Gambling With Genital Herpes

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Recommended: Sex education for children and adolescents

Gambling With Genital Herpes

Did you know that there is no proof that condoms really reduce the risk of getting genital herpes? Many young adolescents don’t even understand what genital herpes really is or how you can get genital herpes. Young adolescents should know what the symptoms are if you get infected with a sexually transmitted disease such as genital herpes. Did you know that there is no cure for genital herpes and it is a life long disease? Treatments yet alone are way too expensive for young adolescents to afford. Someone needs to inform these adolescents about the risk they take when having sex because of their lack of responsibility while having sex.

Young adolescents do not realize how much of a risk it is to engage in sexual intercourse even while wearing a condom. There are three ways you can get genital herpes: oral sex, anal sex, and vaginal sex. According to The Washington Post, if a condom is used 100 percent of the time during vaginal sex, condoms reduce the risk of getting genital herpes by only about 50 percent (Washington 2). It’s still safer to use a condom to reduce chances of getting other sexually transmitted diseases. But adolescents should know that your risk is only cut only half while being protected. Rob Stein mentions, that many adolescents and adults say they engage in oral sex as a less risky type of sex (Stein 2). Most of these adolescents look at oral sex as safer type of sex but

they don’t understand that type-1 herpes starts around the lips and the mouth. This still leaves them at the risk of getting the herpes virus, which leads to type-2 herpes virus also known as genital herpes.

The Washington Post also mentioned that there is no evidence that condoms reduce the risk of getting genital herpes during oral or anal sex (Washington 2). Knowing that there is no proof that condoms really reduce the risk of spreading or getting genital herpes is even scarier. With that information alone no one should engage in sexual intercourse with a genital herpes carrier, with or without a condom, at all.

Young adolescents do not understand that genital herpes is highly contagious and can be passed without them knowing. There are two types of herpes viruses: “type-1 which usually causes cold sores on the lips and mouth, and type-2 which usually causes genital herpes (Wee 2).

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