We're an STI ridden bunch of typhoid Marys according to the latest data.
Matthew Hodson says “Let me be blunt: Sex has consequences. If you have sex with lots of men, you are much more likely to pick up an STI, including HIV. You can catch gonorrhoea from oral sex - at least 16% of gonorrhoea cases were detected in the throat, so wearing condoms for anal sex is not enough to keep you free from STIs. Having gonorrhoea will make you more vulnerable to HIV, if you have not been infected, and more likely to transmit HIV if you are HIV positive, even if you’re on treatment."
Meanwhile, Sports Day cometh!
Press release...
Responding to the latest STI data from the Health Protection Agency (http://www.hpa.org.uk/hpr/infections/hiv_sti.htm#annsti), Matthew Hodson, of GMFA, the gay men’s health charity, said:
“The shocking increases in diagnosed STIs amongst gay men and in particular the steep rise in cases of gonorrhoea and genital warts, make for alarming reading. Although part of this increase is due to larger numbers of men coming forward for testing, which is to be welcomed, there remains a concern that safer sex messages are simply not getting through.
“There’s an urgent need for sexual health promotion to be adequately resourced. We have seen huge cuts in the funding for HIV prevention. In London, HIV prevention funding for gay men has been slashed from about £19m a decade ago, to about £1.4m last year. Nationally the budget for HIV prevention amounts to less than 1% of the money spent on treatment and care for people with HIV. Disinvestment in prevention efforts is short-sighted and ultimately self-defeating.”
