Unprotected sex
From ArticleWorld
Unprotected sex refers to any act of intercourse or other act of contact sex in which one or more participants fail to protect themselves from either pregnancy or a sexually-transmitted disease (STD). The term can be somewhat confusing because, for example, a woman using birth control pills is protected from becoming pregnant but not from contracting an STD.
Implications
The implications of engaging in unprotected sex can be huge. There are several conditions which are solely sexually contracted and can be passed from one individual to another without the infected partner knowing that he or she has an STD that is likely to be transmitted. For example, those with recurrent genital herpes can shed the virus particles and transmit them to their partner without having symptoms at the time of sexual contact. A man with a small bump on his penis that he thinks is nothing may pass on genital condylomata (genital warts) to a woman who then develops severe symptoms and is forever at risk for developing cervical cancer. Other conditions that are transmitted only through sex are gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea.
Other risks include diseases that are either passed via the blood or through sexual transmission. AIDS, hepatitis B and hepatitis C are some of these. Once contracted, there are no known cures for any of these diseases.
Unprotected sex can involve oral-genital contact, vaginal intercourse or anal intercourse. A man who is the recipient of anal intercourse with an unprotected partner runs as high a risk, or greater, of contracting AIDS or hepatitis as does a woman engaging in vaginal intercourse.
Types of Protection
The mainstay of protection against STDs is some form of effective barrier. This can be in the form of a male condom, a female condom or a dental dam, which protects individuals engaging in orogenital sex. As yet, there are no medications, creams or ointments that have the ability to prevent an individual from contracting an STD. Even barrier methods do not offer absolute protection.