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Recently in Health Category

**Gonorrhea Health Alert**

Posted by Project NEON on July 23, 2015 12:42 PM

Public Health Alert--Rise in Shigellosis Cases

Posted by Project NEON on April 20, 2015 2:38 PM

Posted by Project NEON on January 23, 2015 10:35 AM

Project Heavy Petting--The Latest from The Peer Educator Blog

Posted by Project NEON on September 4, 2014 5:24 PM

Project Heavy Petting
By: Robbi

Welcome! First I want to start by asking a question. When you hear HIV/STD/STI Prevention what safer sex options come to mind? ....... Condoms, Dental Dams, Insertive Condoms, Abstinence. Those are the ones that come to my mind. But what about a very, very important option that isn't talked about as much as I believe it should be: Masturbation!

All the years that I've worked in the HIV Prevention field I can't recall when masturbation was talked about as being a safer sex option. It's usually Condoms then Abstinence. But what about that void between condoms and abstinence? Masturbation, go ahead say it, Masturbation! I'll wait a few seconds for you to get all your giggles and laughs out... :-) Ok now on to what I'm calling Project Heavy Petting....

First off what exactly is masturbation? I asked a few of my friends what they thought masturbation was. And it's funny because out of the 5 friends I asked, not one of us came up with the same definition. We spent 3 whole days debating about it LOL. Imagine 5 people sitting at your local coffee shop talking about masturbation. Pretty funny thought huh. Unfortunately none of them would let me use their thoughts on the subject matter, and I respect that but let me tell you they had some pretty gnarly ideas and thoughts about masturbation. Masturbation is the self-stimulation of the genitals for sexual arousal or other sexual pleasure, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation may involve hands, fingers, everyday objects, sex toys or a combination. Oh and by the way this definition I got from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. So after a lot of researching and thinking and conversing, here is what I came up with as to how and why masturbation is ALSO a safer sex option that just doesn't get enough credit....

Non-Contact Mutual Masturbation: This is in my opinion the 100% safest sex behavior. Non-Contact Mutual Masturbation allows couples to enjoy each other and obtain sexual release as often as they need but without the inconveniences and risks associated with sex. By watching your partner masturbate you will find out the methods he or she uses to please her/him self, allowing each partner to learn exactly how each other likes to be touched (this definition also came from Wikipedia) a sexual act of masturbation in the presence of each other but NOT touching or assisting.

Contact Mutual Masturbation: A sexual act of one person touching another person to masturbate or assist and vice versa. Contact Mutual Masturbation allows you to practice what you've learned about your partner from Non-Contact Masturbation. This also allows the couple to develop a more satisfying sexual relationship and added intimacy and harmony.

So if these acts of masturbation are obviously healthy and overall very safe ways of engaging in sexual activity, why are they not talked about as much as they should be?
Terminology/Slangs: Here are a few names that masturbation is called. Ya'll get ready to laugh... Jerking Off/Jacking Off, Choking The Chicken, Spanking The Monkey, Wanking, Beating Your Meat, Pleasuring Yourself and Visiting Rosey Palm and her 5 Sisters...

Masturbation is a wonderful and beautiful thing that also has several added health benefits.
• Sex and masturbation can lower blood pressure.
• Climax from masturbation can make one feel relaxed and pleasant.
• Masturbation can relieve depression and lead to higher self-esteem.
• Masturbation leads to self-discovery.
• Masturbation can help one sleep better.
• Masturbation can provide pain relief.

Female-bodied persons:
• Masturbation changes conditions in the vagina, cervix and uterus, which can increase the likelihood of conception with sex.
• Masturbation can provide some protection from cervical infections by increasing the acidity of the cervical mucus, and helping to move debris out of the cervix.
• Masturbation may increase fertility during intercourse.

Male-bodied persons:
• Masturbation flushes out old sperm with low motility (ability to move actively) from the genital tract, the next ejaculation will contain more fresh sperm which has a higher chance of conception during intercourse.
• Ejaculation can help relieve swollen blood vessels in the nose, which can in turn help free the airway for better breathing.
• Masturbation and ejaculation both are important for sperm health and motility.

Philosophical arguments, religious views, and stigma in general are primarily the reason masturbation is not glorified as a safe sex behavior in today's generation. From the time I was a child till I was a teenager, my religious parents absolutely frowned upon masturbation. Stating that it was an abomination to god and that "god would rather you plant your seed in the belly of a whore rather than spill it upon the ground" this was the primary reason why I didn't start masturbating till well into my teenage years. But believe you me, masturbation in my opinion is the Cindy Birdsong of The Supremes, while Condoms are the Mary Wilson and Abstinence is the Diana Ross of The Supremes. Probably not a good choice of people to paint a mental picture for you but I hope you get the point. In my opinion Cindy Birdsong didn't get as much credit as she deserved, while Diana and Mary hogged the limelight. In all due respect, the Supremes are the top selling female group of all time and Condoms, Masturbation and Abstinence are the top selling tools to HIV Prevention of all time!!

DID YOU KNOW? A Bit of Useless Information...
• May is Masturbation Month
• Masturbate-a-Thon are global events that provide supportive, and encouraging environment where masturbation can be performed openly among young and old without embarrassment. Masturbate-a-Thons are often charity events that are "intended to encourage people to explore safe sex, talk about masturbation and lift the taboos that still surround the subject.
• A Study done by Readers Digest Magazine showed that 95% of men and 71% of women masturbated at some point in thier lives. 73% of men and 37% of women reported masturbating in the 4 weeks before the study, while 53% of men and 81% of women reported masturbating in the previous seven days...
• Supreme Court of Alabama upheld a state law criminalizing the distribution of sex toys.
• In the city of Charlotte, North Carolina masturbating in public is a class 3 misdemeanor.

