Homework

September 30th, 2007
Sexually Transmitted Infections:
1. Chlamydia-It is an infection caused by bacteria.You can get it by having sexual contact with another person who has the infection.Some symptoms for females may be pelvic pain, painful/frequent urination, vaginal discharge, bleeding after intercourse or there may not be any symptoms at all.Some symptoms for males may be painful urination, discharge from penis or there may not be any at all. The only way to know you have the infection for sure is to get a urine or discharge sample sent to a lab. It is treated with an antibiotic. If you don't take care of it then it may cause infections of the reproductive organs, infertility and you can spread it to other sex partners. You can also pass this from mother to infant during child birth.
2. Gonorrhea-It is an infection caused by bacteria and you can get it by having sexual contact with someone who has the infection. Some symptoms for females may be pelvic pain, painful urination, vaginal discharge, fever, blood/pus from anus, sore throat or they may be none.-Some symptoms for males may be painful urination, discharge from penis, blood/pus from anus, sore throat or there may be none. The only way to know for sure that you have this infection is to get a urine or discharge sample sent to a lab. This infection is treated with antibiotics. If you don't take care of this the it may cause PID or infertility, heart trouble, skin issues or arthritis, you can spread it to partners and a mother can pass it to her child during birth.
3. Syphilis-It's a bacterial infection. The only way to get it is to have sexual contact with someone who has it. Some symptoms during the early stages are painful sores on mouth, penis, vagina, anus, or elsewhere on the body. You can find out if you have it by getting a medical examination of the sores or a blood test.-It may be treated with antibiotics but may need hospitalization.If you don't treat this it may get to the second or even third stage. In the second stage things such as rashes, fevers, hair loss, body aches, sore throat, swollen glands or new sores may happen to you. If it gets as far as the third stage you can get heart damage, brain damage, can cause PID, severe damage to fetus and it may even go as far as death.
4. HIV/AIDS-It is a virus that damages the immune system which decreases the bodies ability to fight infections.You are able to get this infection by having sexual contact with someone who has it, blood to blood contact with someone who has it, sharing contaminated needles or breast milk.-Some symptoms are fever, chills drenching night sweats, weight loss, constant diarrhea, dry cough with shortness of breath, constant fatigue, swollen glands, pink or purple raised blotches on or under the skin, white spots in mouth or there may be no symptoms at all. You can know for sure by getting a blood test or an orasure test done.-Even though there is still no cure for this infection there's a mixture medications that can be taken to boost the immune system and fight the spread of infection and accompanying illnesses.If you don't get this treated you may develop some life threatening illnesses that can be passed from mother to child during birth, sex partners and needle sharing partners.
5. Genital Herpes-This is an infection caused by the Herpes Simplex Virus. You can get this infection by having sexual contact or skin to skin contact with someone who has it. This virus may be passed weather there are sores present or not. You may get painful blisters that will break into open sores and swollen glands. The sores will dry up and disappear within 5-21 days.-You should get a medical examination, fluid form sores sent to a lab or a blood test to know for sure.-The infection will never leave your body however there are medications or cream that you can use to speed up the healing process and prevent future outbreaks. The sores come and go with stress and/or illnesses, you can spread this to your sex partners, and can be passed from mother to child during birth which may cause sickness and maybe even death.
6. Genital Warts-This infection is cause by HPV .It can be passed by having sexual or skin to skin contact with someone who has HPV and it can be passes even if warts aren't visible.-Small painless bumps which grows in/around genitals, may have slight itching or irritation or there may not be any symptoms. To know for sure you should get either a medical exam or a pap test. Once you are infected it forever stays in your body, however you can get the warts burned, froze or cut off. May require surgery. It can be passed from mother to child during birth, can be passed to sex partners and the warts can grow, spread, and become harder to remove.
7. Pubic Lice/Crabs-It's a parasite that lives in the hair around genitals. It is mostly passed by sexual or skin to skin contact but can be passed through infested towels, clothing and/or bedding.Some symptoms may be severe itching, lice or eggs in pubic hair and small dots of blood ion panties. The only way to know for sure it to get a visual examination. It can be treated by using a special shampoo or lotion, wash all bedding and clothing, and have others who may also have it checked and treated. If you don't take care of this the symptoms can get worse, may lead to bacterial infection and can spread to others.

October 4th, 2007
A world without cervical cancer:HPV Va cine
The Human Papavolna Virus (HPV) is an infection cause by having sex. Protection is one way that you can reduce getting this virus. It is believed that about 8% of our population has this disease. About 10,000 women in America have HPV, and about 4,000 die of it. A way to be tested for HPV is with that Pap Test which looks for abnormal cervical changes. There are currently no test for men because they don't have cervix.
The new vaccine out is called Gardasil. It helps prevent against 4 strains of HPV. Two in which stop genital warts and two that cause cervical cancer. Doctors want people to get this vaccine before they have sex, so they are targeting young women from the ages 9-26. The shot is given in a 6 month time frame and there are 3 shots. The vaccine is pricey and costs about $500. They hope eventually the government will make it so you must get the vaccine.

