Safe Sex:
STI Prevention
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What is an STI?
• An STI is a sexually
transmitted infection
• STIs are caused by
germs that are
passed through
sexual contact
• The only way to
protect against STIs
is by using condoms
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Many people have STIs and
don’t know it!!
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If They Are Not Treated,
STIs Can Cause Serious Problems
• Pain and discomfort
• Men and women
might not be able to
have children
(infertility)
• Babies can be born
too early, sick, or
dead
• A person can even
die
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How STIs Are Spread
The germs that cause some STIs are on the
SKIN and are passed by touching during sex
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How STIs are Spread
The germs that cause other STIs live in the
LIQUIDS of the body and are passed during sex
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How STIs are Spread
The germs that cause STIs can be passed
from a pregnant woman to her baby
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Condoms are the only way to
protect against STIs!
It is very important to use condoms
every time someone has sex.
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Special Concerns for Women
Both men and women
get STIs, but a woman
gets infected from a
man more easily than
a man gets infected
from a woman
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If a person cheats on their
partner with someone who has
an STI, they can infect their
partner with that STI
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A person may have an STI if he or
she has one or more of these signs:
• an unusual or bad-smelling
vaginal discharge
• itching or painful genitals
• sores or blisters on the
genitals
• pain in the stomach
• pain during sex
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Sometimes STIs do not have
any signs at all!
A person can feel healthy, but actually may
have an STI
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Even if a person does not have signs,
he or she might have an STI if:
His or her partner has signs of an STI.
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A person has sex with more than one
other person.
The more people someone has sex with, the
greater the chance of getting an STI.
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I wonder if my
partner has other
partners…..
A person thinks his or
her partner is having
sex with other
people.
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If someone thinks they might have an
STI, he or she should go to the
doctor as soon as possible!
The doctor will test blood or
urine to see if the person is
infected.
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It is very important to go to the
doctor as soon as possible if a
person thinks she or he has an STI
If a person doesn’t get medicine early he or she
can have serious problems later and can give
the STI to his or her partner.
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If a person has an STI it is very
important to take all the medicine the
doctor says
Even if he or she does not
feel sick anymore, a
person will not be cured
until all of the medicine
has time to work
For some STIs, a
person has to take
medicine for the rest
of his or her life
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Hepatitis B
A dangerous infection that harms the liver
• Signs: fever, no appetite, tired and weak feeling,
pain in the belly
• Sometimes there are no signs even if a person
has Hepatitis B
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Hepatitis B
• A person can get
Hepatitis B
– During sex
– By using unclean needles
or knifes for circumcisions
or tattooing
– A mother can give Hepatitis
B to her child during
childbirth
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HIV/AIDS
• Another very serious
STI is HIV/AIDS
• Many people get sick
with and die from AIDS
every year
• The only way to protect
from HIV/AIDS is to
use a condom every
time during sex
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Staying Safe
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It is important NOT to have sex
when either person has signs
of an STI
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Other Ways to Be Safer
Dry sex is dangerouswhen the vagina is dry, it
tears more easily, and it’s
easier for STIs to get into
the body
– Using saliva or lubricant
can make the vagina less
dry
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Remember, using condoms every
time someone has sex is the ONLY
way to prevent STIs
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Where to get it?
A person can buy
CONDOMS at most
stores. They can get
them for free at some
clinics.
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A person has the right to protect
themselves from getting an STI!
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It’s very important
to share this
information with
your friends, family,
and community
members so that
everyone can be
healthier!
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