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Introduction: Sexual Activities and Sexually Transmitted Disease Risks

Sex is a great and powerful life-affirming force. At Attitude Media we believe life should be lived, not experienced vicariously through pornography or virtual reality.  Too often, especially for men, modern life means living through others; watching others have sex, or play sports, or watching the news. Life is meant to be experienced, not watched; but lived carefully and thoughtfully. We hope this guide enables you to make good decisions.

AttitudeMedia.com is providing this guide as a public service.  The purpose is not to scare anyone, but to allow those engaged in consensual adult sexual activities to be informed and make their own choices about what activities in which to engage.

We’re not going to preach; as long as you have the consent of your adult partner, we don’t really care what activity you engage in, but we do care that you are safe, and not catching or spreading an infection.  However, if you have a sexually transmitted disease (referred to hereafter as STD) you have a moral obligation to inform your partner and let them make their own informed decision. If you know or suspect you have an active STD, and you have unprotected sex without informing your partner, you are putting  them at unconscionable risk.

This guide focuses on the most common forms of heterosexual activity. We don’t have unlimited resources and it is hard enough just understanding the many different types of STDs involved in the most common range of activities we have covered.

Generally speaking, women are at a higher risk of acquiring an STD as compared to their heterosexual male counterparts after an act of coitus. Some of the factors implicated for this vulnerability are:

  • A larger mucosal surface area. Most STD-causing pathogens gain entry to the body by breaching the mucosal surface. This means that a larger surface area would favor their entry.
  • The delicate mucosal surface of the vagina is more prone to injury. This leads to small cuts which provide easy passage for the pathogens into the body.
  • The progestin-containing hormones that a number of women use have the ability to cause thinning of the mucosal lining of the vagina. This makes it easier for the pathogens that cause STDs to gain entry into the body
  • The vagina offers a moist environment for the bacteria, fungi and viruses that cause STDs. Furthermore, semen, which offers a good environment for pathogens, flows into the woman. This means a higher risk on the part of the woman.

Gay males are also at a higher risk of acquiring STDs as compared to heterosexual males. This is attributed to the delicate nature of the anus. Cuts and subsequent bleeds are common during this form of sexual activity. This provides for higher chances of transmission.

This guide is not primarily about pregnancy, but note that even in a supposedly advanced affluent society like the United States about half of all pregnancies are unintended. That’s pretty amazing, especially since the simple act of correct condom use would dramatically reduce that number as well as dramatically reducing the spread of STDs.

There are all sorts of stimulating physical activities that men and women can engage in that do not involve vaginal intercourse and thus eliminate the risks of unintended pregnancy as well as the risks of certain STDs.  

Think before you act, and let the risks guide the types of activity in which you engage.

This guide is really designed for use BEFORE you engage in sexual activity, so you don’t do something you’ll regret later. But we understand many people will use it after the fact, as they try to figure out if they’re at risk for an STD. Just remember there are no “morning after” pills for STDs; you can sometimes treat an STD, but you can’t prevent it if after you have contracted it.

We have taken an unusual approach to organizing this guide by activity, because each user knows exactly what activity they have engaged in or are considering, even if they don’t know anything at all about STDs. So we’re hoping this provides a simple and easy way to access the material, rather than wading through a lot of discussions that may not apply to you.

We have tried to stick to the facts that will actually be helpful; and not sermonize about things that should be obvious. Yes, it is true, as all guides will tell you that the chances of catching an STD increase along with the number of sexual partners you have. It’s also true that the only absolutely surefire way to never catch an STD is not to engage in any sort of sexual activity. But that’s also a surefire way to miss out on one of life’s great pleasure, and a fundamental part of adult life.