Oral sex is a form of sexual activity, which involves the arousal of one's genitalia by his/her partner using the mouth (tongue, lips and throat). It is also called Cunnilingus (performed on a female) and fellatio (performed on a male). It is done before intercourse and during foreplay for sexual arousal. It is safe as compared to vaginal or anal sex, the rate of getting a sexually transmitted disease or HIV is comparatively lower. 

Oral sex can spice up your life and can also make your partner reach orgasm. It is also a safe way of getting sexual pleasure without getting pregnant. But necessary precautions must be taken in order to have safe oral sex.

Some of these necessary precautions are:

1. You can get throat cancer from oral sex: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a cancerous virus found in the body of infected people. This virus can be transmitted to the person with whom you are engaging in oral sex. Studies show that people who engage with more than 6 sexual partners at once are more prone to get oral cancer. It is advisable to get your partner tested for HPV virus before engaging in oral sex.

2. Oral sex also causes stress: Oral sex is generally related to hygiene, therefore the partner can be self conscious and worried about his/her genital hygiene. If oral sex is performed on a daily basis, some people prefer to wax their pubic hair often. This is harmful because it can cause red bumps and burning sensation occurs. It is advisable to trim your pubic hair and wash it properly before engaging in oral sex.

3. A condom should be worn by the male during oral sex so that there is no risk of male fluid entering the woman's body.

4. A latex, which is made into a thin sheet called dental dam can be used on the vagina or anus. This creates a thin barrier between the mouth and the genitalia. Hence, chances of getting infected by sexually transmitted diseases are greatly reduced.

Oral sex can be pleasurable and fun, but the risks of getting sexually transmitted diseases like herpes, gonorrhea and crabs is not altogether misplaced. So it is advisable to use proper protection and to maintain hygiene before engaging in oral sex.

4 Ways to Have Safe Oral Sex - Necessary Precautions

Don't Panic !

Having unprotected sex isn't the smartest move a person can make, but it isn't necessarily the end of the world, so follow the advice below and you should be fine.

We Had Unprotected Sex And...I Think I'm Pregnant

Finding out you're pregnant can be the happiest or the scariest day of your life.

Don't wait around and bury your head in the sand saying 'it won't happen to me' and 'I'll be fine' you might not be, and then you'll find yourself in a much more difficult situation than if you'd faced the situation head on and quickly.

If the intercourse happened less than 72 hours ago, emergency contraception, the morning-after pill, can be taken as a precaution against you becoming pregnant. However, note that the sooner you take the emergency contraceptive pill, the higher its efficiency is.

We Had Unprotected Sex And...I Think I Have an STI

Check for any unusual symptoms around your genitals (vagina or penis), such as:

Pain when you urinate
Itching
An unusual or smelly discharge
Sores
Unexplained bleeding
If any consult your healthcare provider immediately

Not all STIs have visible symptoms so even if you think you're fine, after having unprotected sex, get tested!

Go For Sexually Transmitted Disease Profile Including HIV ( 1ST Month HIV RNA, 3RD MONTH HIV ELISA), HSV 1 and 2, HbsAg, HCV, Urine Routine, VDRL, etc.

We Had Unprotected Sex And...I Think I May Get HIV

Take Post Exposure Prophylactic Drugs (Anti - HIV) as soon as possible. It works when started within 72 hours and must be continued for 1 month to prevent HIV.



What If You Have Unprotected Sex?

An STD is transmitted by means of physical contact and intercourse. These diseases are caused by parasites, virus or bacteria. Usually, STDs are preventable provided you make the right choices concerning your sexual health. Refraining from sex isn t a feasible idea at all. 

But fortunately there are alternatives too to curb the menace that STDs are:

Abstain: The most effective way to avoid STIs is to abstain from sex.
Mutual monogamy: Two people who have sex only with one another don t have any opportunity to bring a new STD into the relationship. If you and your partner have been tested and are healthy, remaining faithful to each other is a very good way to reduce your chances of contracting an STD.
Get Vaccinated: One important prevention tool against STIs is vaccination. Currently, vaccines are available to protect against infection with HPV, hepatitis A and hepatitis B. Talk to your healthcare provider to see which vaccines might be recommended for you.
Protect Yourself: Condoms work really well in stopping most STIs from being passed from an infected partner to another when they are used consistently and correctly every time a person has oral, vaginal or anal sex. Consistently and correctly means that a person makes sure they use a condom every time they have oral, vaginal or anal sex and put it on and use it the right way.
Avoid alcohol and drug use: Avoiding alcohol and recreational drug use reduce the risk of contracting an STI, having an unwanted pregnancy, or being coerced to have sex. Alcohol and drug use can reduce our ability to make good decisions. It may also make us more likely to be talked into participating in an activity without being able to give our full consent.
Coping and Support
It's traumatic to find out you have an STI. You might be angry if you feel you've been betrayed or ashamed if there's a chance you infected others. At worst, an STI can cause chronic illness and death, even with the best care in the world.

