In Sex Ed, we had to take “Name that STD” tests. In college, our RA’s handed out “Safe Sex” kits filled with condoms and pamphlets on HPV, the most common sexually transmitted infection. About 20 million Americans are currently infected with HPV, with about 6.2 new infections popping up each year. Over 50% of sexually active men and women acquire a genital HPV infection during their lives, and on college campus, the numbers are even higher. If those numbers aren’t enough to encourage you to get the new HPV vaccine, check out the story of Dede, an Indonesian fisherman who just got diagnosed with some pretty serious HPV.

1% of sexually active people break out in genital warts. You might think that number seems low, but are you really willing to play Russian roulette with your vagine? Getting back to Dede, the 35-year-old man has been labeled the “Tree Man,” due to some mysterious lesions on his skin, and root-like growths stemming from his hands and feet. For years, his condition went undiagnosed, until an American doctor discovered that Dede has an HPV infection. Unfortunately for the fisherman, he also has an uncommon immune system defect, so while most people can hide their downstairs bumps, Dede grew severe warts all over his body, causing him to lose his job, his wife, and his self esteem. Read More »

If a recent poll on this site is indicative of college-aged women across the US (and I would suggest, modestly, that the women who visit CollegeCandy are above average intelligence) then most of us drink at parties to get drunk, to get wasted.

I understand that it’s become a college rite-of-passage to go to parties and drink too much. Repeatedly. For years. Hell, I have a year of my life that I barely remember and what I do remember, I wish I didn’t.

And doesn’t that just say it all? I know that I had a great time that year and met some great people, but I did a lot of stuff I wish I hadn’t. And I met a lot of awful people. And I had a lot of rough mornings.

But there is no use in trying to tell a college student not to drink, that in the long run, you’ll probably feel more embarrassed than nostalgic about those months or years spent in a haze. And I don’t necessarily think that people shouldn’t drink (I love beer), I just wonder about the mentality that seems to have permeated our society that in order to truly have the optimal amount of fun that one has to be completely wasted.

Especially because the opposite is true; I’ve found that the more wasted one becomes, the more obnoxious, the more forgetful, and the less cautious. Read More »

Many women see their backdoor as a one-way street, so to speak. To them, anal sex is more laughable than sexy and it’s understandable that they should feel that way–after all, what has popular culture told us about anal sex? That it’s funny, disgusting, painful, or the dangerous means of a deviant lifestyle.

I will concede that anal sex is funny at times, but only so much as sex as a whole is funny (which it really should be). Also, we as a society seem to need to make light of the things that make us uncomfortable, and anal sex is still very taboo culturally because of widespread misinformation and closed minds.

For instance, many people still associate anal sex with homosexuality and the AIDS epidemic, and let their ignorance about the lifestyle inform their ideas about the nature of the act. Granted, some studies have shown that sexually transmitted diseases are more easily spread through anal sex, but they are even more easily preventable if the sex is practiced safely.

For all its perceived perversion, anal sex seems to be growing in popularity. In a 2005 study by the Center for Disease Control, they found that 34% of men and 32% of women between the ages of 22-24 have anal sex with the opposite sex, up from 20% in 1990. The Guide to Getting it On also reports that 30-40% of all heterosexual couples in this country have tried anal intercourse, with up to half of these continuing to do it on an occasional basis. Read More »

We all know the dangers of having sex too early, but could there be a risk to having sex too late?

A new study conducted by Columbia University and the New York State Psychiatric Institute’s HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies claims “Those who lose their virginity at a later age — around 21 to 23 years of age — tend to be more likely to experience sexual dysfunction problems late.”

Even though this new study makes it seem like losing your virginity too late will cause your body to freak out, in actuality, what the numbers really show is that waiting to have sex is sometimes an indicator of preexisting bodily issues.

And to that conclusion, I say, well, of course. Read More »

Looks like kids are still being weird about sex.

Researchers in Berkeley, California recently surveyed more than 900 middle school and high school students for a study in the Journal of Adolescent Health.

