First & foremost we’d like to remind you to consult your own medical doctor to make the best medical decisions based on your own personal situation. Thank you for being interested in protecting your sexual health. Swinging is fun & if we all want to be having sexy fun for years to come, we need to act in a mature way. Sometimes that means dealing with unfun topics like STI (sexually transmitted infection) rates among our swinger community.
What is the Swinger STI Rate?
The simple answer is that there is no simple answer to this question. There are many different types of STIs & they are each different. That infection rate can vary greatly depending on age, gender, locale & other factors. Not to mention that STI statistics change over time and different factors may or may not be relevant to you & your personal medical situation. These are a few of the many reasons why we strongly recommend you absolutely consult your own medical doctor on a regular basis who can advise you what is best for your own current situation.
There has been some research done on STI rates and non-monogamous relationships. This research gives mixed results and sometimes surprising insights. For example research like Dr. Lehmiller’s study on CNM relationships discovered non-monogamous relationships having more similar STI risks to monogamous relationships. That might sound weird but think about it. Cheaters in monogamous relationships are less likely to use condoms and are not regularly tested for STIs as compared to ethical swingers with nothing to hide who proactively practice safer sex.
To be clear we aren’t saying & neither is the research saying that swinging is safe sex. All sex has some level of risk. You would be wise to remember that & to always practice safer sex methods.
Better Swinger STI Research
There are other STI reports that show higher infection rates for different population subsets. For example the CDC research on chlamydia. You will notice the infection rates vary dramatically by age group. Of course there are different factors that can greatly change your risk profile (condom usage, sex partners, type of sex, etc). Even though that chart shows that for 65 year old women there is a 2.5 infection rate out of 100,000, if a real life 65 year old woman has unprotected anal sex at multiple college orgies, it would be safe to say her odds of being infected would be much higher than what that simple chart could lead someone to think.
Also keep in mind when reading any single online article, it is wise to track down the actual research and compare it with other studies to see if its a statistical outlier or collaborated with other relevant studies. Research methodology is very important and can accidentally or intentionally bias a study. An extreme case of this was the tobacco industry funding research to show smoking was healthy. More relevant to this swinging discussion, is how each study identifies swinger participants. For example, if you only talk to swingers in a public STI treatment center, you can potentially overcount the rate of infection because healthy people wouldn’t visit the treatment center at the same frequency as infected people suffering symptoms. Not to mention swinging is very personal & private activity. It can be quite challenging to accurately identify & study our swinging community for any researcher.
Misleading Statistical Averages
We want to remind you that statistical averages can be interesting like the average of 1.9 children in each US household but remember no couple has 1.9 children. It doesn’t matter if the STI average is .00001% if you are the unlucky .0001% (ps its not .0001%). Be smart and talk with a medical doctor about your own personal situation. They help educated you about the most recent statistics for your local area & your personal circumstances. If you are uncomfortable talking with your regular medical doctor, we suggest you visit your local Planned Parenthood. Their trained staff are very understanding and happy to discreetly educate and assist people with these sex health issues.
Thankfully, Upbeat Outlook
We know it is scary talking about STIs & sex. Thankfully there are many reasons we can be optimistic about the future of our sexual health. Most STIs are not deadly. STIs can be treated if not fully cured and are much easier to address the sooner you are tested so don’t delay your testing. There are better vaccines, treatments & cures for many different STIs/STDs now available. There are even more currently being researched. None of this will help you unless you honestly speak to your medical doctor. Be smart and take advantage of the advances of medical science today!
For more information please visit: CDC website or Planned Parenthood