Between those extremes is a host of other potential losses   trust between partners, plans to have children, and the joyful embrace of your sexuality and its expression. If in doubt, don't hesitate to visit a skin specialist or a physician.

STDs - 5 Ways You Can Avoid Them

What is Monogamous Relationship?

You (who have been tested for STD/STIs and don't have any) are having sex with only one partner (who also has been tested for STD/STIs and doesn't have any) who only has sex with you. And you both keep it that way! 

Stated another way, you are both STD/STI free and only have sex with each other. People of any sexual orientation can engage in monogamous relationships. The only thing implied by the term monogamy is that the relationship consists of two people who are romantically and/or sexually exclusive. Theoretically, outside of abstinence, this is really the safest type of "safer sex" that you can have. 

Celebrated on 1st December of each year, World AIDS Day, aims to spread awareness about HIV / AIDs. It is an STD wherein, HIV stands for human immunodeficiency infection and AIDS stands for acquired immune deficiency syndrome. The disease hinders the immune system in keeping up our body s security against sickness. HIV causes individuals to end up wiped out with infections that regularly would not affect them and HIV leads to AIDS.

Understanding the Symptoms:

HIV has few or no signs or symptoms for up to ten years or more before side effects of AIDS tends to manifest. There is no cure for HIV/AIDS, yet treatment is accessible. A few people have HIV symptoms not long after being infected. These include:

There are a few phases of HIV illness. The primary HIV side effects may include swollen glands in the throat, armpit, or crotch.
Other early HIV symptoms incorporate slight fever, headaches, exhaustion, and muscle throbs.
These symptoms may keep on going for just a couple of weeks. At that point, there are typically no HIV indications for a long time. That is the reason it can be difficult to know whether or not a person is suffering from HIV.
The symptoms of AIDS show up in the most advanced phase of the HIV disease. These are as follows:

Along with a severely damaged immune system, a person with AIDS may likewise have thrush. A thrush is a thick, whitish covering on the tongue that is brought about by a yeast infection and now and then joined by a sore throat.
Serious or repetitive vaginal yeast infection.
Pelvic inflammatory illness.
Serious and frequent infections.
Unexplained fatigue that might be followed by headaches, dizziness.
Loss of more than ten pounds of weight that is not because of physical exercise or consuming fewer calories.
Risk Factors: There are a lot of ways in which you can get the infection. HIV is transmitted through blood, semen, vaginal fluids and breast milk. The most well-known ways in which HIV is spread, are:

Having sexual intercourse without a condom with somebody who has HIV/AIDS.
Using needles or syringes that have been used by someone who has HIV/AIDS.
Being punctured with a needle or surgical instrument that has been contaminated with HIV.
Getting HIV blood, semen or vaginal discharge into open injuries or wounds.
Babies born to women with HIV/AIDS can get HIV from their mothers during birth or from breastfeeding.
There are numerous ways in which you can protect yourself from HIV. These are as follows:

The most secure way is to limit the number of sexual partners you take on.
Try to have safer sex and always use protection.
Get your partners tested for HIV.
HIV tests are a typical piece of social insurance.
In case that you think you may have been infected by HIV, talk to a specialist or a doctor about testing. Discussing what risks you might have taken can help you choose whether testing is ideal for you.

This World AIDS Day - Let's Spread the Awareness About HIV/AIDS

Most of us are affected by diseases, which spread through physical contact, but most of us do not consider it important to get them checked, due to which they turn into major ailments. Sexually transmitted diseases (stds) are infections, which are transmitted through any kind of sexual contact. The organism that causes the disease is transmitted from one person to the other during sex intercourse. Sometimes stds can be asymptomatic (no symptoms or signs)

Here are some stds that you should be informed about:

1. Gonorrhoea: genital infection caused by bacteria is called gonorrhoea, its symptoms include 

 Bloody vaginal discharge
 Painful urination
 Heavy period bleeding
 Anal itching

2. Chlamydia: bacterial infection in the genital tract is called chlamydia. Chlamydia is usually difficult to diagnose, its symptoms include

