Sexual Health News

Popular New Year's Resolutions Also Promote Urologic/Sexual Health

Already having a hard time sticking to your New Year's resolutions? The American Urological Association (AUA) can provide some much-needed motivation: many popular New Year's resolutions can actually improve your urologic or sexual health. Resolution #1: Lose Weight Losing weight may help resolve erectile dysfunction in obese men, according to research presented at the 2008 Annual Scientific Meeting of the

Virginity Pledge Teens Just As Sexually Active But Use Less Protection

American teenagers who take virginity pledges promising they will not have sex before marriage are just as likely to be sexually active as non-pledgers and moreover are less likely to protect themselves against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases said a scientist who recommended that all teenagers, especially pledgers, should receive birth control

Contraception Doesn't Go Better With Coca-Cola

One of the reasons why Coca-cola is not an effective spermicide is because sperm are faster and may reach an egg in time to fertilise it, says an expert in the Christmas issue published on bmj.com today. The author, Deborah Anderson, a professor in obstetrics and gynaecology at Boston University and Harvard Medical School, writes that Coca-cola douches were allegedly used during the 1950s and 60s as a contraceptive when other methods were not easily

For Teens Who Take Few Health Risk And Those Who Take Many, Trends In Sexual Behaviors Similar

Adolescent health risk behaviors often occur together, suggesting that youth involvement with one risk behavior may inform understanding of other risk behaviors, but in a study to examine the association between involvement in non-sexual risk behaviors and trends among sexual behaviors, Mailman School of Public Health researchers found that sexual behaviors vary considerably between those youth engaged in no risk health behaviors and those engaged in multiple health risk

Horseback Riding: Impact On Sexual Dysfunction And Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms In Men And Women

Does Persistent Perineal Impact Increase Likelihood of LUTS and Sexual Dysfunction? UroToday.com - Bicycle riding has been reported to be related to male sexual dysfunction. Dr. Shaheen Alanee and colleagues from Minneapolis hypothesized that similar force impacts might be seen in equestrian sports. They sought to evaluate the effect of horseback riding on urinary symptoms and sexual dysfunction in men and women. Swimmers were used as a control

Sneezing Induced By Sexual Thought

A paper in this month's issue of the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine highlights an under-reported but possibly not uncommon phenomenon - sneezing in response to sexual excitement. When Dr Mahmood Bhutta, a specialist registrar in ENT at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, came across a patient who sneezed every time he had a sexual thought, his initial reaction was one of disbelief, but it interested him enough to undertake an internet

Does Persistent Perineal Impact Increase Likelihood Of LUTS And Sexual Dysfunction In Equestrians?

Bicycle riding has been reported to be related to male sexual dysfunction. Dr. Shaheen Alanee and colleagues from Minneapolis hypothesized that similar force impacts might be seen in equestrian sports. They sought to evaluate the effect of horseback riding on urinary symptoms and sexual dysfunction in men and women. Swimmers were used as a control

Editorial, Opinion Piece Criticize HHS Provider 'Conscience' Rule

An editorial and opinion piece on Tuesday responded to the new HHS "conscience" rule, which will take effect Jan. 18 and allow employees of entities that receive federal grants to refuse to provide medical information and services they object to on moral or religious grounds. Summaries appear below. ~

Blogs Comment On HHS Provider 'Conscience' Rule, 'Mexico City' Policy, Incoming Obama Administration

The following summarizes selected women's health-related blog entries. ~ "HHS Publishes Provider Conscience Expansion Rule," Emily Douglas, Huffington Post blogs: The broad scope of the HHS "conscience"

Over The Counter Contraceptive Pill Will Not Reduce Unplanned Pregnancies, Says Expert

Making the contraceptive pill available without prescription will not reduce unwanted pregnancies, says an expert in an article published on bmj.com today. Sarah Jarvis from the Royal College of Physicians argues that it is a lack of daily compliance with taking oral contraceptives which is partly responsible for the high rates of unintended teenage pregnancies in the

High HPV Vaccination Coverage Already Achieved In England

More than 70 per cent of 12-13 year old girls have already had their first HPV (human papillomavirus) jab since the vaccination campaign started in September, Public Health Minister Dawn Primarolo announced today. This figure will rise as more results come in. The success of the campaign has prompted the Department of Health to announce that the catch up campaign to vaccinate girls aged 13-17 years will be brought forward to next

