Shocking figures show children as young as 13 are being treated for STIs

Our nation’s schoolchildren may need much better and effective sex education, following the findings of a new study that show 1,000s of children as young as 13 are contracting sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

According to the Daily Star Sunday a new Public Health England study has shown that in particularly, new cases of teenage chlamydia are on the rise, with 178,845 cases in youngsters under the age of 19 and 2,938 discovered in teenagers aged 13 or 14, in the last 5 years alone.

The alarming figures also show how over 2 teenagers under the legal age of consent (16-years-old) are getting STIs such as genital herpes each day.

Moreover, an estimated 18,085 people under the age of 18 have contracted gonorrhoea during the previous 5 years, in addition to 20,842 cases of herpes, whilst syphilis, which can be fatal, was contracted 442 times.

The statistics are almost certain to concern parents and doctors, and force the government to put extra effort into boosting the country’s sex education classes.

Dr Michael Brady, medical director at the Terrence Higgins Trust, said: “We still have much to do to address the nation’s poor sexual health and the rates of STIs in those most at risk.

“Young people are disproportionately affected by STIs. One of the reasons for this is that we still don’t provide every young person with comprehensive and appropriate Sex and Relationships Education (SRE).

“A reduction in STIs must be a public health priority and as a fundamental part of this, the Government needs to ensure every young person has access to effective SRE that gives them the knowledge and skills to enjoy healthy and safe sex lives.”

Jules Hillier, head of the sexual health charity Brook, commented: “Too many young people aren’t getting the information they need about sex and relationships from their schools, while sexual health clinics are under threat due to cuts.

“We need to invest in education and services for young people to help them stay safe and healthy.”
It isn’t just the younger generation where STIs are on the rise though…Cases of STIs are going up across all age groups. From 2010 to 2014, the number of people being diagnosed with gonorrhoea has more than doubled, leaping from 16,843 to 34,958.

Meanwhile, syphilis cases have shot up from 2,647 in 2010 to 4,317in 2014 and herpes has increased from 29,698 to 31,777 in the same time period.

Surprisingly perhaps, chlamydia cases have dropped from 207,797 in 2012 to 206,774 by 2014.
Public Health England say that over the past 10 years the number of cases of STIs such as gonorrhoea, syphilis, genital warts and genital herpes have gone up – notably amongst males.
In England, young heterosexual people aged 16 to 24 account for:

• 63% of chlamydia cases.
• 55% of gonorrhoea cases.
• 52% of genital warts cases.
• 42% of herpes cases.

Over-70s still sexually active…But STIs are on the rise

The majority us probably think that people tend to lose all trace of a sex life as they get older, and certainly the thought of our grandparents being intimate would be the last thing on our mind…but it seems more and more people into their 70s, 80s and beyond, are maintaining fairly active sex lives.

The findings of a recent study suggest that adults over the age of 70 are having sex at least twice each month. In addition to this, rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as syphilis and genital warts seem to be spiralling amongst older people.

Reporting in ‘The Conversation’, Sharron Hinchliff, Senior Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Sheffield, argues that sex amongst older adults should be more openly discussed, given the statistics.

She says: “A report published earlier this year found that those with a sexual partner tended to rate their quality of life as higher than those without one, although some studies have placed greater emphasis on relationship status and social engagement. When I interviewed a number of over-50s about their (heterosexual) sex lives for a qualitative study, I found that many who were still in sexual relationships rated them as very or extremely important.

The reasons for the participants’ emphasis on sex included strengthening their relationship with their partners but also pleasure. For some women, sex had improved with age, which they related to feeling more relaxed because they had more sexual experience and no longer feared becoming pregnant.”

Sharron also argues that sexual health campaigns tend to primarily focus on the younger demographic, as these are the ones at risk from not only sexually transmitted infections, but unplanned pregnancies following the failure to use condoms.

