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Sexual Health Centre
Infections and Safer Sex |
Risks Associated with Sexual Activity
High-Risk Sex
Two kinds of sex that have a high risk of passing infected body fluids from one
person to another:
- vaginal intercourse; a man's penis entering your vagina
- anal intercourse; a man's penis entering your anus
If you are going to have vaginal or anal sex, the best protection against disease
is a male or female condom. To help you avoid infection; detailed instructions
for using condoms are provided
in the birth control section.
A male or female condom is good protection against:
- trichomonas
- pelvic inflammatory disease
- gonorrhea
- chlamydia
- syphilis
- HIV/AIDS
Condoms also offer some protection against:
- genital warts
- herpes
- hepatitis-B virus
Lower Risk Sex
Oral sex is considered lower risk because there are fewer infections you can get in this way. Oral sex means putting your mouth on someone else genitals. Although the risk of getting some infections is lower you can still get these infections through unprotected oral sex:
- herpes
- hepatitis
- gonorrhea
- syphilis
- very rarely HIV/AIDS
You can also use condoms to protect yourself against these infections during oral
sex. If you are performing oral sex on a man, put the condom over the penis
to prevent contact between body fluids. If you are performing oral sex on
a woman, cut the condom down the side and use it as a flat sheet to prevent
contact between body fluids. Non-microwavable plastic wrap can also be used
in this way. Low Risk Sex
Low risk sex includes touching and rubbing each other's genitals with your hands, kissing and massaging each other. These activities are considered low risk because many sexually transmitted infections including HIV cannot be transmitted in this way. However, oral herpes is easily transmitted during kissing. Genital warts and trichomonas can be passed from one person to another by moving your hands from one person's genitals to another. Crabs can move from one person to another during any close contact.
Using sex toys in combination with a condom is also considered low risk sex. The condom should be placed over the toy and changed for each new act of penetration.
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