Sexual Health | Talking FACS

Host: Dr. Jennifer Hunter, Assistant Director for Family and Consumer Sciences Extension, University of Kentucky

Guest: Natalie Jones, Extension Specialist for Family Health

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0:20 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: Hello and welcome back to Talking FACS. This is your host, Dr. Jennifer Hunter, Assistant Director for Family and Consumer Sciences at the University of Kentucky.

Today, Natalie Jones is joining us to talk about sexual health. And I will say that when Natalie sat down today, she said, “My topic is a little edgy, but I think that it's really important to share” and I definitely agree with her. So, thank you for joining us today Natalie.

0:42 Natalie Jones: Thanks for having me.

0:43 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: Let's start at the very basics when we're thinking about sexual health and talk about what is an STD or a Sexually Transmitted Disease.

0:53 Natalie Jones: Yes. So, sexually transmitted disease is any of various diseases or infections that can be transmitted by direct sexual contact. So, that includes chlamydia or genital herpes.

Sexually transmitted diseases are also called Sexually Transmitted Infections. So, infections are passed from person to person through sexual contact. So, the main one that people know about is HIV is an STD.

1:20 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: So, someone just reading information in the news or looking at literature, so they might see STD or STI written; is that correct?

1:27 Natalie Jones: Correct.

1:28 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: Great, okay. So, why are we even talking about STD’s today?

1:33 Natalie Jones: So, the main reason why we're talking about sexually transmitted disease is that the Center for Disease Control just came out with new data showing the rates in the US are at a record high for the fourth year in a row regarding STD. So, right now, nearly 2.3 million cases of STD’s were diagnosed in 2017.

So, what we're worried about is that this is a steep increase of NCD and a lot of communities are not even aware that their community has a high prevalence. So, we've got to expand our reach to talk about it and ensure that people are getting appropriate screening and prevention messages as well.

2:09 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: So, why is it so important for someone to be tested?

2:13 Natalie Jones: Yes, it is key to be tested. So, a lot of STD or STI’s may not even be something that is visible; some are and some aren't. So, it's always good to be tested. And if left untreated, sexually transmitted infections can cause serious health problems including cervical cancer or liver disease, pregnancy or infertility.

So, having some type of STI can increase your risk of getting HIV as well. And so, people living with an STI can spread that more with other people. And so, really protecting yourself as well as protecting others is huge.

2:49 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: And so, a person could have an STD or an STI and have no symptoms; be completely unaware? Is that correct?

2:56 Natalie Jones: For some, yes. They may not be aware right away, and so, it could take a few months or weeks to be visible.

3:04 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: So, how can someone protect themselves or others from an STD.

3:09 Natalie Jones: Yes. So, you can greatly reduce your risk of getting an STD by practicing safe sex.

So, here are some tips on protecting yourself;

Use a latex condom if you're having vaginal or anal sex. The female condom also is a good way to prevent sexually transmitted infections.
Use condoms without lubricant, if you are going to be performing oral sex. Then always use water-based lubricants instead of oil-based products because they will destroy latex. So, that's a key factor for people as well that will ruin that barrier of protecting you.
If you are using a sex toy, make sure to wash it and put on a fresh condom, if you're using one, before you use it again.
And then a key thing that I think a lot of people forget is that some methods of birth control do not protect you against an STD.

So, a birth control pill, an IUD, shots, implants help protect you from getting pregnant, but not from a sexually transmitted infection. So, if you're using one of those birth control methods, you also want to take care of yourself and use a barrier method as well, like a condom.

And then of course, I feel like a lot of people know about this, but talk to your doctor honestly and your health care provider about how many sex partners you have.

And when they ask you about different experiences, make sure that you're honest with them , so they can give you those pelvic exams, as well as being honest with your partner. And so, make sure that you talk to them. If they have any sexually transmitted diseases or if you do as well.

4:43 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: Definitely good information for anyone that is sexually active to be thinking about. When should someone go to see a doctor?

4:50 Natalie Jones: So, you should see your health care provider right away if you have had sexual contact with someone who may have had a sexually transmitted infection. If you have symptoms like genital sores different discharge or a burning when you urinate, or if you are pregnant and you've had sex with someone with a sexually transmitted disease.

However, it is really important to be tested regularly, especially if you are sexually active.

5:16 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: So, as you said at the beginning, it's a little bit of an edgy topic or maybe a taboo topic or a topic that there's not a lot of conversations had about, but again such an important topic that there's so much education that can be done about. So, give us the bottom line when thinking about sexual health.

5:34 Natalie Jones: Yes. So, the bottom line is really to protect yourself and to protect others. It's important for people to understand that most sexually transmitted infections are transmitted by people who do not know that they are infected.

So, we need to switch that in people's minds to think more about prevention rather than, “Oh, my gosh. I have an STD. I need to take care of this and go to the doctor”.

So, therefore, people need to get tested regularly for sexually transmitted diseases especially if;

They are sexually active.
You have sex with more than one partner or
Your partner has had sex with people other than you.

So, those are when you should go get tested. If needed, you can get your treatment that your health care provider recommends.

And one thing for public health, if you get a prescription from your provider, even if the symptoms go away, you need to make sure that you finish that treatment, so that that way, you ensure that you're safe as well as your partner, so that that infection doesn't get passed back and forth.

6:32 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: In general, when we're talking about getting tested, are there certain places that you can direct an individual to go to get tested?

6:39 Natalie Jones: Yes. So, most places give free, fast and confidential testing. So, you can go to… I'm going to give a website here for people listening. It's gettested.cdc.gov. And that's going to give you that important, lifesaving information to contact a testing center near you.

And the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) recommends that everyone get tested between the ages of 13 and 64. So, as young as kids of 13. So, maybe something taboo to talk about with your kids if they're sexually active, but really important to protect their health and others.

One thing that I do want to note about getting tested is that a lot of people think that it is a scary process and it really is not. It can be as easy as a little cotton mouth swab that the doctor will then test and see if further tests are needed. That could just include a finger prick or some blood being drawn.

So, it's not as scary as people think it is, it doesn't take a lot of time and again, in majority of places, it's free, it's fast and it's confidential.

7:43 Dr. Jennifer Hunter: Great. Again Natalie, thank you for bringing awareness to us today and talking with us openly about what individuals should be thinking about considering and learning more information about.

7:53 Natalie Jones: Thank you.

7:56 Thank you for listening to Talking FACS. We deliver programs focusing on nutrition, health, resource management, family development and civic engagement. If you enjoy today's podcast, have a question or a show topic idea, leave a ‘Like’ and comment on Facebook @UKFCSExt. Visit us online at fcs.uky.edu or contact your local extension agent for Family and Consumer Sciences. We build strong families. It starts with us.