Category Archives: Sexual Health

Intercourse isn’t everything for most women, says study — try ‘outercourse’

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Intercourse isn’t everything for most women, says study — try ‘outercourse’

2017-08-29

By Ian Kerner, CNN

Many of us equate “sex” with “intercourse” and use those words interchangeably. Yet highly satisfying sex doesn’t have to be limited to penetration — and doesn’t even have to include it at all.

ccording to a recent study, many women report that they require clitoral stimulation to have an orgasm.
For the study, Debby Herbenick, director of the Center for Sexual Health Promotion at Indiana University and a research fellow and sexual health educator at the Kinsey Institute, and her colleagues assessed data from 1,055 women ages 18 to 94 who answered a detailed online survey about their sex lives. “Our purpose was to understand more about women’s experiences with … the kinds of touch they find pleasurable and how clitoral and vaginal stimulation contribute to their orgasms,” she explained.
In reading her results, I’m struck by the idea that the majority of women report that they often don’t reach orgasm through intercourse alone. This flies in the face of the stereotype of intercourse as the be-all and end-all of sexual activity — and suggests that couples should explore the whole range of pleasurable options for achieving climax. The study contained a few compelling findings worth enumerating.

Intercourse isn’t everything

This study found that only about 18% of women reported being able to climax during intercourse from vaginal penetration alone. About 36% said they needed clitoral stimulation in order to orgasm during intercourse, and another 36% said it enhanced the experience. Yet, many women still fake orgasm during intercourse, according to therapist Laurie Mintz, author of the new book “Becoming Cliterate.”
“The main reasons they give for faking is that they want to appear ‘normal’ and want to make their male partners feel good,” she said.
“This is one of the saddest and most common problems I deal with in my clinical practice,” added Anita Hoffer, a sexuality counselor and educator. “Women who either are uninformed or insecure and therefore easily intimidated by ignorant partners bear a great deal of shame and guilt at being unable to climax from intercourse alone. Many are greatly relieved when they learn that they are among the majority of women who engage in sexual intercourse.”

Orgasms vary

Do some orgasms feel better than others? According to 78% of the survey respondents, the answer is yes. These so-called better orgasms aren’t necessarily dependent on the length of an encounter. In fact, fewer than one in five women surveyed believed that longer sex contributed to better orgasms.
Instead, the most common contributors to orgasmic bliss included spending time to build arousal, having a partner who knows that they like, emotional intimacy and clitoral stimulation during intercourse, said Herbenick. “A woman’s general mood and stress level — including the degree to which she is able to mindfully immerse in the sexual encounter — can have an impact on orgasm quality too,” Mintz explained.

‘Outercourse’ matters

This term “outercourse” refers to sex that isn’t intercourse and doesn’t involve penetration. It can include kissing, touching, erotic massage and using sex toys, just to name a few options.
“When we equate intercourse and sex and call everything that comes before intercourse ‘foreplay,’ we are buying into the cultural script that sex should proceed as follows: foreplay (just enough to get her ready for intercourse), intercourse (during which both women and men orgasm), and game over,” Mintz said. But sex doesn’t have to involve intercourse at all. Even when it does, other forms of stimulation can add to the experience and may improve the odds of reaching orgasm.
Herbenick suggested that couples take a lesson from the early days of their relationship. “Sometimes, when people are first getting together, they spend time making out and touching each other’s genitals long before they start having oral sex or intercourse with each other,” she explained. “All too often, once oral sex and intercourse become part of their routine, the rest fades away — which is too bad, considering how powerful genital touching can be.”

