Safe dating and safe sex
If you are meeting up with someone you don't know, it's important to follow some basic safe dating rules. If you are starting out on a new sexual relationship it is important, if a little unromantic, to think about your sexual health.
Not having to worry about unwanted pregnancies does not mean that you should throw caution to the wind: sexually transmitted diseases are on the increase in the UK, and it's not all down to young people.
Safe sex
Sexually transmitted diseases and infections (STDs/STIs) are on the increase in the UK with cases of HIV, chlamydia, syphilis and gonorrhoea all going up mainly because too many people don't practise safe sex. It's the teenagers that hit the headlines, but rates of infection are increasing amongst all ages. Even if you no longer have to worry about an unwanted pregnancy it makes sense to use a condom to stay healthy.
Figures from the Health Protection Agency for England, Wales and Northern Ireland show that, among women aged 45 to 64, rates of chlamydia rose by 177 per cent, between 1995 and 2003. Cases of gonorrhoea among women in that age group rose by 249 per cent.
Most sexual activity with a partner carries some risk. The best general protection against STDs is to use a condom (male or female) throughout the act of intercourse. Other barrier methods such as the cap or the diaphragm only offer a little protection against infection.
The most common reason for forgetting to practise safer sex is drinking too much alcohol. If that's likely to be you, make sure you plan ahead.
