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Major Organizations
Call for Removal of Politics in Creating Sexual
Health Policy
(onlinedatingmagazine.com -
April 2, 2004) Three leading national public health
organizations – the National Coalition of STD
Directors (NCSD), the American Social Health Association
(ASHA), and the National Family Planning & Reproductive
Health Association (NFPRHA) – renewed their call
for sexual health policy to be driven by science instead
of politics.
NCSD, ASHA, and NFPRHA issued the call for science-based
sexual health policy in response to hearings last month
on human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical cancer by
the House Government Reform Subcommittee on Criminal
Justice, Drug Policy, and Human Resources. HPV is a
highly prevalent sexually transmitted infection that
in most instances is asymptomatic and transient. In
some cases certain strains of HPV can lead to cervical
cancer. Available scientific evidence suggests that
the effectiveness of condoms in preventing HPV is unknown.
However, condom use has been associated with lower
rates of HPV-associated diseases, including cervical
cancer.
“There are some who argue that because condoms
are not 100% effective in preventing all sexually transmitted
diseases, public health professionals should not encourage
their use,” said Theresa Raphael, Executive Director
of NCSD. “This is the wrong message. For those
that are sexually active, condoms are the best way
to reduce the risk of contracting a host of sexually
transmitted diseases, including HIV. Scaring sexually
active individuals away from using condoms will not
reduce the prevalence of HPV. Instead it will put millions
of Americans at risk of contracting a range of preventable
STDs.”
According to a January CDC report, the best way to
prevent HPV infection is to refrain from all genital
contact with another individual. The report also states
that the current scientific evidence is not sufficient
to recommend condoms as a primary prevention strategy
for the prevention of HPV. The report also notes, however,
that there is evidence that condom use may actually
reduce the risk of cervical cancer itself. Possible
explanations for the protective effect of condoms against
cancer may be that condom use reduces the quantity
of HPV transmitted, the likelihood of re-exposure to
HPV, or the exposure to a co-factor for cervical cancer,
such as chlamydia or genital herpes.
“Cervical cancer is preventable, treatable,
and curable,” said James R. Allen, MD, MPH, President
and CEO of ASHA. “Since the invention of the
Pap test, cervical cancer incidence has dropped by
nearly 75%. If we want to beat cervical cancer, we
must focus on making sure all women have access to
cervical cancer screening and follow-up care instead
of turning cervical cancer into an excuse to disparage
condoms.”
Undermining public confidence in condoms jeopardizes
public health. A new study presented at the National
STD Prevention Conference shows that of 12,000 adolescents
that took virginity pledges, nearly 9 out of 10 had
sex before marriage. More importantly, the study shows
that even though adolescents who took virginity pledges
tended to have fewer sexual partners than those who
did not vow to remain abstinent, both groups had nearly
the same rate of STDs. Researchers found that this
was due in part to the “pledgers’” failure
to use condoms once they did become sexually active.
“What this proves is what we have known for
some time – that adolescents need to be encouraged
to remain abstinent, but they also need to know how
to protect themselves when they do eventually have
sex,” said NFPRHA President and CEO Judith M.
DeSarno. “These messages are not mutually exclusive.
If we want to protect young people, we need to prepare
them by giving them the facts about contraception and
STD prevention. Withholding information or providing
biased information that reflects a given moral or political
agenda does not allow young people to make informed
choices.”
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