Communication is key

The study found that 41% of women prefer just one style of touch. “This underscores how important it is to have conversations about sex and pleasure or even to show your partner what you like, since otherwise, the chances of just stumbling upon that one preference are pretty low,” Herbenick said. “Couples should be having conversations about what they like, what they don’t like, what feels good and leads to orgasm, as well as what feels good but doesn’t necessarily lead to orgasm.”
One good source of information about women’s sexual pleasure that can help you get the conversation started is the website for OMGYES, which sponsored the study. The site, which states it’s for 18-year-olds and older, contains a series of videos that demonstrate different types of touch that real women find pleasurable, including techniques labeled “edging,” “layering” and “orbiting.” There is a free preview but a cost to access all of them.
I’ve found this site very helpful to my female patients and their partners who want to learn more about female pleasure. “It tastefully and unselfconsciously names, describes and normalizes behaviors that are universal and, by example, invites the viewer to experiment and learn,” Hoffer said. “As Leonore Tiefer (sex researcher, therapist and activist) has said, ‘Sex is not a natural act,’ and good lovemaking is an art that must be learned and practiced.”

There’s a Good Reason to Stop Freaking Out About Your Penis Size

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There’s a Good Reason to Stop Freaking Out About Your Penis Size

Over 4,000 men revealed how they really feel about their junk

Not exactly happy with the whole package once your boxers come off? You’re not alone: A sizable number of guys aren’t satisfied with some physical aspect of their junk—and that can influence how often they get busy under the sheets, a new study in the Archives of Sexual Behavior suggests.

In the study, researchers asked more than 4,100 men to report how they felt about certain physical aspects of their genitals. Then, they asked them questions about their sexual behavior to see if how they felt about their appearance influenced their sex lives.

Guys were most satisfied with the shape of the head of their penis and with their circumcision status. They felt pretty neutral about the scent of their genitals and their genital veins.

As for the issues plaguing the most guys? Twenty-seven percent said they were dissatisfied with the length of their flaccid penis, 19 percent were unhappy with the length of their erect penis, and 15 percent were displeased with the girth of their erect penis. (Find out how your penis size compares to average.)

The researchers discovered that while most men were reasonably satisfied with their genitals overall, 14 percent indicated they weren’t pleased with their junk, meaning they averaged a 3 or below on the 7-point scale that gauged satisfaction.

And it seems like that unhappiness carried over into the bedroom. Men who were dissatisfied with their genitals were less likely to report being sexually active than those who were fine with their junk.

They had less sex, too. For instance, 50 percent of men who were satisfied with their genitals reported experiencing weekly sexual activity, compared to 39 percent of men unhappy with what was below the belt. What’s more, the dissatisfied guys were also significantly less likely to be on the receiving end of oral sex.

It’s possible that lower satisfaction with your junk can cause anxiety in the bedroom, which may translate to poorer sexual function—making you more likely to shy away from sex, the researchers say.

When looking specifically at the drop in oral sex, the researchers believe that guys who are unhappy with their genitals may feel uncomfortable engaging in the act, which has been rated as more intimate than regular intercourse. (This intimate massage oil can help draw you closer together, too.)

Bottom line: Stop picking apart your package. Plus, chances are, whatever you’re packing below the belt, chances are, you’re much more critical of it than she is. In fact, a UCLA study found that 84 percent of women were satisfied with their partner’s penis size. To make the most of what you’ve got, try the best sex positions for every penis size.

It’s not your age, it’s the age of the person you feel that matters when it comes to sex

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It’s not your age, it’s the age of the person you feel that matters when it comes to sex

2017-08-22

f you want to maintain an active sex life as you get older, try feeling young – if you can.That’s the advice from the leading institute of research into sexual behaviour The Kinsey Institute.

It’s research shows that frequency of sexual relations drops off quite dramatically as people age.While there are, of course always exceptions, it seems the pattern is fairly constant.The findings, published in the The Journal of Sex Research, show that people under the age of 30 typically have sex twice a week – about 112 times a year.Those in the 30 to 39 category are likely to get intimate less frequently – about 1.6 times per week, or 86 times a year.

Then those who are aged between 40 and 49 have sex only 69 times per year, about half the amount of those in the 18 to 29 category.Scientists carrying out the research carried out two interviews – ten years apart – with 1,170 individuals in America.They found the reasons people tend to have less sex as they get older weren’t just down to physical factors – but often emotional ones.

