America is currently in the grips of record cases of various sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and experts are worried.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is especially concerned about the outbreak of certain STDs which are escalating rapidly among the US adult population.
Here are more details about what STDs are surging and what you can do to stay safe.
America’s STD Crisis Worsens
Dr. Leandro Mena works for the CDC and says much more needs to be done to prevent STDs.
In particular, syphilis and gonorrhea rates are increasing dramatically. In addition, rates of HIV are up by 16% in the past year. That’s a huge increase; it has medical professionals very concerned, as well as ordinary people.
Another outbreak that has raised a red alert is monkeypox, which has been spreading most rapidly among men who have sexual contact with other men. Although monkeypox rates are still quite low, experts worry it could explode into a full-blown crisis.
The fact is there are a number of unsafe sex practices leading to a growth in STDs.
Is there really an STD Crisis in the US right now? Read on to see how prevalent the situations are and what we can do to address them. #Science https://t.co/WQyRg64Z5k .htm
— ScienceTimes (@ScienceTimesCom) September 21, 2022
What Needs To Be Done?
David Harvey heads up a national organization focused on the prevention of STDs. He says the situation in America is spinning out of control completely; much more needs to be done.
According to Mena, one of the things being done is making more home-test STD kits available via the CDC. This is so people can discover if they have a serious STD more quickly and avoid infecting future partners.
In addition, local health agencies are working to effectively and widely distribute condoms to more people to ensure that rates of unprotected, risky sex decrease.
Professor Mike Saag is an expert on STDs at the University of Alabama. He has weighed in by pointing out that a majority of STDs are occurring due to unprotected sex.
One of those which is spreading is syphilis, as noted, and this is very serious. If undetected, it can eventually lead to death. Symptoms are often not noticeable for a long time prior to the serious symptoms, which is part of why it can spread so much.
Syphilis was effectively controlled by the 1940s and reached a record low in the late 1990s. Rates began to go up after the 2000s and are now skyrocketing once again, giving real headaches to the CDC.
By 2020, syphilis had broken the record for cases that were surpassed by last year with more than 50,000 positive cases of the disease.
way too many mfs that brag about being too grown for condoms & not enough leading conversations about getting tested. yall fuck any and everything raw and thats why america is literally in an STD crisis.
— 𝖗𝖊𝖎𝖓𝖆 (@Nirhvahna) September 23, 2022
Syphilis in Babies
This year, the rate of syphilis has been increasing non-stop; it’s now at its worst numbers in three decades.
More males have syphilis than females in the US, but it’s even more dangerous for women since it can be passed to the baby at the time of giving birth. This can cause stillbirth and infant death or lead to deafness and blindness and other problems once born.
According to Mena, the rate of congenital syphilis has been going up to frightening levels.
The bottom line here is clear: please be responsible about the number of sexual partners you are seeing. Use condoms unless you are in a serious relationship or married to someone you know well and know is faithful to you.
This article appeared in FreshOffThePress and has been published here with permission.