 Pain during urination
 Pain in lower abdomen
 Vaginal discharge
 Painful intercourse
 Bleeding between menstrual cycles

3. Syphilis: the bacterium treponema pallidum causes syphilis, its symptoms include

 Rashes
 Sores in the mouth, anus or vagina
 In later stages, it causes nerve and organ damage

4. Genital herpes: the herpes simplex virus (hsv) causes herpes. Signs and symptoms include-

 Small red bumps or ulcers in the anal, genital and other areas
 Itching or pain around the genital area, thighs and buttocks

5. Human papillomavirus (hpv) and genital warts: genital warts are caused by hpv. It infects the genital tract. Hpv has been linked to cervical cancer, its symptoms include

 Small swellings in the genital area
 Itching
 Bleeding during sex

6. Chancroid: chancroid is a bacterial infection. The bacterium haemophilus ducreyi causes chancroid, its symptoms include

 Development of red bumps on the skin folds covering the genitals
 Pain during urination
 Burning sensation during bowel movement

7. Ectoparasitic infections: ectoparasitic infections are caused by small parasitic bugs like mites or lice. The parasites usually affect the hair or skin. Scabies and crabs are common parasites that cause such infections. They both cause intense itching and visible rashes.

8. Human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (aids): the virus that causes aids is called hiv. It can spread through blood, vaginal fluids, semen and breast milk. Unprotected sex or sharing needles with an infected person is how the disease spreads. It includes symptoms, such as

 Slight fever
 Fatigue
 Muscle aches
 Weight loss.

Most Common STDs in Women

HIV/AIDS is a type of sexually transmitted disease which is caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The HIV virus attacks the immune system and makes the body vulnerable to other diseases. AIDS is the last stage of the HIV infection; HIV takes about 10 to 12 years to fully culminate into AIDS. AIDS completely destroys the immune system and leads to fatal health conditions and diseases such as cancers and other infections because of AIDS.

Causes-

HIV is a retrovirus that infects the vital organs of the human immune system. The virus progresses in the absence of antiretroviral therapy. The rate of virus progression varies widely between individuals and depends on many factors (age of the patient, body s ability to defend against HIV, access to healthcare, existence of coexisting infections, the infected person s genetic inheritance, resistance to certain strains of HIV).

HIV can be transmitted through:

Sexual Transmission. It can happen when there is contact with infected sexual secretions. This can happen while having unprotected sex, including vaginal, oral and anal sex or sharing sex toys with someone infected with HIV.
Perinatal Transmission. The mother can pass the infection on to her child during childbirth, pregnancy, and also through breastfeeding.
Blood Transmission. The risk of transmitting HIV through blood transfusion is nowadays extremely low in developed countries, thanks to meticulous screening and precautions. Among drug users, sharing and reusing syringes contaminated with HIV-infected blood is extremely hazardous.
Contrary to popular belief, HIV can never spread by means of kissing as the virus cannot survive outside the body.

Symptoms-

The early symptoms of HIV appear within a few weeks of contamination by the virus. The early symptoms include headache, pain in the muscles and the joints, rashes and inflated lymph nodes. These symptoms tend to disappear within 2 to 3 weeks.
The next set of symptoms might appear after a few years and these are persistent. The symptoms include, but are not limited to fatigue, loss of body weight, inflated lymph nodes, fever, a sensation of numbness near the limbs, pain when you try to swallow, sores in the mouth and sweating at night.
If you are diagnosed with HIV, you should:

Try to maintain a daily diet containing vegetables, legumes, and fruits which provide you energy.
Try to include a little bit of fat, carbohydrates (at least 3 servings of vegetable per day), calcium (dairy products) and low-fat protein sources (generally 80-150 gram per day of fish, skinned chicken, low-fat cheese etc.) in your everyday meal.
Maintain a daily calorie intake of 17-25 calories per pound depending on whether the person is losing weight.
Vitamins and minerals are particularly necessary to repair the cells damaged by the HIV virus.
So, it is necessary to intake foods such as eggs, milk, peanuts, green vegetables, meat, beans and broccolis on a regular basis, if you have been diagnosed with HIV.

If you are suffering from HIV, you must maintain the following food safety measures:

You should try to restrict the intake of fat
Restrict your alcohol intake
You should try to avoid fast foods
You should also limit your regular sugar intake and should avoid foods with extra sugar

HIV/AIDS - Diet, Nutrition & Food Safety You Must Follow!

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