In his Kinsey Institute blog, Dr Justin Lehmiller said: “Those who feel older and have more negative attitudes toward aging are likely to perceive the sharpest declines in the quality of their sex lives.“At the same time, the younger people feel, the more likely they are to maintain high sexual satisfaction as they get older – or at least they’ll experience a much less noticeable change.“More generally, this study provides further support for the idea that your brain really is your biggest sex organ.“No matter where you are in the lifespan — from your teenage to your twilight years — the way you feel about yourself can fundamentally shape your experience of sex.

“The basic storyline that has emerged from these studies is that, as we get older, our odds of developing chronic health conditions increases and this, in turn, negatively impacts the frequency and quality of sexual activity.”Physical issues such as heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes were all cited as causes of impotence among men as they got older.However the experts say that discussing health-related sexual difficulties in the context of a relationship or seeking medical help could make the biggest difference in improving sexual health.

 

Is the ‘family planning’ aisle in drug stores homophobic?

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Is the ‘family planning’ aisle in drug stores homophobic?

2017-08-17

A gay anthropologist in Britain has started a one man mission to get the “family planning” aisle renamed in drug stores. In a world gone mad, Jamie Lawson is standing up for those who can’t procreate and he’s taking his case to corporate headquarters.

Lawson, a gay man, stopped by a local Sainsbury supermarket last June and wanted to pick up some condoms and lube along with his groceries. But when he found the items under a “family planning” banner, he took his complaint to Twitter.

“I am a gay man; the sex I have is non-reproductive by definition,” Lawson told Mic, saying the phrasing made him “self-conscious in a way that heterosexual people [aren’t].”

Months later, Lawson has contacted and compared several chains’ choice of words for the sexual health section. Our friends over at Queerty have a good rundown of the back and forth between the activist and various outlets, but what about American drugstores?

Mic took a look at three popular American chains and found the results were similar if not worse. CVS has a “family planning” section that includes condoms, lube, toys and spermicides. Pregnancy tests were in a separate “feminine care” section with tampons. Duane Reed fared the best with “family planning” and “sexual wellness” sections sitting side by side. Rite Aid also had both “family planning” and “feminine care” sections, but they were closer together.

A brand manager explained to Mic that in the public’s mind the terms “sexual health” and “family planning” are often one and the same, but “sexual health” makes some people uncomfortable. They want to “get in and get out” quickly. They put the sections in the back of the store to make people more comfortable since it’s more private.

But does that make a drugstore shelf designated for “family planning” homophobic?

“There are quite a few of us for whom sex has nothing to do with reproduction at all,” Lawson wrote in a blog post. “I’m a man who has sex with men, for example. No man that I’ve ever had sex with has been capable of becoming pregnant (which is not to say none are), so ‘family planning’ has been pretty low on my list of priorities when I’m thinking about orgasms. LGBTQI+ people of various types and combinations tend, on the whole, to have sex for pleasure, rather than reproduction and, furthermore, when queer people do decide to reproduce, we probably don’t go shopping for condoms.

“In fact, if you really start to look at it, if you follow that idea all the way down this particular rabbit hole, then it starts to look as if the fact that LGBTQI+ people have sex for pleasure is what it is about us that society (people en masse) really objects to.”

 

Trans Health-Sexual Health for Transmen

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Trans Health-Sexual Health for Transmen

2017-08-03

Sexual health is part of being human. Like anyone else, as a transgender man you want to feel positive about your body. You want to have sex that is safe, feels good, and is rewarding.

Each transman is unique.

• You may or may not have had surgery.

• You may or may not take hormones.

• What you like to do when you have sex is unique to you

Take care of your body. It’s important to being a healthy man.

What about my chest health?

Even if you’ve had your chest redone, you may still be at risk of cancer. Talk with your provider about getting chest health screenings and mammograms. Tell your provider about any family history of breast cancer.

What about STDs?

Like anyone else who has sex, transmen are at risk of getting a sexually transmitted disease (STD). People get STDs from having oral, anal, and vaginal sex. But you can protect yourself:

• Use a condom or a dental dam every time you have sex.