Conn. Attorney General Blumenthal Plans To Challenge HHS 'Conscience' Rule

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal (D) on Friday said that he plans to challenge the new HHS provider "conscience" rule, which he said could override a Connecticut law that requires hospitals to provide emergency contraception to women who have been raped, the

Sen. Clinton Must Fight Bush Administration 'Conscience' Rule Before Leaving Office, Editorial Says

Before Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) leaves office to take a position as President-elect Barack Obama's secretary of state, she "needs to help preserve the abortion rights and access to birth control that the Bush administration is trying to restrict on its way out of power," an

Illinois Supreme Court Orders Circuit Court To Consider Lawsuit By Pharmacists Objecting To EC

The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that a circuit court must consider a lawsuit brought by two Illinois pharmacists objecting to a rule that requires pharmacies to dispense emergency contraception, the AP/Google.com reports. Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) in 2005 issued a rule prohibiting pharmacies from refusing to dispense

Not-For-Profit Offers Payment To Drug Users Who Undergo Long-Term Birth Control Procedures

As part of efforts to reduce the number of infants born to people with substance abuse problems, the national not-for-profit organization Project Prevention is offering $300 to drug users and alcoholics if they undergo procedures for long-term birth control, the Arizona Daily Star

Catholic Bioethics Document Not A 'Battle Plan Of Resistance' To Obama Administration, NYT Opinion Piece Says

A Roman Catholic document on bioethics released last week "ratchets up the church's condemnations of embryonic stem cell research, in vitro fertilization, the 'morning-after pill' and a host of other techniques it regards as violations of human dignity," John Allen, senior correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, writes in a

HHS 'Conscience' Rule Creates 'Huge Bureaucratic Barrier,' Opinion Piece Says

The HHS "conscience" rule is "a huge bureaucratic barrier to health care -- a barrier the incoming Obama administration will find difficult to remove," a Philadelphia Daily News editorial

Blogs Comment On Provider 'Conscience' Rule, HHS Secretary Nomination, Reducing Abortions

The following summarizes select women's health-related blog entries. ~ "New Government Rule Could Limit Your Access to Birth Control," Deborah Kotz,

Bush Administration Issues 'Right Of Conscience' Rule

The Bush administration on Thursday issued a rule that expands protections for health care workers who elect not to offer or participate in certain procedures, such as abortion, because of moral objections, the AP/Denver Post reports (Freking, AP/Denver Post,

Study Looks At Male Circumcision As HIV Prevention Among Black Men In Baltimore

HIV risk appears to be lower among U.S. black men who have been circumcised and are considered at high risk of contracting the virus than among black men who have not been circumcised, according to a study published on Wednesday in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, Reuters

Bush Administration Issues Final 'Conscience' Rule; Will Take Effect Before Obama Takes Office

As expected, the Bush administration on Thursday issued a final version of a new provider "conscience" rule that allows employees of entities that receive federal grants to refuse to provide medical information and services they object to based on ethical, moral or religious beliefs, the

Obama Defends Selection Of Rick Warren To Speak At Inauguration

President-elect Barack Obama on Thursday defended his selection of evangelical pastor and author Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at the inauguration ceremony, saying that there should be room for "dialogue" on social issues such as abortion rights and gay marriage, which Warren opposes, the

Risk Of HIV Infection In Heterosexual U.S. Men Reduced By Circumcision

A new U.S. study has found that being circumcised significantly reduced the risk of HIV infection in heterosexual African American men known to have been exposed to the virus. The findings complement those of recently reported clinical trials in Africa, where interventional use of adult male circumcision similarly reduced the risk of HIV infection in heterosexual

Studies Look At Health Benefits Of Male Circumcision In Black, African Men

Time.com Examines Growing Market For Tubal Ligation Alternative

Time.com on Thursday examined an irreversible sterilization procedure called Essure, a less-expensive alternative to tubal ligation that does not require surgery or general anesthesia. The procedure involves inserting a 1.5 inch coil into each of a woman's fallopian tubes, which irritates the tubes and produces scar tissue that grows around and into the loops of the

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