When presumably asked what constitutes keeping one’s virginity, “70 percent of kids 12 to 16 believe they’re virgins even if they’ve had oral sex – and 16 percent believe anal sex doesn’t count either.”

Look, once you start engaging in sexual activity, your virgin status goes hazy. Sure, you might not have done it, but if you’ve done everything under the sun except it, your technical virginity basically becomes a moot point. If you’re sexually experienced, you’re sexually experienced.

The “I’m still a virgin!” declaration after engaging in other sexual activities seems to be rooted in our society’s desperate fear of being labeled. Teenagers (especially girls) ultimately want to be “good”, but their hormones are pulling them in a completely different direction.

Doing everything except the big “penis into the vagina” thing allows someone to explore their sexuality while still remaining pure in the eyes of society.

Sex is a big thing. I don’t want to deny that. But the more pressure we put on teenagers about it, the more they’re going to do anything to make up excuses. Read More »

Frequent condom user? Getting a little tired of walking into a drugstore for “gum” and just “happening” to decide to buy another pack? Do those people behind the counter know your face so well that they reach for the “extra lubricated” type before you do?

If so—let me first congratulate you on getting way more action than most of us—and second, how about I let you in on a new, limited time offer for free sexy stuff!?

Durex is looking for new “condom testers” and wants to reward your safe-sex habits with free toys!

After logging on to their new website, all you have to do is fill out a one page form, click to send it in, and then wait to see if you’re one of the “1000 lucky men and lady folk” who will become “official Durex condom testers” and “get a bunch of free Durex products.”

Plus, you can even win $1000 just for answering a few questions.

Check out the Crazy Condom gallery after the jump! Read More »

In case you needed another reason to use a condom, recent polls show that people across the nation are still completely skeeved out by the idea of herpes.

In a report released by CBS news and WebMD, “503 U.S. adults with genital herpes and about 1,400 other adults who said they didn’t have genital herpes” were asked questions regarding the icky yet easily transmittable disease.

In addition to ranking herpes second to HIV as a social stigma, most of the non-infected participants said they’d steer clear of sleeping with someone who had the disease. Read More »

This one’s for the guys.

Everyone knows condoms aren’t the easiest things to convince people to use. Whether they’re British and embarrassed, or just dumb and stupid, a lot of guys claim strapping on the latex glove makes everything less…intense.

In case you’ve got one these bitchy complainers on your hands (and really, why anyone would stick with an ass who whines about keeping himself from accidentally becoming a father?), British condom maker Futura Medical Plc may have finally made the condom that shuts him up for good.

According to a study the company released on Thursday, their new condoms help men “have firmer and bigger erections, as well as a longer-lasting sexual experience.” Read More »

Though we’ve been led to believe otherwise by movies and dramatic episodes of Dawson’s Creek, let’s face it—sex can be awkward.

Instead of perfect lighting that makes you look hotter than Heidi Klum, you have your date’s lava lamp casting a faint glow on your cellulite. You don’t always fall effortlessly into bed, your bodies completely in sync. Sometimes you have to move your cat, half-eaten can of Pringles, and dog-eared copy of “He’s Just Not That Into You” out of the way first.

Passionate tearing off of clothing? Sure, sometimes.

But then there are those times where he’s fumbling with your bra clasp for so long that you don’t even help him because you’re curious to see how long it’ll take. Read More »

Summertime’s for lovin’, which ostensibly means that summertime’s for STDs. And this summer, a whopper of an STD is back with a vengeance: syphilis.

The only thing they ever told us about syphilis in health class is that Al Capone died from it. So, I figured if I stayed away from the mafia I’d be okay. But as the New York Post reports, there have been 260 cases in New York City alone this year.

Syphilis is no longer a thing of the past, a disease that claimed the young lives of powerful visionaries like King Edward VI and Ivan the Terrible. Nope, Syphilis has finally caught up with the times. It’s a vintage STD, back for more. But not vintage in a good way. Vintage like… leg warmers. Read More »