STDs : NOT A THING OF THE PAST ANYMORE

STDs : NOT A THING OF THE PAST ANYMORE

COURTESY ASHASTD.ORG

Before anyone gets truly romantic on this Valentine's day, they might want to look at recent statistics on the rising numbers of transmitted sexual diseases.

What has surfaced from the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention, are numbers that should send everyone running for cover.

The data is scary: of the eight most common STDs, there were 20 million new infections in 2008, and a total prevalence, i.e., old and new cases, of 110 million people.  Since one person might have one or more STD, in concomitance, the numbers do not correspond to a one to one relation to a single person.  Nevertheless the numbers are staggering and the costs prohibitive.  

The numbers also point to an embarassing statistic:  the US has the highest rate of STD in the industrialized world.

It was not too long ago that the Aids and Herpes epidemic changed the sexual habits of the general population after the care free seventies.  This latest finding however points to a return to a more careless approach to sex than has been seen in years.

Where does the epidemic come from? One needs to look at the younger generation, the one made up of 15-24 to find the answer.  

Although this bracket of the sexually active population makes up only 25% of the entire population, they in fact are found to constitute 50% of new cases.  

This points to two problems: one the higher incidence of certain diseases that are preventable in younger people, and two the lack of proper sexual education in the teen years that emphasizes the use of contraceptives that prevent the infections.  

For example, 800,000 new cases of gonorrhea, a disease that had almost disappeared for a few decades, have been recorded in 2008.  That number has increased for the following years.  Although there have been no cases yet of the antibiotic resistant kind in the US, the resistant strain is on the move worldwide.  Chlamydia is another great offender, and it often is symptomless, causing havoc years later when its damage has already been done.

Source: NYT 2.14.13