiday surprise you do not want to receive is HPV. This virus, also known as genital warts, is one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases among college age adults infecting as many as 43% of college women, according to The New England Journal of Medicine. The high percentage of people infected is partially due to the extremely contagious nature of the virus. Condoms will help you avoid HPV but, beware, genital warts are spread through skin to skin contact and condoms only cover a limited area.Another common “gift” to receive is Herpes. One in every five adults has contracted the virus. This present also does not come with a gift receipt; once in the body, the disease will never leave: you have it forever. To avoid the Herpes virus, condoms are extremely effective, but you must use them. Even if a person does not appear to have any sores, this is not an excuse to forgo protection; the virus may simply be dormant and, in this state, is still possible to contract. Gonorrhea is a third “present” no one puts on their wish list. But, what makes Gonorrhea so dangerous is the characteristic invisibility of the bacterial infection. Most people who contract the infection never have symptoms. However, this STD is a growing epidemic among young adults with the highest rate of infection, 75%, occurring between the ages of 15 and 29. To reduce the risk of contracting the bacteria by 90%, use a condom. Yearly testing will also help to ensure sexual health and the future avoidance and spreading of sexually transmitted diseases. This holiday season give your partner a gift that really matters: sexual health. Get tested and take this precaution yearly. And, as always, use a condom because there is one Christmas “package” that should always be wrapped.
Disclaimer:
The views expressed in the Sex Column do not necessarily represent the views of The Scribe or its publisher.