On vacation, travelers tend to multiply sexual conquests and reckless behavior, which exposes them to an increased risk of STIs.
Traveling means discovering a country, mingling with its population, sharing its customs… and its STDs. Two studies published in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections, emanating from the famous BMJ, warn about the risks hanging over globetrotters. According to their findings, these travelers have a particular tendency to increase risky behavior and thus expose themselves to sexually transmitted infections.
The first study reviews the results of the “National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (Natsal-3) », A national survey carried out in the United Kingdom to survey the habits of the population in terms of sexuality. The researchers analyzed the responses of 12,530 people aged 16 to 74.
“Spirit of freedom”
Verdict: About one in ten men and one in twenty women have had sex with a resident of a country visited during a trip. Among those people who establish close contact with the local population, many have had several partners.
However, this state of affairs is strongly associated with reckless behavior, according to the authors. “Sex abroad tends to be less protected because of the spirit of freedom characteristic of travel, but also because of the potential contexts of alcohol or drug use,” the researchers write.
Monitor seniors
This lightness is accompanied by a lower propensity to use condoms, but also an increased risk of unwanted pregnancies and sexual violence. “It shows the importance of providing advice to travelers as part of a holistic approach.”
The authors also believe that an information effort should be made with 35-74 year olds who travel more and more, benefiting from health which, on the whole, is improving. This specific population is more likely to have paid sex abroad (one in four men among the group studied).
Travelers to Thailand
The second study is a kind of practical illustration of the first. The researchers analyzed the experience of 2013 backpackers who visited two Thai islands (Koh Tao and Koh Phangan) during the year 2013. Most were under 25 years old.
Among this group, 39% of respondents said they had had sex with a stranger they met on the spot… and almost as many (37%) admitted to having used a condom irregularly, or even not having used one at all.
Germans are wiser
However, it is not for lack of having thought about it. Many packpackers had condoms in their luggage, but more than a third did not use them. According to the researchers, the British and Swedes are the most likely to have unprotected sex in the visited country, while German travelers seem more savvy, those who use condoms more. However, the latter display fewer foreign conquests than their British peers.
In a editorial accompanying the two studies, doctors Alberto Matteelli and Susanna Capone, (Infectious and Tropical Diseases Clinic, University of Brescia, Italy), point out that these results have many implications, as the number of STIs explodes across the world.
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