Travel Health: Including Your Sexual Health in Pre-Travel Plans

You’ve had all your vaccinations and let’s say that you’ve also passed the array of medical tests needed for your application for a residency visa, work permit or travel visa. These requirements will vary depending on where you are planning to visit or migrate to. You should always read up on the laws specific to the country. Now you can relax and enjoy the exoticism that is the Middle East. Summer romances, international love affairs, it all seems so exciting whilst you’re in it until something doesn’t feel quite right down there…

The concept of “what happens in the Middle East, stays in the Middle East” doesn’t apply when you end up bringing an STI home. New sexual partners and unprotected sex is common amongst travellers. An estimated 10%-20% of people will have sex with a new partner whilst abroad, and 50% of people engaging in sexual activities do not use condoms consistently.

Sexually transmitted infections are common worldwide. However, some STIs are more common in different parts of the world. Sexual health awareness should be on your list of priorities pre-travelling, along with checking the expiry date of your passport and packing enough underwear so you don’t have to wear them inside out. Casual sex happens even if you vowed to join the convent following your recent heartbreak. Pack. Condoms. Better safe than Syphilis.

This is especially the case if you engage in sex tourism. Those who go abroad with the intention of having sex are at high risk of STIs. Sex tourism fuels the spread of sexually transmitted infections, particularly HIV. It is also important to be aware of the cultural attitudes towards sex and sexual health, as these can differ depending on the country, region and city you are travelling to.

Online dating has grown with the advances in technology. Even if you are travelling alone or with friends, the excitement of being in a new country can wane in the first 48 hours. Especially if your plans have fallen through due to unforeseen circumstances, or you are simply disorganised and thought you could wing it – but it is proving more difficult than you had anticipated. The answer? Dating apps like Tinder, Grindr, Bumble, or even Instagram. Various dating apps operate in the Middle East, with many individuals using them to meet up with others that speak their language or to cure loneliness. There is a growing hook-up culture following gradual social changes.

Despite this, the quality of sex education is not improving, and the topic of sexual health is still taboo in many places. For example, many people do not perceive oral sex as a risky sexual activity and remain unaware of the risks associated with having oral sex. Young people in particular, do not tend to use condoms during oral sex. In some cases, researchers speculate that women favour giving or receiving oral sex over penetrative sex. This may due to the perception that vaginal sex carries a higher risk.

Bacteria and viruses tend to not discriminate between a throat, a vagina, a penis or a rectum. If the environment is favourable, then the organism will try its best to enter your body and infect you. Infections are how bacteria and viruses survive and thrive. They have had millions of years of evolution to work out how to do it and unfortunately, they do it well. The best way to reduce the risk of infection is to use a condom; this will physically prevent the bacteria or virus from moving from your partner’s body to yours. Mike Asher, Co-Founder of Better2Know

If you are not going to use condoms consistently when having sex, you and your partner should get tested for STIs regularly. Take control of your sexual health today.