HIV Prevention and Seniors

I was really excited my son was sick this week. Wait, that doesn’t sound the way it should. The whole sentence should read, “I was really excited my son was sick this week, as I got to hear an interview on a radio show that I can’t normally listen to until later in the day (work and all). If I’d turned it on at my usual time as I was leaving work, I would have missed it.” That’s better. So what’s got me so excited? Research looking at seniors and HIV.

Researcher Katie Mairs presented findings on Wednesday at the Ontario HIV Treatment Network conference in Toronto. I wasn’t in Toronto, but later that day heard her co-researcher Sandra Bullock on CBC’s On the Coast talk about their findings. It seems that snowbirds going down south to escape Canadian winters may come into contact with more than a heckuva lot of sunshine. Almost three hundred seniors were surveyed, and 80% said they were sexually active and dating (8% of them while married) down South. Yet they weren’t using condoms on a regular basis at all. The research found that those who don’t think they’re at risk for pregnancy don’t think a condom is necessary. True enough if you’re thinking solely of reproduction. But for STI prevention, a condom is a fantastic tool.

This research is asking questions of a population that can be sorely underrepresented in sexual activity/ sexual health findings. Being post-menopausal doesn’t make women less likely to get STIs (in fact, it can increase the risk), and HIV prevention information is important in this age group. According to Mairs, HIV prevalence among US residents over 50 is highest in Florida. With a “holiday” attitude that is easy come easy go, sexual choices could put people at risk. It reinforced the importance of the work we’re doing with our You Should Know campaign, which is aimed at women over 40.  It’s great that this research might open more avenues for discussion, make way for education, support doctors and patients to talk. STI prevention is important, no matter what the age of sexual adventurers.

Janet

This blog represents the ideas of individual writers, and does not necessarily reflect any formal stance taken by Positive Women’s Network.

This was posted on Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 9:00 am and is filed under Body Health, Education & Resources, HIV Prevention, News . Feel free to respond, or trackback. Read our comments policy.

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