• Get tested for STDs and HIV. Ask your provider how often to get tested.

• If you have an STD, get treated right away.

What if I take hormones?

Taking testosterone (T) will often cause your periods to stop in 1 to 6 months. You may get cramps during or after orgasm. If you have this pain often, talk to your provider. T can also thin the walls of the vagina. You could to use a low dose estrogen cream inside the vagina to keep it from thinning too much. This will help the vagina from bleeding if you have vaginal sex , which lowers the chances of getting an STD, especially HIV.

What about the health of the cervix?

Transmen are at risk for cancer of the cervix, uterus and ovaries if they still have these parts. The cervix is the opening part of the uterus that connects to the vagina. Cancer of the cervix is caused by certain types of a virus called HPV. It can be passed by skin to skin contact during sex. Ask your provider about getting the HPV vaccine to help protect you from HPV. Transmen with a cervix may also need a Pap test. The Pap test looks at cells from the cervix to see if there are any signs of cancer. Talk to your provider about when and how often you should get a Pap test done. Do I still need a pelvic exam? If you haven’t had surgery, yes. Your provider will check your organs with a pelvic exam. Your provider will check the uterus and ovaries for anything unusual. You may also need further tests. Tell your provider what would make you feel most comfortable during the exam.

Can I still get pregnant?

Some transmen have had surgery to remove the uterus and ovaries. These transmen cannot get pregnant. But, if you still have a uterus and ovaries, you can still get pregnant even if you take testosterone (T). If you don’t want to get pregnant, be sure to use condoms or another birth control method. There are a few birth control methods that do not have hormones. Talk to your provider about which methods are right for you. What if I want to get pregnant? If you still have a uterus and ovaries and want to get pregnant, you will need to stop taking T. High levels of T in your body during pregnancy can cause birth defects in the baby. Talk to your provider before you try to get pregnant.

The link between STIs and infertility

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The link between STIs and infertility

2017-07-25

Monday, July 24, 2017 , BY PENDA HONEYGHAN

MOST sexually transmitted infections (STIs) can be treated with medication. But sometimes when left untreated, they can have serious reproductive health consequences, among them being infertility.

“Infertility is the inability of a couple to conceive after a year and a half of trying to get pregnant, and can be a source of major distress. It is one of the most common reasons for women to visit their gynaecologists,” says Dr Keisha Buchanan, obstetrician-gynaecologist at ICON Medical Centre.

She says the condition which affects both sexes can be caused by any number of things, but an increasing number of cases have been linked to STIs. These can spread to the womb and to the Fallopian tubes in women, and in men, up along the urethra (through which urine emerges) and the epididymis (the passage where spermatozoa travel from the testicles to the penis).

“The infections cause inflammation and scarring in the pelvic organs in women, such as in the Fallopian tubes and the lining of the womb — a condition called Pelvic Inflammatory Disease. This blocks the passage of the egg so that it cannot meet and be fertilised by the sperm. In men, inflammation of the epididymis and urethra causes scarring and blocks the passage of sperm. This causes the sperm count to fall off,” Dr Buchanan explained.

She said among the list of STIs that may cause infertility are chlamydia, which is the most common, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, mycoplasma and ureaplasma. Others such as HIV, hepatitis B and C and herpes, however, carry their own set of risks but do not cause infertility.

She said that people should always investigate their sexual health, especially if they suspect that they could be carrying an infection. She acknowledges, however, that this can sometimes be hard to detect since most of these STIs are subtle and tend to be asymptomatic. This means that whichever party has the infection may not notice any problems, and so may be unaware that they need to get treatment.

“Symptoms in women may present with a watery, milky or yellow vaginal discharge, a blood-stained vaginal discharge, pain in the lower abdomen, pain during sex, fever, symptoms similar to a urinary tract infection — such as burning while urinating and passing the urine too often; while in men you may also see a watery, milky or yellow blood-stained discharge from the penis, pain in the testicles, groin pain, passing the urine too often, or burning during the passage of urine,” Dr Buchanan shared.

