Students will have the choice of a valentine containing a condom or a mint. Michelle Carlyon, a journalism senior, said condoms should be used during sex at all times, and Valentine's Day is a great day to stress their use. There are about two dozen different diseases that fall under the category of STDs, both bacterial and viral. Joanne Auth, coordinator of education and training for UF's Student Health Care Center health education department said it is important to remember that symptoms of many STDs are subtle or nonexistent. Viral infections can be managed, but there is always the chance that they will reoccur.
Prevention is so much cheaper.
Abstinence is almost 100 percent effective against STDs, but if someone is sexually active the use of condoms and spermicides reduce the risk of contracting one or more STDs. Some people will just tell you what you want to hear in order to have sex. On UF's campus, the most common STD is the human papillomavirus - which causes genital warts, chlamydia, crab lice and herpes. People who think they have been exposed should make an appointment at a medical facility to be examined and diagnosed, Auth said. All rights reserved.