Top 5 Sick STI Facts
Top 10, Top 5, List, herpes, chlamydia, hiv, gonorrhea, transmission, facts, history, health, sex, lifestyle, sti, sti facts, std sexually transmitted infection, malaria, syphillis, monogamy, abstinence, usa, monogamy, pyotherapy, watchmojo,
Written by Alexander Tkachuk
The first documented syphilis epidemic was in 1495, about three years after Columbus got lost and "discovered" America. This disease would cause havoc in Europe for almost 4 and a half centuries. The theory that it came back to Europe with Columbus and co has long been disputed, but a comprehensive study published in 2011 seems to have put the debate to rest. The advent of antibiotics in the 20th century made the disease curable, but now syphilis is making a comeback. Disease rates are exploding in the US and in the UK they rose 76% between 2012 and 2015. Some blame the rise on funding cuts to public health initiatives. Others blame imperialism: Thanks a lot, Columbus!
So what do you think? Did mankind make the right choice with agriculture and monogamy? If you’re itching for more top 10’s or burning for some top 5’s be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com
Top 5 Facts STI Facts
Had a hot date last night? Welcome to WatchMojo’s top 5 facts. For this installment we’ll be counting down the top 5 favorite facts you probably didn’t know about Sexually Transmitted Infections, but fear not, we’ll be avoiding any super graphic images. If you’re wondering whatever happened to calling them sexually transmitted diseases, well most of the medical world has transitioned away from the term because STI is more accurate; not every infection becomes a disease, after all.#5: STIs May Be the Original Cause of Monogamy
It kind of makes sense that getting warts all over your junk might lead to having fewer sexual partners, but not like this. Turns out that polygamy was much more common when prehistoric humans lived in small hunter-gatherer groups, but then agriculture came along and relationships started to change. As social groups became larger, STI's became a bigger barrier to reproduction. New research from the University of Waterloo suggests that cultures with taboos on promiscuity likely increased in population quicker than cultures with polygamy as a norm simply because they were less likely to suffer from STIs that cause infertility like syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea. So, I guess we can blame farming for ending the free love party? Thanks a lot, wheat!#4: You Can Get STIs Without Having Unprotected Sex
STIs can be even trickier than you might expect. To start with, while it’s difficult for most of them to live on inanimate objects, it does sometimes happen. You can get an STI from an unsterilized Brazilian Wax, and crabs can live in a bed without a host for up to 48 hours. The herpes virus can be spread via lip balm, and has also been found in tanning beds. You can even get an STI called trichomoniasis through a moist towel. And even hand stuff and dry humping can have risks.Condoms are still 100% recommended and generally very effective, but won’t necessarily prevent the skin on skin contact that can spread genital herpes. Don’t take that as an endorsement of an abstinence-only approach; along with condoms, the best method of prevention is to communicate with your sexual partners and to get tested regularly.#3: America Has the Highest STI Rate in the Developed World
There are an estimated 20 million new STI cases each year, which costs Americans at least $16 billion dollars for treatment. This number doesn't even include HIV and AIDS treatments which are hugely expensive. Experts say this is partly because there is a lot of misinformation about sex education in general and very little funding for STI prevention in the United States. Meanwhile, the federal government has spent billions on abstinence-only sex education. The US isn’t the only western country seeing a rise in STI rates. In the Canadian province of Alberta, new gonorrhea cases rose 80% in 2015, while syphilis cases more than doubled. The province’s chief medical officer blamed social media, presumably Tinder, for the rise.#2: Doctors Used Malaria to Treat Syphilis
It was called pyrotherapy. Doctors believed that the fever caused by malaria would raise the body temperature hot enough to kill the Syphilis. After the Syphilis had died off they would start to manage the malaria for which they already had effective treatments.The crazy thing is that pyrotherapy kind of worked. Half of the patients who underwent this treatment had their condition improve, and half of those who improved went into full remission. 15% of patients died of complications from Malaria, but many thought it was worth the risk.At the time contracting Syphilis was usually death sentence that guaranteed a slow descent into madness. Julius Wagner-Jauregg, the man who came up with the process, even won the Nobel Prize for his treatment… before becoming a notorious anti-semite and eugenicist. Womp womp.#1: You Can Probably Thank Columbus for Syphilis
The first documented syphilis epidemic was in 1495, about three years after Columbus got lost and "discovered" America. This disease would cause havoc in Europe for almost 4 and a half centuries. The theory that it came back to Europe with Columbus and co has long been disputed, but a comprehensive study published in 2011 seems to have put the debate to rest. The advent of antibiotics in the 20th century made the disease curable, but now syphilis is making a comeback. Disease rates are exploding in the US and in the UK they rose 76% between 2012 and 2015. Some blame the rise on funding cuts to public health initiatives. Others blame imperialism: Thanks a lot, Columbus!
So what do you think? Did mankind make the right choice with agriculture and monogamy? If you’re itching for more top 10’s or burning for some top 5’s be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com
Have an idea you want to see made into a WatchMojo video? Check out our suggest page and submit your idea.
Step up your quiz game by answering fun trivia questions! Love games with friends? Challenge friends and family in our leaderboard! Play Now!