In a recent episode of TV reality television Love islandThe discussion was converted into sexually transmitted infections (STIS). The Cierra Cast Member expressed the guess that we could blame the current Sti epidemic in men who had sexual intercourse with animals. He showed Koalas with chlamydia as an example, accused the cows of gonorrhea providing and even suggested that Christopher Columbus was partly responsible for the STDs for having sex with Manatees.
Like so many things we hear in the media, there is some truth about what Cierra says, but there is also great misinformation.
Koalas and chlamydia
Let’s start with Koalas. The cute Marinaians have, in fact, dealing with a chlamydia outburst for years. Bacterial infection spreads from Koala to Koala and causes blindness, infertility and death. It is one of the reasons why the Koala population is reduced by 80% in some areas of Australia. A few years ago, wildlife experts in New South Wales began to vaccinate the Koalas against the chlamydia we hope to stop the epidemic.
But the chlamydia that the koalas gets are not the same that infects people. Animals take and spread chlamyd pecorum. We take and spread chlamydia trachomatis. While sharing a name, there are many differences between the two.
Chlamydia trachomatis It is a bacterium that passes through human oral, anal or vaginal sex. It can infect the penis, vulva, vagina, cervix or anus. There are about 1.6 million cases of chlamydia reported in the United States each year.
Chlamydia is easy to therapeutic with antibiotics, but many infections have no symptoms. If an infection is not diagnosed and not cured, it can lead to inflammatory pelvic disease (PID). PID is a severe infection of the female upper genital system/reproductive organs (uterus, fallopian tubes and ovaries). If the pid is not treated, it can lead to infertility.
Chlamydia in humans are not lethal as they are in Koalas. But scars from PID can put women at a higher risk of ectopic pregnancy (where a fetus begins to grow out of the uterus) and this can be life -threatening.
Another difference: unlike koala, we do not have a vaccine to prevent chlamydia. Chlamydia spread from infected liquids such as sperm and vaginal discharge. Conditions work well to stop the transmission because they prevent the exchange of these liquids.
People who are at high risk of chlamydia can also get Doxy PEP or doxycycline after exposure. This sexual health strategy involves taking an oral antibiotic after sexual sex to prevent chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis. The Doxy Pep has been found to be 80% effective against chlamydia and syphilis and 50% effective against gonorrhea.
Because chlamydia is very common and so often have no symptoms, anyone who is sexually active should think of being tested. Specifically, Disease Control and Prevention Centers (CDC) constitute sexually active women aged 25 years or younger are tested once a year. The chlamydia test is also recommended for women with new or multiple sexual partners and pregnant women.
Anyone who is sexually active should speak with a healthcare provider about whether chlamydia or other STDs are needed. But they should not blame koalas or cows.
Gonorrhea does not come from cows
While the connection between koala and chlamydia is clear, Cierra’s suggestion that cows have caused gonorrhea is more difficult to identify. Gonorrhea has passed for thousands of years, so the origin of origin is almost impossible, but friendly farm animals look like an unlikely source.
However, we have begun, we know that gonorrhea is also a bacterial infection that spreads through the exchange of body fluids during the oral, anus or vaginal sex. There are over 600,000 cases of gonorrhea reported in the United States each year, many of them occur in men who have sexual intercourse with men.
Gonorrhea often has no symptoms, but it can cause a yellowish-free discharge from the penis, pain or swelling of the testicles, burning or pain during urination or abnormal discharge from the vagina. If left -handed gonorrhea can also lead to pid and infertility.
Antibiotics can cure gonorrhea, but bacteria that cause infection have become resistant to many of the medicines we have about it. Currently, there is only one category of antibiotics that work, but there are some new ones in progress.
Like chlamydia, condoms can reduce the risk of gonorrhea transmission. Doxy Pep is another prevention option, although it does not work as well as against gonorrhea, as is the case with chlamydia and syphilis.
CDC recommends testing sexually active women under 25 and that men who have sexual intercourse with men are tested at least once a year. Men who have sexual intercourse with men who are increased risks may want to try every three or six months. (Gonorrhea and chlamydia tests are often done together.)
If you are sexually active, talk to the healthcare provider on the STI tests you need.
Men and manatees
Cierra’s latest claim that Christopher Columbus brought people to people with sexual intercourse with Manatees seems quite outrageous and unlikely to be true. This said, there were cases of bacteria and viruses – some of those who are sexually transmitted – making their way from animals to humans.
In fact, research suggested that HIV developed from a similar virus originally infected monkeys. The jump from animals to humans, however, did not include sexual behavior between species. Instead, humans were probably infected by the blood of the animals after their murder and slaughter.
Talks on STDs were once considered a very taboo for TV, so it is exciting when a show like Love island He is willing to give a broadcast time on this issue. Still, reality TV is probably not the best part to get Sti news and information.
