Posts Tagged ‘guys’ health’

Gardasil…What About the Guys?

Monday, October 26, 2009

guy getting vaccinated

With the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the vaccine Gardasilin 2006, girls can now protect themselves against the strains of human papillomavirus (HPV) that cause many cases of cervical, vaginal and vulvar cancer, as well as genital warts. But, what about the guys?

Recently, Gardasil was approved for boys, and an advisory panel from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), following the FDA approval, said that doctors are free to recommend the vaccine to boys. But saying that doctors are free to recommend the vaccine to boys is very different from their recommendation that all girls get the vaccine. Why are the girls pushed to receive the vaccine, but guys aren’t? Gardasil was approved for guys only to prevent genital warts, so some argue that while genital warts are uncomfortable and may be embarrassing, they’re not as significant as cancer. It’s also been argued that since oral, throat, penile and anal cancers caused by certain strains of HPV are rare in men, guys don’t need to be vaccinated. But isn’t that like saying, “Since guys who have sex with girls don’t get pregnant, they don’t need to worry about birth control”?

Some girls do or will have sex with guys, who’ve been exposed to HPV. Regardless of whether you are a guy or a girl, your sexual health is your responsibility. And if getting a vaccine can protect you and your partner from HPV-related diseases, wouldn’t you want to get it?

-Aya Iwamoto, 17, Staff Writer

Talking “The Talk”

Friday, September 11, 2009

guy talking to parentMany of you roll your eyes every time we mention talking with a parent or trusted adult about sex and sexuality. “Yeah, whatever,” you say, and maybe you think to yourself, adults are clueless about sexuality.

They criticize your music, the way you want to dress and the kinds of people you hang out with. Forget about even bringing up current or potential relationships or, oh yeah, sex. But is this tension between adults and teens really anything new? Nope. Your parents or guardians probably went through something similar with their parents.

Your parents didn’t dance to Beyoncé, and maybe they aren’t familiar with Jay-Z’s “banquet full of broads” or his thoughts about what someone’s butt could do to a g-string. Adult outrage at teen music is nothing new. Replace criticisms of Britney Spears, Miley Cyrus and Drake with criticisms of Elvis, the Beatles, and even Madonna. The music may change, but the concerns about its influence are, in many ways, very similar.

Your parents probably didn’t grow up knowing about HIV/AIDS, and they definitely didn’t have access to information on the Internet. But their parents, and other adults in their lives, still gave them a hard time.

Teens of today didn’t invent sex. So, maybe you could give adults a chance? Maybe they’re trying to block the memories of their own awkward early experiences around sexuality and pretend they never happened. But consider that adults have probably been in situations similar to the ones you’re in. The scenery may look a bit different these days, but chances are your parents or the adults you trust had the same worries about whether or how to talk to their own parents or families. Think about it. You may decide that your parent or another trusted adult is just the person to talk to about sexuality…and, hey, stop rolling your eyes.

Birth Control Options for Guys?

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Birth Control Options for Guys?

The Pill. NuvaRing. Diaphragm. Depo-Provera. The Patch. What do all of these birth control methods have in common? Well, they are all methods that young women—who are partnered with guys—can choose to use to prevent pregnancy. But what about the guys? What options do guys have to prevent pregnancy?

Condoms or…vasectomy? For those guys who want to keep the option to have children in the future, a vasectomy is likely not a good option. That leaves condoms as the only reversible birth control method that guys can use for themselves to prevent pregnancy. Condoms have the bonus of also being highly effective at preventing most sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), but some researchers are interested in finding additional contraceptive choices for guys to use, just as young women have multiple contraceptive options.

Guys, if a “male pill” were developed, do you think that you would use it? How do those of you in relationships discuss and choose methods of contraception? And what about protection from STDs? How might male-female relationships change if guys had more options for taking an active role in pregnancy prevention? Join us in the Forums to discuss these questions, along with other issues that affect teens’ sexual health.

What’s Up with the Hair Down There?

Thursday, July 3, 2008

Photo by Rileroxx http://www.flickr.com/photos/rileyroxx/159454935/Pubic hair. Everyone has it, but not everyone agrees what to do with it. Beach season is here, and lots of teens will be answering the big question: What do I do with the hair down there? There are so many options! Should you trim, shave, wax or leave it natural?

We recently asked Sexetc.org users what they thought about grooming or not grooming pubic hair. People were pretty evenly split between those that like to shave or wax everything off and those that just trim or keep everything natural.

Some of our users think that removing pubic hair is somehow cleaner or more hygienic than having a natural bush. But there’s a reason to have hair down there. Pubic hair catches dirt and germs and keeps them away from your genitals. So although it may look “cleaner” to remove pubic hair, not having it actually makes you more vulnerable to infection. Plus, waxing or shaving pubic hair can leave the skin irritated. And watch out when it grows back. It’s super itchy, and you can get ingrown hairs. Just keep that in mind if you decide to go bare.

One user said it’s OK for guys to have pubic hair, but not OK for girls. What’s up with the double standard? Where do you think teens get the message that girls shouldn’t have pubic hair? Porn maybe? It makes sense that porn would influence our ideas about what to do with pubic hair, since the top viewers of Internet porn are 12-to 17-year-olds, according to Family Safe Media. Porn is a fantasy. But teens who watch porn think that their sex lives and bodies should resemble these made-up, manicured and hairless fantasies.

Whether you keep or get rid of your bush, just make sure you know the facts. Check out our FAQ on shaving pubic hair.

Teen Sexual Health—Money Matters

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

This post is a part of a national Youth Media Blog-a-Thon on violence sponsored by YO! Youth Outlook Multimedia and WireTap Magazine.

Did you know that 1 in 4 teen girls has a sexually transmitted disease (STD), and that for the first time in 14 years, the teen birth rate has increased? When will we get a clue? Clearly, teens need access to health services, like clinics, and honest, accurate information, so they can take care of their sexual health.

Stopping the spread of STDs like HIV/AIDS and reducing teen pregnancy rates costs money. But here’s a major problem: Money is tight for everyone nowadays. Maybe you think budget cuts don’t have anything to do with teen sexual health. But in reality, the way Uncle Sam spends taxpayers’ money has a direct impact on YOU:

  • The number of teen pregnancies and rate of STD infection would only increase if Medicaid spending is cut. Millions of low-income teens rely on Medicaid for health services, including access to birth control, like the Pills and condoms, and other services, like clinics.
  • Ever been to a Planned Parenthood or other Title-X clinic? When these clinics don’t get the funding they need, teens have to pay more for confidential services, such as counseling, gynecological exams, STD testing and birth control. Sometimes, a clinic will have to stop offering certain services altogether because they don’t have enough funding.
  • If knowledge is power, then why is sex education so poorly funded? Comprehensive sex education gives teens the information they need to make healthy and responsible decisions about sex, but there’s no federal funding for comprehensive sex ed. Instead, our government funds abstinence-only sex programs, even though study after study shows that these programs don’t work. Isn’t it time the government stopped pumping money into something that’s proven to be ineffective?

If we’re serious about improving teen sexual health, shouldn’t we increase funding for Medicaid and Title X and stop funding abstinence-only programs?

We won’t see the STD rate or teen birth rate decrease overnight. But in the long run, giving teens comprehensive sex education and providing access to safe, affordable and well-funded sexual and reproductive health programs will greatly reduce the number of unplanned pregnancies and help stop the spread of STDs. Let’s hope that the next president keeps teens in mind when he or she thinks about how to spend taxpayer dollars.