Sex Myths:
They went over 5 of the most commonly sex myths. The first was wearing 2 condoms is more effective. That in fact is a lie because it will break due to friction. The condom on the inside breaks after about 15 seconds and the second one breaks soon after. Even though there is no scientific proof it is not more effective. The second one was that you can't get pregnant when you have your period. That to is false. Women don't always have heavy blood flow and some are more sexually aroused. The sperm can stay inside the ovary up to 7 days which leave potential to become pregnant. The third one was people who have infections know that they have them. Once again that is false. You can't tell by just looking at someone. People don't always know they are infected because there are no symptoms. Fourthly was that men have more partners than women. That too is false. Actually, the two tend to have the same amount of sexual partners. Women tend to not tell the truth about how much they've had sex. Finally was that masturbation decides if you're gay or straight. That to is false. This comes from the idea if you like yourself that much then you like your sex better then the opposite sex. It is a very prejudice myth.

Birth Control:
They first talked about common sex questions. A women is most likely to get pregnant during ovulation which is right before the egg is released. The most effective form of birth control is abstinence and the least effective is the withdrawal method. The most effective birth control against becoming pregnant and STI's is the condom or abstinence. The only birth control that is effective after sex is the emergency contraceptive.
They then went to talk about 5 different birth controls. The first one was the female condom. This is new on the market, and is the same as a men's condom. It protects from pregnancy and STIs. Guys can also use it too in anal intercourse. The second one was the Nova Ring. This is impregnated with hormones that stop ovulation. Women keep it in for 3 weeks then take it out. The third one was the pill. Which also stops ovulation. You took pills for 3 weeks then take a week of sugar pills to remember to keep taking the pill. The fourth one was the Dental Dam. This form of birth control stops fluids from being passed. The last one was the condom, the most commonly used birth control. If the condom is expired don't use it, and if it has a hole don't use it.

October 5th, 2007
We watched a movie on decision making. The inspirational speaker/comedian in the film was Michael Pretecharh. He discussed with teenagers the process of decision making and how to make the right ones. Michael first discussed how sometimes adults forget how hard it was to grow up, and that sometimes teenagers need to learn from their own mistakes. He believed there was three main components in decision making; Vision, Initiative, and perspective. Vision had to do with who you wanted to be. Initiative dealt with making good choices. Perspective was not getting caught up in all the bad things.
Michael strongly believed that if you had a good vision about yourself then you'd make good choices. At any point in ones life though you can change your vision about yourself for the better. Sometimes teenagers are afraid to say no even though they want to because they are afraid of how others will perceive them.
He also stressed the fact that it is okay to have problems, because everyone has them. It's not okay if you ignore your problems and don't try and fix them. People should never forget that laughing gets you through the hard times. People need to realize that there are consequences for the actions you take.

October 9th, 2007
Tobacco
Nicotine
Nicotine is a naturally found drug in tobacco. When smoking, your body becomes physically and physcologically addicted to nicotine. If one wants to overcome smoking then you have to overcome both addictions.
Nicotine is a drug the is carried down to your lungs, then goes into your bloodstream. Nicotine effects you heart and blood vessels, hormonal system, metabolism, and the brain. Once nicotine has entered your body it will stay there for about 3-4 days.
People enjoy smoking because nicotine produces a pleasant feeling. Nicotine also acts a depressant which interferes with your nervous system sending information to the blood cells.
When you smoke a cigarette it reaches your brain faster than drugs that enter the body intravenously.

Nicotine Withdrawal
Withdrawal happens physically and mentally.
Your body reacts to the withdrawal.
Physcologically giving up the habit it hard because it is a change in your behavior.
Some of the withdrawals are dizziness, depression, feelings of frustration and anger, irritability, sleep disturbance, trouble concentrating, restlessness, head aches, tiredness, and an increase in appetite. These withdrawals make people start smoking again. Sometimes you can start up again as quickly as a few hours after you stopped.

October 16th, 2007
Testicular & Cervical Cancer
The past few classes we have been discussing both testicular and cervial cancer. We have learned many important facts that will help us later on if life. I'm briefly going to share some of the facts that we disscussed.

Testicular cancer is very uncommon for men in the United States. Only 1-2% of men have testicular cancer, but it is unknown what causes it. In 2004, 74 men died of the cancer. Unlike many other cancers, testicular cancer is not more common the older you get. Most cases occur with males between the ages 25-45. There are two different germ cell tumors for testicular cancer. The first is seminomas and the second is teratomas. The symptoms of testicular cancer are swelling or lumps, and uncommon symptoms are pain and enlargement of the testicles. Men are responsible to check themselves for these lumps. Once diagnosed with testicular cancer there is treatment. In most cases it requires a surgery, but for some either radiotherapy or chemotherapy is used. If testicular cancer is caught early the treatment is 95% effective, and if caught late it is only 50% effective.

A very common cancer for women is cervical cancer, or also known as the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). In the U.S. there is about 20 million cases of HPV, and there is over 100 different types of the cancer. In your life, 3 out of 4 people will have HPV at some point. Some cases go away within 8-13 months, and some that don't can hide for many years. High risk HPV which is when cell changes is linked to cervical cancer. Most women usaully recover from this cancer with no health problems. If a women has a damaged immune system they are at a higher risk to the cancer, and so aren't women who smoke. To reduce ones risk of getting the cancer they can, practice absitence, have only one partner, perform sex play with no intercourse, use condoms, and recieve the HPV vaccine. With the vaccine there are 3 shots. This shot protects you from 4 types. Two that protect you from genital warts, and two that protect from the cancer. If diagnosed with the cancer the cells infected will be removed. They can be removed by cryotheraphy which is when the cells are frozen off, laser when they are destroyed by the beam, and leep which is when the cell is removed by a thin wire. It is reccomended that women have annual pap tests.