Between the years 2009 and 2013, STI rates within the the over-45s increased across different diseases, with an 11% rise in genital warts amongst men aged 45-64, and a staggering 500% rise in syphilis cases for women over the age of 65. According to Sharron, “The majority of diagnoses of all STIs in the older age groups were in men, but gonorrhoea and syphilis were highest among heterosexual women and men who have sex with men.”

She continued: “As a result, some sexual health campaigns are now being aimed at older people.
This year’s Sexual Health Week in the UK is focused on sexual pleasure and well-being – and one of the campaign’s five strands is aimed at educating professionals and the public about the sexual well-being of older people.

Campaigns that promote sexual pleasure are new, even though the idea of incorporating pleasure into sexual health materials is not.

Young people in the UK are only just seeing such messages so it’s great that the sexual pleasure of older people is now being recognised too. But infectious disease is only one factor that can affect pleasure and well-being.

Long-term conditions and some sexual difficulties are more likely to be diagnosed in our 50s or later.
These include erectile dysfunction, which affects around 30 per cent of men aged 65-74, and uncomfortable vaginal dryness, experienced by 20 per cent of women in the same age group.”

Previously, it could be assumed that the older generation may struggle to meet prospective new partners for sex, particularly after experiencing poor health or becoming widowed, but Sharron sheds light on this.

“There is evidence that some older people are embracing technology and going online to meet potential partners for a sexual relationship. One survey found that 38% of people aged 50-59 and 37% of those aged 60-69 had met their partners online.

We should perhaps also reconsider what we think about as sexual activity when it comes to older people. For one thing, many older people engage in masturbation for sexual pleasure, countering the notion that it is a sexual act pursued only by the young. But there is also evidence that ideas about what activities count as sexual become broader as we age. For some, actions such as playing footsie under the breakfast table can give the intimacy that sexual activity previously had.

While research into the sexual well-being of older people is growing, there are gaps that wait to be filled, particularly the ways that ageing intersects with gender identity, sexual orientation, social class, disability and ethnic group. Exploring these areas will develop our understanding of sexual pleasure in older age, and better inform services for those to whom sex is important.”

Revolutionary ‘VivaGel’ condom that kills HIV could be available in months

An Australian company have made ground-breaking progress in the fight to combat the worldwide problem of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), after gaining approval for their revolutionary new type of condom.

Australian bio-tech firm Starpharma have crafted a condom lubricated with antiviral ‘VivaGel’ which is able to destroy sexually transmitted infections, and the condom has now been given the green light by Australian Regulators.

The condom has been issued with a receipt of Conformity of Assessment Certification by the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) – like the CE mark certificates in Europe – and this could now lead to a huge mass production of the product.

Starpharma are now joining forces with Australian condom maker Ansell – the company that own an estimated 70% of Australia’s condom market – to produce the prophylactics, which are currently being analysed by the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a potential future release in the US.

For those who are unfamiliar with VivaGel, it is a nanotech antiviral compound that contains 0.5% astodrimer sodium – a non-antibiotic, antimicrobial drug that is made purposely to combat a wide range of sexual infections such as HIV, herpes and human papilloma virus.

Dr Jackie Fairley, the chief executive of the company which created VivaGel, said: “Condoms are not 100 per cent effective in preventing either pregnancy or sexually transmitted infections and so anything that you can do to reduce the number of virus particles by inactivating them with a substance like VivaGel would reduce overall viral load.”

The condom’s TGA approval was given after the product was thoroughly tested in accordance with certain requirements relating safety and performance, and its release cannot come quick enough for Australians.

Genital herpes, caused by the herpes simplex virus, is caught by a staggering one in eight Australians aged 25 and over. A good proportion of these people are probably completely unaware they even have the virus unfortunately as symptoms don’t always rear their ugly head. And worryingly, without sufficient chlamydia treatment, the person can be eventually left infertile.

Statistics show that by the end of 2012, newly diagnosed HIV infections in Australia had increased 10% over the previous 12 months, representing the largest increase for two decades.

