A paper published this week in the British Medical Journal says that young holidaymaker's traveling overseas face serious health issues from casual sex, and even goes as far as to suggest that some could be at risk of death. The paper also highlights a lack of advice and sexually transmitted infections (STI) screening upon return home.
Types of STIs are chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomona, pubic lice and scabies, genital herpes, genital warts (HPV), hepatitis B, syphilis and last but no means least HIV/AIDS.
STIs cause a wide range of illnesses and are a significant cause of long term and serious disability in the UK.
In the UK, STIs are on the rise, making any casual sexual encounter potentially hazardous. Travel brochures carry minimal advice on safe sex (3%) and preventative measures do not go far enough. Even more worrying, says the author, "is tour operators' encouragement of sex with partners by presenting prizes."
The review paper, by Sheffield consultant Dr Karen Rogstad, showed that in one study of holidaymaker's attending a genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinic within three months of their return home, a quarter had slept with a new partner while away, and two thirds had not used condoms or had used them haphazardly.
Tenerife in the Canary Islands stands out as the casual sex hotspot with another study showing that 50 per cent of those aged 25 or younger had had sex with someone new while on holiday, compared to 22 per cent of those over 25.