Did you know that one out of five people with HIV in the U.S. does not even know they are infected? If you think, “Oh, it could never happen to me,” ask yourself, “How can I be sure?”

Think about it! Anyone—young or old, male or female, black or white, gay or straight—can get HIV. So how can you really be sure whether or not you have HIV? There’s only one way to know for certain—get tested.

No matter how safe you think you are are when having sex, get tested.
No matter how much you trust your partner to be STD and HIV-free, get tested.
No matter how scared you are of getting tested, get tested.

Saturday, June 27th is National HIV Testing Day. Grab the widget below and spread the word about getting tested on MySpace or your personal Web site or blog. Check out Blog.AIDS.gov for real stories and videos. And, most importantly, get yourself tested!

To find easy, confidential testing sites in your area, you can simply text your ZIP code to “KNOWIT” (566948), or visit HIVTest.org.

Gynecologist, noun: A medical doctor specializing in women’s reproductive health care.

Every woman should begin having regular visits to a gynecologist at some point in her life, especially if she’s sexually active. Does the thought of seeing a gynecologist send you running to hide under your bed? If you’re scared or nervous, it’s probably because you’re aren’t sure what to expect. Read what Cydney and Desiree had to say about their first visits to the gynecologist.

One of the most important things a gynecologist does during a pelvic exam is perform a Pap test to check for cervical cancer, which is caused by HPV. The BC Cancer Agency in Canada showed an interesting public service announcement in theaters to raise awareness about being tested for cervical cancer—from the point of view of the cervix! Take a look:

Name: Adam Lambert
Age: 27
Hometown: Hollywood, CA
Claim to Fame: American Idol runner-up
Sexual Orientation: ?

For a while, there was speculation about whether American Idol’s latest runner-up was gay, but never any confirmation—until now. Lambert has officially come out in Rolling Stone magazine, saying “I don’t think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear that I’m gay.” But why all the fuss in the first place?

Maybe it started with Idol’s season two runner-up, Clay Aiken, who kept the fact that he was gay a secret. In an interview with People magazine years after he was on Idol, Aiken credited his newborn son as the inspiration to stop hiding about his sexual orientation.

Perhaps then, Lambert’s coming out is a step in the right direction: he neither shied away from the rumors nor made his orientation a huge deal. And whether he planned to or not, this can be seen as encouragement to gay, lesbian and bisexual people—during Gay Pride month, no less—to be out and proud.

Want to make a safe space for teens to be out and proud at your school? Check out Nick’s story on forming a gay-straight alliance (GSA).

—Anita Modi, 17, Staff Writer

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to walk in the shoes of a pregnant teen? MTV’s new documentary series 16 and Pregnant takes a deeper look at the everyday lives of teens handling the ups and downs of growing up all while dealing with pregnancy. Take a look at the trailer:

16 and Pregnant looks like it could be an eye-opening TV series on teen pregnancy. If you plan on watching the show, let us know what you think about it!

President Obama has proclaimed June “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month.” We’d like to kick off LGBT Pride Month with the true story of 18-year-old Sergio Garcia. He ran for—and won—the title of prom queen at Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, CA.

You might be scratching your head and wondering how can a guy be the prom queen? The title of prom king didn’t feel right for Sergio. According to him, being the prom queen was a better fit for his personality—the title matched his gender expression. Of course, some people had reservations about having a guy as prom queen. But in a speech to his senior class Sergio defended his decision:

“I will be wearing a suit,” Sergio said, “but don’t be fooled, deep down inside, I am a queen!”

Sergio’s campaign for prom queen got students talking about gender roles and gender expression. Was it right for a guy to run for a traditionally girls-only title? Some people thought Sergio was pulling a stunt and that it was unfair to girls competing for the title. But most of his senior class as well as the school’s principal eventually showed their support, and Sergio won the crown.

What do you think about Sergio’s story? Do you think it was right for Sergio to run as prom queen? Or should he have stuck to prom king? Leave us your comments!