Sexually transmitted infection

Posted by Judy Arbique May 30, 2007

I was overwhelmed by the number of hits that resulted from a search for "sex and travel" while preparing for an article on sexually transmitted infections (STI). I was not really suprised by the number of sites marketing/exploiting female sex workers to male vacationers, but I was not aware of the numbers of sex vacation planners in existence. And, I was suprised by the use of the term "sex tourism" when referring to vacationing females.

Like many other women, I have fantasized about travel to an exotic location...a beach in the Caribbean, south of France, Italy....okay, maybe I fantasized more than once! In those fantasies, there would invariably be a handsome local god who would be attracted to me and a passionate romance would ensue. But, I would never have labelled this kind of encounter or desire as sex tourism...that sounds so crude and unromantic! My fantasy involved romance, not just sex...I had no idea I was a Shirley Valentine, which apparently one of the terms used to describe women who travel for romance. But according to the Ottawa Citizen (May 17, 2007), 600,000 other women have acted on similar fantasies.

Did you know there is a Wikipedia page titled Female Sex Tourism, or that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website addresses the topic of sex and travel. Although the purpose of the CDC is to provide adviseries and information on the risks of sex and travel and considerations to safeguard against sexually transmitted infection (STI), the idea is obviously prevalent enough to address directly.

The fact that there is a sex tourism trade should be an alarm for men and women who travel for the purposes of sex or romance. Know the risks involved in sex with strangers. Sexually transmitted infections are common in North America....they may be even more common on that exotic beach location and there may be organisms in that location that are not common in North America.

There are approximately 330,000,000 people in the world who are infected with curable sexually transmitted infections, some of which you have probably never heard of. And, there are approximately 40,000,000 living with HIV/AIDS (WHO statistics, 2003), any one of whom can pass infection on to you through unprotected sex.

Sources:

Sex Tourism in Full Bloom: Ottawa Citizen, May 19, 2007.

Investing in a Comprehensive Health Sector Response to HIV/AIDS: Scaling up Treatment and Accelerating Prevention (WHO HIV/AIDS plan, January 2004 - December 2005).