Peter Carroll, Ansell president and general manager of the sexual wellness global business unit, claimed that the “ground-breaking new sexual health” product may be on the shelves sooner rather than later.

“Ansell looks forward to rolling out its marketing and sales campaign to support the launch of LifeStyles Dual Protect over the coming months with the first product expected to be available on shelves soon,” he said.

Smartphone apps like Grindr linked to increased STI risk

Gay and bisexual men using smartphone apps to seek out potential partners for casual sex are putting themselves at a higher risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections (STIs), according to the findings of a new study.

Those accessing and using the apps to meet other men were found to be more likely to later diagnosed with gonorrhoea and Chlamydia compared to men who found potential partners in other ways, such as in nightclubs or online, researchers say.

The study was carried out by the Los Angeles LGBT Center, a non-profit organisation in Los Angeles, California and published in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections. It involved an analysis of the STI testing results of 7,184 men between 2011 and 2013, in addition to the answers the provided to a questionnaire about their sex lives and recreational drug use.

It was found that 34% of the men who participated in the study had found sexual partners through in-person social networking only, 30% had met their partners through a mix of both the Internet and in-person social networking, whilst the remaining 36% met partners using a combination of all the three methods.

Contrasted against men who had met their sexual partners online first or in person, those using the social apps were found to be 25% more likely of contracting gonorrhoea and at a 37% higher risk of being infected with chlamydia. The study discovered there did not appear to be any major difference between the groups with regards to syphilis or HIV.

“As technology has benefits, it also has certain risks,” said Matt Beymer, the lead researcher and an epidemiologist at the Los Angeles LGBT Center. “We want to educate gay and bisexual men about the potential risks that they may face with these apps.”

Beymer’s study also found the social app users were usually either white or Asian, well-educated and under the age of 40. The primary focus of the study was not meant to be about drug use, but those using social apps were probably more likely to use recreational drugs such as cocaine and ecstasy.
“Our ultimate goal is not to stigmatize these apps or stigmatize in general,” Beymer says. “We just really want gay and bisexual men to love carefully and love safely.”

Social apps such the hugely popular Grindr and SCRUFF utilise the GPS (global positioning system) technology of smartphones to help users find people nearby who are also using the app. Grindr in particularly has become immensely popular amongst the gay and bisexual community since its launch in 2009, boasting more than 10 million user downloads, Whilst the apps can be used for a variety of purposes, the majority of people use them to seek out potential sexual partners.

Commenting on the study findings, Justin Harbottle, a health promotion specialist at the Terrence Higgins Trust, said: “However good the sex is, it’s not worth contracting a long-term condition. Gay men today have more opportunities to meet for sex than ever before. Part of the problem is that communication on dating apps can be brief, making it easy to cut corners on important discussions like safe sex."

He added that condoms are still the best method of protecting yourself against sexually transmitted infections.

However, Grindr defended their service and spoke to the BBC, saying: “Grindr is highly committed to promoting safe sex within the community and strongly encourages our users to engage in safe sex practices, get tested and know their HIV status.”

Condoms boost friendly vaginal bacteria

There are a multitude of reasons you should always use a condom during sex. The two most glaringly obvious ones are that this helps to prevents the contraction of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) – although there is still a risk with oral sex if no condom is used – and they also severely minimise the chances of an unwanted pregnancy. Using condoms could be viewed as a mature act, showing you take care of your sexual health and are responsible.

The benefits of condoms may extend beyond these factors though, according to a Chinese study which found that sexually active women who use condoms have boosted levels of friendly bacteria called Lactobacillus within the vagina.

Lactobacillus is present in different areas of the body such as the digestive, urinary, and genital systems and supplements of the bacteria are sometimes given to women suffering with vaginal infections or urinary tract infections (UTIs) – although Trimethoprim is still one of the most effective treatments for both cystitis and various other urinary tract infections.

In the vagina, the production of lactic acid and hydrogen peroxide from the Lactobacillus is generally believed to be useful for protection against bacterial vaginosis (BV).

