Sex in Long Beach
In addition to Earth Day, and National Library Month April is STI awareness month.STI ? STD ? what's the difference ?
An STI is a sexually transmitted infection, and a STD is a sexually transmitted disease. STIs are different from STDs, an infection is when the virus or bacteria that causes a disease is present in the body. Having a STD means the infection has moved beyond the colonization stage, which is why it is important to get tested so STIs can be treated as soon as possible.
"1 in 2 sexually active young people will get a sexually transmitted disease (STD) by 25. And of the approximately 19 million new STDs that occur every year in the United States, most will go undiagnosed. The only way to know for sure if you have an STD is to GYT (Get Yourself Tested)."-itsyoursexlife.com
MTV and the American Social Health association are promoting the Get Yourself Tested campaign.
I like the American Social Health Association because they take a multifaceted approach to providing information and tools to increasing sexual health. And the acknowledge that having an STI is NOT the end of the world.
"Sexual health is a mixed bag, though: STIs are there, but emotional, social and cultural elements are also in the game. So is pleasure. They all overlap and each impacts the others. There is so much more to a good sexual health discussion than “wear a rubber and if you didn’t, well, then everybody go pee in a cup and get a blood test.”
"Having an STI doesn’t mean you aren’t sexually healthy. Too often we think of those with STIs as damaged goods.Most cases of STIs can be managed and steps can be taken to reduce the risks to partners. STIs should not be a source of shame or embarrassment, and even incurable infections (such as HIV) are not the end of someone’s sex life. The key is education and communication supported by the right treatment options for each case."- American Social Health Association
I found information on chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis rates in Long Beach from the California Local Health Jurisdiction STD Data Summary 2008,.
According to the data the chlamydia rate among women is higher then that of men and slowly rising. Men have higher rates of Gonorrhea then women, but both groups rates are going down. Women have an almost non-existent rate of syphilis ,but the rate among men has varied and is currently rising. The data is further broken down along race and age lines. I won’t bore you guys with all of the details, the bottom line is that most of the cases of STIs (except syphilis) are affecting people of color and young women between the ages of 16 and 24.
Good news and bad news, gonorrhea is going down ,but why are the rates for chlamydia in women and syphilis in men increasing?
Are sex education curriculum not working or do people just not care ?
The Long Beach Unified School District posts its comprehensive sexual health curriculum outlines online. Sex Educaton is a part of health class in the 7th and 9th grade Is that enough ?
“Sexual Health: The area of health education that encompasses a broad scope of concepts and skills, including acquiring information about sexual development, reproductive health, interpersonal relationships, body image, and gender roles; recognizing habits that protect female and male reproductive health; learning about pregnancy and childbirth; and learning about development of infants and children. It also includes skill development in areas such as communication, decision making, refusal techniques, and goal setting. Sexual health topics are grounded in the premise that sexuality is a natural, ongoing process that begins in infancy and continues through life.” -LBUSD
Did you receive sex education at home or at school ? Did it leave you feeling informed ? Was it a multifaceted approach, did you learn about pleasure, negotiating skills, etc ? Does your culture or religion effect your views on sex and sexual health ? Do you take measures to protect yourself and your partners ?
More Info on Sexual Health in Long Beach
Test Center Locater
Long Beach AIDS Foundation
AIDS Project Long Beach
Comment
-
Comment by JulsnMatt1028 on April 23, 2010 at 9:44pm -
Yeah - that's totally true! Good point... :)
-
Comment by LB Chica on April 23, 2010 at 4:08pm -
@JulsnMatt1028 haha I know I know but I think guys would be honestly be very forgetful, they won't do it intentionally
-
Comment by The Man on April 23, 2010 at 3:48pm -
I'll be down to do to the clinically trials. They pay. Sucks that your relationship is ruined Zavi. Holla.
If the side effects aren't horrible I'll support male birth control. Need to start somewhere with population control... 2012 is near ya know.
-
Comment by JulsnMatt1028 on April 23, 2010 at 3:06pm
-
@LB Chica - It's funny your question about trusting the guy... that's the same thing us guys ask about girls! Haha - I'd be down to take that if I knew more about it, like side effects... Those things will kill ya!
-
Comment by LB Chica on April 23, 2010 at 2:54pm
-
I have heard about the male birth control pill, would the ladies really trust a guy to take it though? maybe if they put it in beer lol
Yes it's good for them to know what to do prepare themselves if they decide to be sexually active, but no form of birth control is 100% safe so they should know what the consequences are & pregnancy is a huge one.
-
Comment by Zavijava on April 23, 2010 at 2:35pm -
@ The Man
You should check out this article about teen pregnancy in the Long Beach A/PI community
This chart is old, but it breaks down the A/PI categories.
The teen pregnancy rate in CA has been going down steadily since the late 90's. I think that it is better to inform teens and provide them with the tools they need rather then trying to scare them. The message should be more like it is better if you wait, but if you have sex this what you need to do to protect yourself, not OMG I WILL KILL YOU if you get pregnant or LOOK pregnancy will ruin your life.
-
Comment by Zavijava on April 23, 2010 at 2:27pm
-
@ lbcsrw
That is defiantly not good, but male birth control is preparing to hit the market. Are any of the guys out there willing to try it ? I asked a friend about it and he freaked out, it kind of ruined our relationship.
-
Comment by The Man on April 23, 2010 at 2:04pm
-
I didn't know that there were no tests for HPV for men... Crazy...
I like the idea of field trip with teenage parent...THAT would be good for the youngsters.
-
Comment by lbcsrw on April 23, 2010 at 2:00pm
-
Did you know that there is no test for HPV in men. There's no test, and no treatment. We're living in the 21st Century, right?
-
Comment by LB Chica on April 23, 2010 at 1:45pm
-
Funny, I just watched an old episode from King of the Hill & it was about this topic.
Parents were PO because their were going to teach sex education in school.
"The Goverment should not be teaching my kid anything about sex, they should leave it to parents to do it at home" - Of course the rest of the episode was about how neither parent wanted to do it because they were embarrassed.
7th grade is a good start but parents should be involved in this process, do they do field trips?
Like when they take kids to the morgue to see DUI victims to scare them?
Maybe have them spend a day with a teenage parent & see what their life is like?
© 2012 Created by CityLife.
You need to be a member of 562 City Life to add comments!
Join 562 City Life