#OralSex #Head 

Join us aw we discuss oral sex and how it has become a hazard to the community. Certainly, the risk of acquiring an STI through engagement in oral sex is substantially less than for other sexual behaviors (e.g., vaginal or anal intercourse). However, recent reviews have suggested that oral sex is a viable and perhaps significant mode of transmission for several bacterial and viral infections, including gonorrhea, herpes, and chlamydia. The rate of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among adolescents is increasing at an unprecedented rate. Currently, over three million American teenagers become infected with one or more STIs each year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2000), including both bacterial (e.g., gonorrhea, chlamydia) and viral infections (e.g., herpes, HIV). Recent concern has focused on noncoital sexual behaviors that may pose a risk for STIs among adolescents. For instance, public attention has focused on the surprisingly high percentage of high school adolescents (i.e., grades 9 through 12) who report engagement in oral sex. Although the topic is rarely investigated empirically, extant data suggest that approximately 33%–59% of high school teens and, more specifically, 7%– 24% of adolescent virgins report that they have either given or received oral sex (Breakwell & Fife-Schaw, 1992; Gates & Sonenstein, 2000; Haas, 1979; Newcomer & Udry, 1985; Schuster, Bell, & Kanouse, 1996). Yet little is known about adolescents' potential for contracting an STI by engaging in oral sex or about psychological factors that may influence adolescents' decision to engage in this type of behavior.