In cases where oral sex is practised, soreness in the throat or a discharge in the throat may be present.

Fortunately, however, Dr Buchanan said that these potentially dangerous infections may be easily treated once they are discovered early.

“These infections can be treated with antibiotics; however, the longer the infection is present and is untreated, the greater the chances of damage to the reproductive organs, and thus the likelihood of infertility problems. When some patients do get tested and discover that they have chlamydia, the infection could have already been present for several months,” she said.

Dr Buchanan advised that it is always best to use a condom, to have one sexual partner, or to abstain in an effort to protect yourself against these infections. In the event that you have unprotected sex or sex with multiple partners, Dr Buchanan recommends that you get tested for STIs. She warns against relying on the onset of symptoms alone, because this may be misleading.

“It is important to note that most people who get these infections and are treated will fully recover and will not become infertile. Along with STIs, there are other causes of infertility, such as hormonal imbalances in men and women — fibroids and womb polyps in women, and in men, factors that decrease sperm production such as an excessive exposure of the testicles to heat, cigarette and marijuana smoking.”

OPINION: Have a healthy conversation about sex in college

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OPINION: Have a healthy conversation about sex in college

According to The Journal of Sexual Medicine, college students are the consistently the most sexually active people, but talking about sexuality is still taboo. Conversations about safety, testing and other minutia about the subject are few and far between. Students need to normalize conversations about sexual safety to promote a healthier environment.

The most important reason to discuss sexual safety regularly is to help victims of sexual assault come forward and discuss their experiences. According tothe National Sexual Violence Resource Center, twenty percent of college women and six percent of college men are victims of sexual assault. Despite these high figures, ninety percent of sexual assault victims do not report the incidents.

The victims who experience sexual assault are not to blame for the low rates of reporting,  rather an environment where students feel unsafe telling others about their experience is at fault and stigmas surrounding both male and female sexuality.

According to theAmerican Public Health Association, “factors that perpetuate misperceptions about men’s sexual victimization [include] reliance on traditional gender stereotypes, outdated and inconsistent definitions and methodological sampling biases.” The solution to this is changes that move beyond regressive gender assumptions, which can harm both men and women.

An effective way to fix this problem is to discuss the less exciting facets of sexual activity. Creating an atmosphere where consent, protection, and boundaries is more common than other discussions of sexuality will encourage people to discuss their own experiences regarding sexuality.

The UGA Health Center has many resources for this such as Relationship and Sexual Violence Prevention (RSVP) which can be a first point of contact for students needing assistance with immediate assault, and the Sexual Health Department which provides invaluable information about birth control and safe sex.

Having conversations about productive conversation about sex is only possible if people are willing to discuss the safety, consent and boundaries that go along with it. This discussion will not only create an environment where those who have faced sexual assault can safely discuss it, but also create an environment where less sexual assault is perpetrated. This will help victims of all genders and create a safer campus environment for all.

Screening for Erectile Dysfunction Should Be Routine in Diabetes

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Screening for Erectile Dysfunction Should Be Routine in Diabetes

2017-07-21

Erectile dysfunction affects more than 50% of men with diabetes worldwide and more than 65% of men with type 2 disease, new data from a large meta-analysis reveal.

Clinicians should therefore screen men with diabetes for erectile dysfunction as part of a routine cardiovascular health assessment, say Youssef Kouidrat, MD, of the Maritime Hospital in Berck, France, and colleagues in a report published online July 18, 2017 in Diabetic Medicine.

“Erectile dysfunction is common in diabetes, affecting more than half of men with the condition and with a prevalence odds of approximately 3.5-times more than controls,” say the authors.

“Our findings suggest that screening and appropriate intervention for men with erectile dysfunction is warranted.”

Erectile Dysfunction Is Likely an Early Marker of Undiagnosed Diabetes

A variety of studies have shown that advancing age, duration of diabetes, poor glycemic control, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, sedentary lifestyle, smoking, and the presence of other diabetic complications are associated with diabetes-related erectile dysfunction.

