SiN2.0 Sex Information Network

This week marks Sexual Awareness Week and serves as a good time for us all to take account of our sexual health and hygiene. This article lays out some basic parameters for assessing your sexual health, and reminds us that when it comes to sex, it's not a good idea to turn a blind eye to any health concerns, as they tend to only get worse, and may be a sign of greater health problems.

While circumcision does effectively reduce the likelihood of contracting certain STDs, including HIV/AIDS, there is a lot of misunderstanding amongst the medical community as to how a circumcision based approach to fighting AIDS can be effective.

A New York entrepreneur has developed a product called the 'STDFree Card' that claims to give its users the ability to claim with confidence that they are 100% free of sexually transmitted diseases.

So we all think we know how to use condoms, but just in case there are any questions out there, here's a review for everyone to make sure they've got their technique down. Condoms are great devices for protecting ourselves from STDs, but proper use is essential for proper safety.

While the youth in most parts of the world are increasingly having riskier and riskier sex, research shows that in America, sexual activity among teenagers has actually dropped since the early 90's. What's more, those who are having sex are choosing to use condoms, which bodes well for our nation's future.

While this decision is usually left up to parents, the motives for circumcision vary from limiting the risk of infection and STDs to simply fitting into a cultural norm. Of course there are some drawbacks to getting ‘snipped’, mainly a loss of sexual stimulation, and of course, some serious soreness and pain (why do you think they do this to us when we’re babies?).

Given the casual sexual attitudes of the characters in Sex and the City, one would think that safe sex would have been a more prevalent topic in the show's six year run on TV. Not much has changed in the new movie release either, with barely a murmur dedicated to the more real aspects of liberal sexual activity.

Researchers in Hawaii have discovered an unsettling fact about HPV, aka genital warts, and where it is spreading in many of the country's women. Despite a well documented history of the problems associated with HPV infecting women's vaginas causing cervical cancer, it appears that they are equally likely to get infected in their anus. Gross.

A parliamentary report shows that middle-aged and elderly people in the UK have had a record spike in STDs over the past year, with Chlamydia rates soaring by over 50% and Syphilis rising a stunning 39%. I guess their old age is making them forget about protection, but be sure to rubber-up when doing anyone over 45 from the UK.

A 45 year old man who contracted a debilitating form of herpes from unprotected sex, has successfully convinced a British Columbian court of appeals that his ailment should be covered by the national health insurance. His case is very severe, as he has become paralyzed from the waist down, and the suit will undoubtedly raise the cost of insurance for the state.