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Rebecca Wind
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MANY BRITISH TEENS DON’T KNOW THEY CAN ACQUIRE STDS THROUGH ORAL SEX
Practice of Oral Sex Is Common, but Condom Use Is Rare
Many young people in the United Kingdom remain ignorant of the ways in which sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) can be passed on, and many who know that STDs can be transmitted through oral sex fail to protect themselves, according to “Oral Sex and Condom Use Among Young People in the United Kingdom,” by Nicole Stone et al., published in the March 2006 issue of Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health.
A recent study of 1,373 British students found that 56% had either given or received oral sex, but few used condoms during fellatio. A substantial minority of those surveyed (26%) were unaware that STDs can be transmitted through oral sex, and fewer than a quarter (23%) agreed that it is important to use condoms. Indeed, of all young people who had reportedly given or received fellatio, only 20% had ever used a condom when doing so. Teens who had used condoms had not, in general, done so to protect themselves from STDs. Rather, particularly among women, practical concerns such as taste and the dilemma of whether to spit or swallow had been the deciding factors.
Both viral and nonviral STDs, including human papillomavirus (HPV), herpes, hepatitis B, gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia and chancroid, can be transmitted through oral sex. Teenage pregnancy and STD prevention initiatives often do not emphasize this information, however, instead focusing on risks associated with penetrative sex. The authors suggest that with the prevalence of oral sex and lack of knowledge about its risks among teens in the United Kingdom, education programs must be broadened to include information about a wide range of sexual behaviors.
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