BV is the most common type of vaginal infection and is brought on when there is too much ‘bad’ bacteria and not enough of the ‘good bacteria’. Health experts are still not sure what causes the imbalance to occur but often the risk is increased if: you smoke, are pregnant, have a new sexual partner, have several sexual partners, use scented soap or bubble bath or use vaginal deodorant.

The common symptom is a vaginal discharge which may become very thin and watery, with an unpleasant odour and appear grey or white in colour. Other symptoms include pain after sexual intercourse and pain when urinating.

The Researchers involved in the study at the Beijing Friendship Hospital, assessed the vaginal bacteria of 164 healthy, sexually active married women in China, varying in age between 18 and 45 years old.  All women were not using a hormonal method of contraception.

From the 164 participants, 72 women used condoms, 57 used an intrauterine device (IUD), and 35 were using the ‘rhythm method’. This is where a couple forgoes sexual intercourse during the period of a woman’s cycle when conception is more probable.

Following analysis, it was found that the women using condoms had a 95.8% prevalence of lactobacillus. This was in comparison to just 84.2% in the IUD group and 88.6% in the rhythm group. In addition, a primary factor of normal vaginal microbial flora – L. crispatus – was actually 20% more prevalent in the group using condoms compared to those using an IUD.

The researchers say their study, published in the journal PLOS One, suggests that condoms are beneficial in helping the vagina to maintain its natural acidic defences. “As a perfect barrier, condom can help maintain the vaginal acidic buffer system and the vaginal lactobacilli population when sperm enters vagina during sex,” the researchers wrote.

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STI numbers triple over 10 years ‎

Cases of sexually transmitted infections have tripled in a decade, according to new figures in Scotland. Increases were recorded in genital herpes, Chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis and HIV across Scotland between 1999 and 2009.

The sharpest rise was in cases of genital Chlamydia which can lead to infertility. Reported diagnoses increased from 5,676 to 18,277, according to Scottish Government figures. The Conservative party, which obtained the details, said the increases paint a "hugely worrying picture" of sexual health.

Diagnoses of genital herpes increased from 933 to 2,627 over the decade, while cases of gonorrhoea increased from 538 to 1,021. Figures for infectious syphilis were not available for 1999 but showed an increase from four cases in 2000 to 189 in 2009. The number of HIV-infected people increased from 156 in 1999 to 360 in 2010. For the decade from 1999, the total number for all five infections went from 7,303 to 22,540.



For protection against sexually transmitted infections you must always where a condom. Latex condoms, when used consistently and correctly, are highly effective in preventing transmission of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. In addition, correct and consistent use of latex condoms can reduce the risk of other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including discharge and genital ulcer diseases. For further information on where to buy condoms online please click the highlighted link.


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Condoms Cost Australian Taxpayers $50,000

Condom packets designed by artists in a safe sex project in Australia has cost taxpayers 50,000 dollars and been abandoned.

The project, known as the Free Condom Project - The Art of Being Smart, will distribute 75,000 condoms in stand-out designed packets for free in selected shops. Ratepayers Victoria president Jack Davis said the use of public monies for such a project was "ridiculous".

"It's a joke ... I consider this an absolute waste of taxpayers' money, which can be better used by helping the needy," the Daily Telegraph quoted Davis as saying.

Fitzroy retailer Abigail Crompton, who came up with the idea, said she hoped the "eclectic" packaging would make people think condoms were "cool", and start using them more to protect themselves against sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

Crompton said the 50,000 dollar cost of the project included the design of the packets, the website, marketing, research development and the condoms.

Family Planning Victoria and the Victorian AIDS Council, which are state and federally funded, backed the project to boost awareness of the importance of using condoms, to curb the growing rates of STIs.

Victorian AIDS Council executive director Mike Kennedy defended the use of public money, explaining that it was "a very cheap and effective way" of getting the message of condom use across to Victorians.