If you're one of those who enjoy 'going down', then it might interest you to know that a new research has shown that there is a correlation between oral sex and throat cancer.
I don't need to give you a graphic description of what oral sex entails (minors could be reading this), but a survey published by the American Centre for Disease found that 90.8 percent of men aged between 25 and 44 had had oral sex with a woman, and 88.8 percent of females in the same age group had tried oral sex with a man.
Studies have also shown that oral sex was effective at helping a woman reach a climax, prevent pregnancy as well as to help men who have minor difficulty in getting an erection, however, a lot of people quitely worry about whether oral love play could expose them to infections, particularly HIV (Human Immuno-deficiency Virus). And in 2010, serious worries began to emerge about whether people could contract Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) in the throat area and that this could lead to cancer.
Research shows that oral sex can transmit germs, and it has a direct impact on the transmission of infections. A cut in the mouth, bleeding gums, lip sores or broken skin, all increase the chances of an infection.
Dr Olujimi Odutola, Medical Director, Ibadan Central Hospital, Ibadan, Oyo State, said oral sex has been found to have its own problems because it can easily transmit infections. He said people who engage in oral sex are at a higher risk of having oral cancer.
Although many youths consider oral sex to be safer than vaginal sex, he described this as a perilous fallacy, adding that even though pregnancy was not an outcome of oral sex, sexually transmitted infections are.
Teens and adults who engage in oral sex need to know that oral sex is associated with several STIs, including HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus). Studies show that oral sex is an efficient mode of transmission for syphilis, gonorrhoea and herpes, HIV, chlamydia and HPV (human papilloma virus).
Research shows that approximately 20 million Americans currently have HPV, with six million new infections discovered each year through Pap or cervical swab tests, according to Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. What's more, the virus, which can have zero symptoms or bloom into a series of visible warts, will affect up to 80 per cent of sexually active women at some point in their lives.
As any doctor at a genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinic can tell, it is possible to acquire several forms of sexually transmitted diseases (STD) through oral sex, if the other person is infected. Gonorrhoea, a common STD, can be transmitted to the throat during oral sex. Because of this fact, GUM clinics often take 'throat swabs' these days. In the throat, the germ can cause inflammation, formation of pus and sometimes soreness.
According to Dr Odutola, oral sex can lead to candida infection, staphylococcus and other infections. He said it also increases the chance of contracting HIV because when an HIV-positive man ejaculates into the mouth of a woman, he can easily pass the virus to her by that singular act.
In the early years of the 21st century, a small number of doctors began to warn that oral sex might perhaps pass on HPV and this could lead to cancer of the throat and mouth area.
A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine suggested that people who had more than five “oral partners” had a nine-fold increase in risk of cancer of the tonsils or tongue.
According to the American Association for Cancer Research, more than 50 per cent of all oral cancers are now HPV-related. And there's no question that oral sex has become more common in recent decades.
So far, no one has actually proved that oral sex could give mouth or throat cancer. However, in the light of current evidence, it is clear that both men and women should now be trying to follow a policy of 'risk reduction' where oral sex is concerned.
Source: Tribune Newspapers
No comments:
Post a Comment