An STD You May Not Know About, But Should

Have you heard of trichomoniasis? I hadn’t, yet it’s one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases around, infecting an estimated 7 million people in the U.S. every year. Sexually active women are the most commonly affected. The cause is a protozoan (back to science class!), which infects the vagina and possibly the urethra. As with other STDs, it is spread during unprotected sex.

The problem with this disease is that the vast majority of infected men have no symptoms, although some do experience burning during urination. Only about half of the women infected have symptoms, which include vaginal itching, irritation, smelly yellowish/greenish vaginal discharge, and pain and itching during intercourse and urination. Sounds like a typical yeast infection, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, untreated trichomoniasis can reduce fertility, cause complications during pregnancy, and increase the risk of contracting HIV if exposed (UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, December 2009).

Thankfully this disease can be cured – with a one dose treatment. If you have these symptoms or think you have yeast infection, but it doesn’t clear up, see your doctor. Better still, avoid it all together and always have safe sex. Of course, I’d like to see you having sane sex. It takes it one step further, protecting you emotionally, as well as physically. Be safe and sane, every time.

The Latest on STDs and Viagra Use

Did you see the Arizona Republic article earlier in the month reporting that men taking Viagra and Cialis had almost triple of rate of STDs compared to those not taking the medications? The results came from a study of health insurance claims for men age 40 and older and suggest that men taking drugs to treat erectile dysfunction may be more likely to engage in unsafe sex than non-users. Not surprisingly then, in 2007 people age 40 to 49 accounted for the largest proportion of newly diagnosed cases of HIV/AIDS, 27 percent, according the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Those 50 to 59 accounted for 13 percent.

It is my goal that sane sex becomes the norm, and sex cannot be sane if it is not safe. Ladies, I urge you to insist on condom use every time. Remember that we cannot expect people to treat us better than we treat ourselves. Please do not fall prey to the notion that using a condom means you don’t trust your partner. On the contrary, using protection is an indication of love. Keep in mind that many STDs have no symptoms for long time spans, so many infected people do not know they have an STD until those symptoms appear. The truth is that using a condom is way of showing love and caring for yourself and your partner.

Safe Sex Message Still Not Received

When I was researching and writing my book, Worth Waiting For: Sane Sex for Singles, in 2007, I was amazed to learn that unsafe still happens in every age group – a lot. How is this possible? While the safe sex message is not as prominent as it was fifteen years ago, it is still being promoted. The target age group, however, is young—under age thirty. Yet, although the message is aimed at this audience more consistently than it is at those over forty, an alarming number of young adults still have unsafe sex. Of the twenty-five to forty-four-year-olds surveyed, 39 percent did not use a condom the last time they had sex and likewise for 20 percent of the eighteen- to twenty-four-year-olds. Sadly almost half of the new STD infections are among adolescent girls (www.alternet.org/sex/62429)!

How about those over 45? Is it possible they have not heard of safe sex? I think it’s unlikely, but consider a study conducted by the New York Department of Health and Mental Hygiene in May 2008. Of single people with at least two sexual partners, some 44 percent of those over age forty-five reported not using condoms the last time they had sex. A University of Chicago survey of single women ages fifty-eight to ninety-three revealed that nearly 60 percent said they hadn’t used a condom the last time they had sex. It’s not surprising then that, in less than a decade, STD rates have more than doubled among people ages forty-five and older. From 1996 to 2003, the total cases of chlamydia, genital herpes, gonorrhea, syphilis, and genital warts among people over forty-five increased by 127 percent (http://health.usnews.com/usnews/health/articles/070805/13senior.htm).

But these STDs aren’t the only concern for this age group. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the majority of HIV carriers by 2015 will be over age fifty, and about 15 percent of new infections occur in this age group. It’s alarming to consider that an Ohio University study found that about 27 percent of HIV-infected men and 35 percent of HIV-infected women over fifty sometimes have sex without using condoms (http://www.physorg.com/news96724718.html).

Although HIV/AIDS is not the automatic death sentence it once was, it not curable. Safe sex is not an option. It is a requirement every time for anyone who cherishes their health and well being.