It’s just a little prick…
By Glory Fink
The world is changing and growing, my little chickadees. These days even world leaders have blogs, your mother is text messaging and one in five Americans has an STD. Two-thirds of all new STD infections occur in people under the age of 25.
HPV Vaccine
In June 2006, the FDA approved Gardasil, a vaccine that protects females from ages 9 to 26 against cervical cancer. If you’ve never had an STD and don’t plan to get one, read on. You might be surprised at your chances. HPV causes 90% of genital warts and 70% of all cervical cancer. At this time, HPV is so common that 80% of all 20-year-old women right here on own campus will become infected within their lifetime. Four out of five women sitting in your class will get HPV–if they haven’t already.
Why gamble with your health, go get the vaccine. The vaccine costs about $360 and insurance companies don’t pay for it. Ask yourself, “Am I worth $360?” (For those who are unsure, the correct answer is, YES, I AM!) In comparison with cancer treatment three hundred sixty dollars is a bargain.
This incredible breakthrough does have some loud naysayers armed with well-paid lobbyists. They say the vaccine will encourage immoral behavior. Preventing cancer and an STD in a 12-year-old girl is not evil it is a responsible thing to do.
Hepatitis B Vaccine
Hepatitis B, Hep B or HBV is an STD that is transmitted from partner to partner, by needles, or, worse, mother to child. About five percent of Americans are infected with HBV. Approximately half of the people with acute HBV have no symptoms. If symptoms develop, they appear one to six months after infection and are often initially mistaken for the flu.
The Hepatitis B vaccine is a recommended childhood immunization. Those with a serious allergy to baker’s yeast should avoid this vaccine. You may have been vaccinated against HBV before entering pre-school or kindergarten. If you don’t know, find out.
HIV Morning After Pill?
Rumors are circulating about a pill that prevents HIV infections after risky sex. In the January issue of Out magazine, Dr. Tony Mills,” The West Hollywood HIV Specialist,” said he is starting to prescribe Tenofovir to HIV negative patients who refuse to use condoms while engaging in high-risk sex. Tenofovir’s brand name is Viread and is usually prescribed with other antiretroviral drugs to slow the progression of HIV.
The good news is there is ongoing research to see if Tenofovir can be taken daily to prevent HIV infection but there is no conclusion to the study yet. “Curbside Pharmacists” have started selling a three pack of Ecstasy, Viagra and Tenofovir for partygoers who want a good time without any lasting effects. Will someone please give these people a heaping bag of condoms?!?! Personally, I’m not a fan of “X” because it ages your body the equivalent of three years for every hit you take. But when you go out for a night of partying at least use protection.
Other STD vaccines
While I was reading about these new vaccines, I asked myself why there weren’t more vaccines for other STDs. To paraphrase my mother, if we can put a man on the moon, why can’t we eradicate gonorrhea? It looks like one of the problems is that there’s no money in it for pharmaceutical companies. With a vaccine, all the drugs and treatments currently used to treat STDs and diseases would eventually be unnecessary.
More importantly, we aren’t demanding vaccines for STDs except for HIV. I can’t recall a single celebrity fundraising for a chlamydia vaccine. As long as people are more concerned with curing diseases instead of preventing them, all our futures hold a greater risk of contracting more diseases. Remember: Mississippi has the highest rates for chlamydia and gonorrhea in the country.
Chlamydia — Rates by state: United States and outlying areas, 2005 http://www.cdc.gov/std/stats/figures/fig3.htm
Gonorrhea – Rates by state: United States and outlying areas, 2004 (scroll down)
http://www.cdc.gov/std/stats04/gonorrhea2.htm#fig11
(Where did Glory get all this?) CDC’s Surveillance & Statistics http://www.cdc.gov/nchstp/dstd/Stats_Trends/Stats_and_Trends.htm