In this latest meta-analysis, compared with healthy controls, the worldwide prevalence of erectile dysfunction in men with diabetes was 52.5%. The prevalence was 66.3% in type 2 diabetes, 37.5% in type 1 diabetes, and 57.7% in both types of diabetes (all P < .0001).

However, the analysis also uncovered significant differences in the reported prevalence of erectile dysfunction in diabetes, ranging from 35% to 80%, the study authors note.

Noting that different validated questionnaires such as the International Index of Erectile Function 5 (IIEF-5) and Sexual Health Inventory for Men (SHIM) are useful in the diagnosis of erectile dysfunction, second author Damiano Pizzol, MD, of Doctors With Africa Cuamm, in Beira, Mozambique told Medscape Medical News that international consensus on a single standardized diagnostic questionnaire would be ideal.

For the meta-analysis, the researchers conducted a literature search of major databases up to November 2016, producing 145 relevant studies representing 88,577 men with a mean age of 56 years.

The prevalence of erectile dysfunction was highest (82.2%) in 17 studies that used the SHIM questionnaire, although the authors note that studies with a higher percentage of people with hypertension moderated the results.

The analysis also shows that the risk of erectile dysfunction increases in men with diabetes after the age of 60. This is consistent with the Massachusetts Male Aging Study, which showed an age-adjusted risk of erectile dysfunction in men with diabetes that was twice that of men without diabetes.

And the finding that the prevalence of erectile dysfunction was higher in men with type 2 diabetes than in those with type 1 diabetes suggests that many men with type 2 diabetes may already have erectile dysfunction at diagnosis, say the researchers, pointing to studies showing that erectile dysfunction is an early marker of undiagnosed diabetes.

As previously reported by Medscape Medical News, screening for diabetes may be particularly important in middle-aged men with erectile dysfunction. That research suggested identification of undiagnosed cardiometabolic risk factors may improve early diagnosis and subsequent treatment.

Dr Kouidrat and colleagues also point to increasing evidence of a direct link between erectile dysfunction and cardiovascular disease, with the former being a red flag for early atherosclerosis, they say, noting that patients with diabetes are at increased risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.

“The relationship of erectile dysfunction with certain risk factors, such as age or cardiovascular risk factors (arterial hypertension), are well known and our study corroborates these associations,” they write.

Don’t Neglect Young Men With Type 1 Diabetes

Looking ahead, Dr Kouidrat and colleagues suggest that prospective and longitudinal studies of populations with type 1 and type 2 diabetes are needed to characterize other risk factors involved in the development of erectile dysfunction, such as duration of disease and smoking.

Erectile dysfunction also contributes to poor quality of life and, in some cases, the onset of depression. Again, early detection is essential and improved psychological well-being requires a multidisciplinary approach that includes psychosexual counselling and advice from a urologist specializing in erectile dysfunction, they say.

A prior study of young men 18 to 35 years of age with type 1 diabetes shows that more than a third experience erectile dysfunction.

Those researchers urge clinicians to be aware of this, noting that screening shouldn’t be neglected even in young patients with type 1 diabetes. They also stress that erectile dysfunction occurs at least a decade earlier in those with diabetes, and is more severe and less responsive to oral medication than in patients without diabetes.

“The real challenge is to make young males aware of health, particularly sexual and reproductive health,” noted Dr Pizzol.

The study authors have reported no relevant financial relationships.

Diabet Med. Published online July 18, 2017. Abstract

For more diabetes and endocrinology news, follow us on Twitter and on Facebook.

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/883199#vp_2

 

The benefit of intimacy you didn’t know about

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The benefit of intimacy you didn’t know about

By: Bel Marra Health 

Sex makes you feel good, relaxed, improve sleep, and strengthens the connection between you and your partner. But we bet you didn’t know that regular sex can slash your risk of heart disease.

