By Rachel Makabi
DAILY BRUIN STAFF
[email protected] As you taste college life in the mad rush of
scavenger hunts and meaty barbeques at orientation, you may look at
the new people around you and wonder if you will end up sleeping
with any of them. Chances are, you very well may. But you probably
aren’t thinking that the sizzling stranger you meet may be
among the 20 percent of Americans with a sexually transmitted
disease. Joel Goldman never did and ended up contracting two STDs
from having unprotected sex. The first time, he took his
prescriptions and didn’t make any life changes. The second
time, he got HIV. “You have to look at the behavior that
causes it because if it’s not HIV, it could eventually lead
to that down the road,” said Goldman, who now travels and
speaks to college students about his experiences. Many students get
caught up in the fun and adventure of college life without
realizing how quickly STDs spread in the university community,
Goldman continued. Though abstinence is the only way to completely
protect against an STD, latex condoms and dental dams are the next
most effective methods of protection for people who want to be
sexually active. Most students know STDs are out there, but are in
denial about the possibility that they could ever contract one,
said Ann Brooks, a Nurse Practitioner at the ASHE Center who has
been speaking with students with STDs for 22 years. Incoming
freshman Justin Keyashian doesn’t think many people at UCLA
will have an STD. “College life will bring a lot more fun and
freedom,” Keyashian said, but added he thinks people are
aware about the risks and will take necessary precautions. Other
students disagreed about the risks. “I know some people just
don’t care too much and don’t take the necessary
precautions,” said fourth-year math student Alfredo Olvera.
Arnold Pena, a fifth-year psychobiology student agreed, saying
people who come to college are “more excited than
cautious.” At UCLA, the highest reported STD is human
papilloma virus, which causes abnormal tissue growth and the
formation of genital warts. Of over five thousand tests done every
year through the ASHE center, about 5 percent show positive
results, in the form of an abnormal pap smear, for HPV. In 2001,
the Student Health Lab reported 69 positive tests for chlamydia, 14
positive tests for gonorrhea and three positive tests for syphilis.
But Brooks said the numbers may be higher, because some students
prefer to get tested at other medical facilities, and others do not
know they have an STD. Even students in monogamous relationships
are at risk of receiving STDs, Brooks said, citing students who got
sick after their partners had affairs or unknowingly passed
infections on because they were asymptomatic. Other times, students
try to keep their STDs a secret from their partners, though doing
so is a misdemeanor under California Health and Safety codes,
Brooks said. Even with the risks of contracting STDs, Brooks said
most women are more concerned about getting pregnant than getting
an infection. She said these women take birth control or other
hormonal methods of contraception without thinking that these
methods still leave them vulnerable to contracting an STD. In
addition to using protection, students should speak openly with
their partners and have a support group of friends that they can
speak with if they get an STD, Brooks said. Through networking,
students are bound to find others with similar experiences, she
added. One thing Goldman says he wishes he knew about STDs before
he came to college is how easy they are to catch, especially in a
large university. “I hope people realize the long term
effects of the decisions they are making right now,” Goldman
said. “People don’t think things through. I know I
didn’t, even after one warning.”
AIDS
1. Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, caused by the human
immunodeficiency virus.
2. Initial fever, headache, tiredness, and enlarged lymph nodes,
which usually disappear within a month. Severe symptoms may not
surface for a decade or more after HIV first enters the body.
CHLAMYDIA
1. The most common bacterial infection.
2. Abnormal genital discharge and burning with urination. Many
people with chlamydial infection have few or no symptoms of
infection. GENITAL HERPES
1. Herpes simplex virus.
2. Painful blisters or open sores in the genital area, a tingling
or burning sensation in the legs, buttocks, or genital region.
Sores usually disappear within three weeks but the virus remains in
the body for life and the lesions may recur. GENITAL
WARTS
1. Human papillomavirus, a virus related to the one that causes
common skin warts.
2. At first, small, hard, painless bumps appear in the vaginal
area, on the penis, or around the anus. If untreated, they may grow
and develop a fleshy, cauliflower-like appearance.
GONORRHEA
1. A curable bacterial infection.
2. Discharge from the vagina or penis and painful or difficult
urination. SYPHILIS
1. A treatable bacterial infection.
2. Initially, a chancre, or painless open sore that usually appears
on the penis or around or in the vagina. It can also occur near the
mouth, anus, or on the hands. If untreated, syphilis may go on to
more advanced stages, including a transient rash and, eventually,
serious involvement of the heart and central nervous system. The
full course of the disease can take years. Penicillin remains the
most effective drug to treat people with syphilis. PUBIC
LICE
1. very tiny insects that infest the pubic hair and survive by
feeding on human blood.
2. Itching in the pubic area. TRICHOMONIASIS, OR
"TRICH"
1. Parasitical infection of the urethra in men and the vagina in
women.
2. Often occurs without any symptoms, especially in men. In women,
a heavy, yellow-green or gray vaginal discharge, discomfort during
intercourse, vaginal odor, and painful urination. In men, a thin,
whitish discharge from the penis and painful or difficult
urination.
SOURCE: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disesases,
National Institutes of Health