photo taken from www.nypost.com
All of us do not have an equal risk of acquiring an STD. We all come from different backgrounds, live in different places, have different activities which is why we contain different levels of STD risk. However, there are std facts which can be of help to us. Here is a list of the major risk factors for acquiring and STD taken from std.about.com:
~ Unsafe sex - It is really best to use condoms every time you have sex with your partner because research tell us that transmission rates of acquiring an STD have been reduced when people use condoms.
~ Multiple Sex Partners – The more partners you have the higher the risk of acquiring an STD because people with multiple partners tend to choose partners with multiple partners, so each individual you are having sex with is probably more likely to have an infection than someone with whom you would choose to be monogamous.
~ Early Age of Sexual Onset – This is mainly because young people are less likely to use condoms, more likely to engage in sexual risk taking – especially under the influence of alcohol and more likely to have multiple sex partners.
~ Alcohol Use – Alcohol is bad for your sexual health. Firstly, people who use alcohol in a regular basis may be less discriminating about whom they choose to have sex with. Second, alcohol lowers inhibitions. Lastly, it makes it more difficult to negotiate condom use or to use condom correctly with your partner .
~ Illegal Drug Abuse - Illegal drug use can make decision making difficult. People who have sex under the influence are more likely to engage in risky sexual behaviors.
~ Living In A Community With a High Prevalence of STDs – If you live in a community with a high prevalence of STDs, then you are more likely to be exposed to an STD anytime you have sex.
~ Serial Monogamy – Some people only date one person at a time, but still date a large number of people each year. This is referred to as serial monogamy. The danger for people who practice serial monogamy is that each time they are involved in an “exclusive” sexual relationship they are likely to be tempted to stop using safer sex precautions. But monogamy is only an effective way to prevent STDs in long term relationships where both of you have been tested. Since some tests aren’t reliable until you’ve been infected for some time, many serially monogamous relationships don’t last long enough for that to even be a viable option.
Being aware of the dangers of unsafe sex can bring about a lot of benefits to us. It is really very important that we update ourselves with std facts in order for us to become more aware and hence making us wiser in making decisions when faced with these kind of situations.
Tags: about STD, risks of having STD, sexual awareness for teens, std facts, teens and sex