Heart disease continues to be the number one killer of men and women, and lifestyle factors like obesity, lack of physical exercise, smoking, stress, and an unhealthy diet can all increase your risk. Therefore, it’s almost a sigh of relief that something so easy—and enjoyable—like sex can go a long way to reduce your risk.

Sex cuts your risk of heart disease

The good news is that regular sex cuts your risk of heart disease, the unfortunate news is that the benefit was only seen among men. The researchers found that regular sex reduces levels of homocysteine, which is a harmful chemical found in the blood that can contribute to heart problems.

Men who have regular sex are thought to have greater blood circulation and healthier blood vessels, which means that homocysteine doesn’t build up in the arteries.

But why do men improve their heart health during sex and women get the shaft? This is because women’s arousal is not dependent on blood flow and blood flow is a key contributing factor to levels of homocysteine.

Previous studies also explored the benefits of sex and heart health and found that sex at least twice a week for men reduced the risk of clogged arteries by half, compared to men who only had sex once a month or less.

Although there have been prior studies that have explored the association between sex and heart health among men, this is the first study to link the association with levels of homocysteine.

Previous studies on homocysteine found that as levels increased in the blood, so did the risk of heart disease—by as much as 66 percent. Other studies found that high levels of homocysteine increased the risk of stroke by one-third. Lastly, homocysteine has been linked with Alzheimer’s disease and cancer.

or the recent study, over 2,000 Taiwanese men and were tracked and blood levels of homocysteine were examined. Those blood samples were then matched up to a person’s sexual activity levels.

The lowest levels of homocysteine were seen among men who had the most sex; there was no significant difference in homocysteine levels seen among women regardless of their sexual activity.

The researchers explained, “This is the first study of its kind to evaluate the correlation between sexual frequency and homocysteine levels. A good quality sex life, frequent sex and libido are all related to health in the middle-aged and elderly. Increased sexual frequency could have a protective effect on general health and quality of life—especially in men—so doctors should support patients’ sexual activity.”

Sex should be added to the lifestyle changes you make to increase your heart health.

Living in the cloud: Social media and the Aids epidemic

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Living in the cloud: Social media and the Aids epidemic

2017-07-11

With smartphones and broadband becoming increasingly available and affordable across class and geographical divides, we now see the rural and urban poor occupying the same virtual space as the middle class and the rich. This social cloud, as I call it in the research report from which this article is derived, lowers barriers to communication, instant messaging, sharing of photos, videos and other forms of iconography but can also increase the risk of HIV infection.

Social media and reality TV aid the development of common trends and sub-cultures across class and space. As a result, what might previously have been regarded as middle class or urban trends are universalised across class and geography.

It is the largely Euro-American cultures and rituals of conspicuous consumption and narcissism that are universalised.

Through social media and reality television, young people follow the same trends and idolise the same celebrities, irrespective of where followers find themselves. Often, these trends are materialistic and staged.

The notion is that if one can virtually associate with trending personalities, you can also become talk-worthy – trending being a proxy for popularity in the social networks as measured by the number of likes, shares and followers.

In the digital realm, these subcultures of narcissism and conspicuous consumption replicate themselves a million times over because of the virtual dissolution of socio-cultural and spatial barriers.

Knowledge of and aspirations for global trends now transcend socio-historical barriers. For example, when celebrities post sexually suggestive or nude photos on social media, these quickly spread and are ‘liked’ and sometimes mimicked. The recent trending of #AmberRoseChallenge comes to mind. Young women and adolescent girls from villages in South Africa are sharing nudes this youth month inspired by American singer Amber Rose who posed naked to highlight her anti-women abuse cause. This matter in SA became of the excesses of patriarchy.

The following conclusions on the changing political economy of the Aids epidemic in the context of the spread and influence of social media and reality TV are based on the research I conducted since 2016 by scouring Facebook, Badoo, Twitter, Instagram, Tinder, WhatsApp, WeChart, YouTube, Snap Chart and Viber, and from attending blessers’ and mavuso parties in Gauteng.