Useful Masturbation Support Groups:
Rain City Jacks: http://www.raincityjacks.org/
Center for Sex Positive Culture: http://thecspc.org/

Great article on gum disease and oral HPV

Posted by Project NEON on March 24, 2014 4:32 PM

Gum Disease Linked to Risk of Oral Cancer Causing Virus

Posted on Bloomberg.com, by Nicole Ostrow Aug 21, 2013

Gum disease and other dental ailments boost the risk of becoming infected with oral human papillomavirus, a sexually transmitted virus that causes 40 to 80 percent of all throat cancers, according to the first study to find such a link.

Those who said they had poor oral health had a 56 percent higher rate of oral HPV infection than those who reported good to excellent oral health, researchers wrote in a study published today by Cancer Prevention Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

Read on...Gum Disease and HPV

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-08-21/gum-disease-linked-to-risk-of-oral-cancer-causing-virus.html

Some Food for Thought

Posted by Project NEON on October 4, 2013 12:23 PM

Check out this article from David Fawcett, Ph.D., L.C.S.W., for TheBody.com: 6 Factors to Consider Before Starting HIV Treatment. It's full of great info and presents many important issues to consider when thinking about treatment.

 

6 Factors to Consider Before Starting HIV Treatment

 

Source: TheBody.com

Safe or Not?

Posted by Project NEON on September 17, 2013 4:09 PM

A topic of hot debate. What does 'undetectable' mean to you, and how does it impact your views on sexual safety and HIV-related stigma?

 

 

"Undetectable": Safe or Not?

By Dave R.
From TheBody.com
August 28, 2013

Positive people, on effective treatment, with an undetectable viral load and healthy immune system, still don't know if they can or can't pass on the virus to their partners. New UK developments suggest that official conclusions may already have been reached.

Recently, the idea that people on HIV medication who are also undetectable (where your viral load is measured at less than 40-50 copies of HIV in every milliliter of blood) might also be non-infectious to others with similar tested levels and a healthy immune system, has naturally got everybody in that situation very excited. There is however, still no definitive proof and although we're assured that proof either way is being worked on, it's going to be some time before that news emerges from behind the locked doors of the research labs.

In the meantime, people with an undetectable status see proven non-infectiousness as a possible, instant solution to many sorts of stigma. If, after indisputable proof, it is widely reported that people on successful treatment are not in danger of passing on the virus, then there is no reason for every sexually active person on the planet not to get tested and if necessary treated because treatment will make you a safe person to have sex with. This is discounting other STDs of course but then you're just as much at risk as any sexual partner of contracting those. If successfully proved, people living with HIV will be seen as living with a chronic illness that is no danger to their partners, pretty much like diabetes patients, cancer patients and others. The world will change overnight, not only for positive people but for LGBT society as a whole. They won't be able to point accusing fingers at us anymore, claiming we're "unclean," "disease spreaders" and a "danger to society."

Read the full article here: Safe or Not? 

Source: TheBody.com  

HIV-Positive and As Sexy As I Want to Be

Posted by Project NEON on September 16, 2013 3:43 PM

HIV-Positive and As Sexy As I Want to Be

By Tyler Curry, HuffPost Gay Voices

Now, before we begin, you can go ahead and unravel that tight wad your panties have wound themselves into. This blog post is not intended to promote the transmission of HIV, and in no way is it meant to glamorize HIV/AIDS. Is it even possible to glamorize such an abysmal disease? I think not. But I have noticed that when an HIV-positive man takes a public stance without the "woe is me" pretense, that is the general dissent. Glamorizing HIV would be like trying to Photoshop a picture of the Holocaust: No matter how you manipulate it, the ugliness remains. However, I am not HIV itself, and it's time that people who are HIV-positive stop wearing the face of the virus as if it were their own.

Sometimes life can deal you a hand that can make you feel like you will never win. Being diagnosed with HIV is just one example. But unlike some other unfavorable traits that we carry in our deck, being HIV-positive can seem like the only card you have to play.

When I was diagnosed with HIV, all the characteristics that assemble the person I am, both good and bad, suddenly seemed to fall to the floor. For months it felt as if I was clutching this new card with an ugly plus sign close to my chest. The game of life continued, yet I found myself willingly sitting on the sidelines and foregoing any chance at making a play for happiness. Read full article here: As Sexy as I Want to Be

Source:  HuffPost Gay Voices http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gay-voices/ 

A conversation we can have more often

Posted by Project NEON on September 5, 2013 12:11 PM

How Do We Make Sure Gay Men Get Vaccinated for HPV?

, September 4, 2013

For young gay men in the U.S., overall prevalence of HPV (human papillomavirus) infection was 70%, while the prevalence of HPV 16 and/or HPV 18 -- the two HPV strains most commonly associated with anal cancer -- was 37%, according to a new study published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. While HPV vaccination is commonly discussed for women, especially as prevention for cervical cancer, the truth about gay men, HPV and anal cancer is becoming clearer with more research.

The study followed 94 gay men in Seattle, between the ages of 16 and 30 years old, for one year. To check for HPV infection, the study participants were given three anal swabs: one at baseline, six months and 12 months. For men who had no infection at baseline, the incidence rate of any new HPV infection was 38.5 per 1000 person-month. Additionally, HPV prevalence increased for men who reported higher numbers of sexual partners.

Read the full article here: HPV Vaccinations in Men

 

SOURCE: THEBODY.COM

Looking for info?

Posted by Project NEON on September 4, 2013 2:11 PM

Have you seen Public Health Seattle/King County's library of

Harm Reduction Brochures? Check it out!

 
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