One would hope that for Seventh-day Adventists there would be no need to post information about STD's but statistically, Adventists have a divorce rate that is nearly equal of the US rate. I am personally aquainted with several cases of unwed mothers (some teenagers) within the church. To be an unwed mother, you must have been sexually active outside the bounds of marriage. Adultery, premarital sex, child sexual abuse, and homosexuality are no longer strangers within Adventism. Wherever these sinful practices are, there will also be sexually transmitted diseases. The spread of STDs is becoming epidemic especially among teens. Gone are the days when gonorrhea and syphillis the venereal diseases and were easily cured with antibiotics. Read the STD statistics:

• One in five people in the United States has an STD.
• Two-thirds of all STDs occur in people 25 years of age or younger.
• One in four new STD infections occur in teenagers.
• Cervical cancer in women is linked to HPV
• Hepatitis B is 100 times more infectious than HIV
• STDs, other than HIV, cost about $8 billion each year to diagnose and treat
• ASHA is a trusted partner with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and operates the national AIDS, STD and Immunization Hotlines
• One in five Americans have genital herpes, yet at least 80 percent of those with herpes are unaware they have it
• At least one in four Americans will contract an STD at some point in their lives.
• HPV is the most common STD in the United States. More than 5 million people are infected with HPV each year.
• Less than half of adults ages 18 to 44 have ever been tested for an STD other than HIV / AIDS.
• At least 15 percent of all infertile American women are infertile because of tubal damage caused by pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), the result of an untreated STD.
• Two-thirds of Hepatitis B (HBV) infections are transmitted sexually, HBV is linked to chronic liver disease, including cirrhosis and liver cancer.

As the rates for STDs continues to climb, so to do the rates for some kinds of cancers linked to STDs and multiple sex partners, liver damage from sexually transmitted disease, infertility, and deaths from STDs.

In the next post I will list the STDs.

AIDS and HIV: Human immunodeficiency virus or HIV, is a virus that attacks the immune system resulting in Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, or AIDS.
Chancroid: A treatable bacterial infection that causes painful sores.
Chlamydia: A treatable bacterial infection that can scar the fallopian tubes affecting a woman's ability to have children.
Crabs: Also known as pediculosis pubis, crabs are parasites or bugs that live on the pubic hair in the genital area.
Gonorrhea: A treatable bacterial infection of the penis, vagina or anus that causes pain, or burning feeling as well as a pus-like discharge. Also known as "the clap".
Hepatitis: A disease that affects the liver. There are more than four types. A and B are the most common.
Herpes: Genital herpes is a recurrent skin condition that can cause skin irritations in the genital region (anus, vagina, penis).
Human Papillomavirus / Genital Warts: Human papillomavirus (HPV) is a virus that affects the skin in the genital area, as well as a female's cervix. Depending on the type of HPV involved, symptoms can be in the form of wart-like growths, or abnormal cell changes.
Molluscum Contagiosum: Molluscum Contagiosum is a skin disease that is caused by a virus, usually causing lesions or bumps.
Nongonococcal Urethritis (NGU): Nongonococcal urethritis (or NGU) is a treatable bacterial infection of the urethra (the tube within the penis) often times associated with chlamydia.
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease: An infection of the female reproductive organs by chlamydia, gonorrhea or other bacteria. Also known as PID.
Scabies: Scabies is a treatable skin disease that is caused by a parasite.
Syphilis: A treatable bacterial infection that can spread throughout the body and affect the heart, brain, nerves. Also known as "syph".
Vaginitis: Caused by different germs including yeast and trichomoniasis, vaginitis is an infection of the vagina resulting in itching, burning, vaginal discharge and an odd odor.

For more information about these diseases check Medline Plus: Sexually Transmitted Diseases and Amercian Social Health Association.

You might also like to check out the topic Selling Sex to Kids in the Family Concerns forum. Children are being sexualized at ever younger ages, and as this trend continues we will continue to see the rise in STDs and realted problems with sexual promiscuity.

[ December 30, 2002, 02:04 PM: Message edited by: Linda S ]