  • Lowering the costs of dating:It has become cheaper to initiate and maintain multiple sexual relationships. As smartphone coverage continues to surge and data costs decline, boundaries are reduced and people can initiate sexual relations quicker and easier without much care for the status and health profiles of those they meet in the virtual space.
  • Increasing the casualisation of sex and speed dating: Sex can quickly be fixed anywhere, any time and in some instances without protection, negating any consciousness about or messaging on responsible sexual health. Studies have shown that casual sexual relations tend to spread the risk of HIV infections as protection tends to be a secondary consideration in these typically quick and random encounters.
  • Making it more convenient to maintain multiple concurrent sexual partners: With social media, people can have sexual partners anywhere, any time as instant messages reduce the distance. Again, research is clear on the risk of infections posed by multiple concurrent partnering. In fact, this accounts for the majority of causes of the spread of HIV. In the social media experiment I conducted, sexual offers were routinely made irrespective of whether I projected myself as in a committed relationship or as single. As most men say, “social media makes it convenient to juggle women”.
  • Reducing barriers to the sharing of pornography: It is a matter of public record that in South Africa, school authorities and security agencies have had to deal with complex cases of young people recording sexual activity – consensual or abusive – and sharing these on social media platforms. This is partly because pornography is normalised by its availability through social networks. Although one cannot give an accurate scientific number (I was unable to collate all the entries), in the half-dozen social media groups I actively used for the experiment, one in four posts were porn-related or suggestive of explicit unprotected sex. Sharing nudes increases vulnerability of abuse by older and richer men as well as syndicates.
  • Social media facilitates inter-generational mating: Social media is used by older men (and paedophiles) to lure vulnerable younger girls into sexual relations. The phenomenon of sugar daddies is well known in South Africa and its contribution to the Aids epidemic cannot be underestimated since most adolescent girls and young women are infected by older men.The popular meeting point for these relationships is now social media, not some village river in Nongoma or public square as was the case in decades past. Another extreme of this phenomenon is the emergence of mavuso stokvels (casual sex parties where strangers have casual sex in exchange for money) and blessers (casual sexual relationships with rich men in exchange for money, expensive gifts and holidays).At the receiving end of these viral subcultures are adolescent girls and young women who are often powerless and cannot negotiate safe sex. They risk being physically abused or bullied into unprotected sex.
  • Social media is used to promote trends like sex orgies and groupies:This is linked to the point made above re normalisation of pornography and mavuso stokvels. It is not unusual to hear and read newspaper stories about women having orgies and groupies with men who have the “resources” (money and power). For my part, I experimented a few times by organising threesomes with younger women I knew as well as with strangers met on social media.Although these never materialised, I never doubted the willingness of my liaisons to make it all right on the night. Again, in the social media groups I used to observe social trends, most young women and men expressed liberal views towards orgies, groupies and unprotected sex. Some unconsciously regarded these things as rites of passage to adulthood.

The main conclusion from my study is that social media unintentionally furthers the casualisation of sex, mating across disparate age groups, multiple concurrent sexual relationships and commodisation of women who can be “bought” by money and gifts.

In the final analysis, the agency of women notwithstanding, the reality is that this is a manifestation of patriarchy and persisting inequality in South Africa. Conspicuous consumption does not empower women. It opens them up for manipulation and abuse in an HIV hyper-endemic country.

The crass materialism that is flaunted in the social networks and reality TV shows like the local Footballers’ Wives and America’s Keeping Up with the Kardashians cultivates the notion that “beauty pays” more than hard work. Real beneficiaries of this political economy are macho mobile men with money with the propensity to objectify and abuse young women.

This is a public policy conundrum, the unintended consequences of opening wide the doors of culture and communication where Bongi from Nongoma arguable co-exists with Beyoncé from New York albeit in a precarious social media bubble which eventually bursts as Bongi is more likely to have a near encounter with HIV owing to her socio-economic status and prevalence of gender-based violence in her society. DM

Ngcaweni is editor of Sizonqoba: Outliving AIDS in Southern Africaavailable at the HSRC book store. He works in The Presidency and writes in his personal capacity.