Almost 50% of U.S. adults don’t know how often you should take an STD test, according to a survey that we, at LetsGetChecked commissioned in honour of Sexual Health Awareness month.
More worryingly, 19% of the 2,000 sexually active U.S. adults have never taken an STD test.
Are you someone who doesn’t know how often you should take an STD test? Well, you’re not alone.
In our survey, 81% of respondents believe that they are knowledgeable on the topic of sexual health, however the results showed a different story, in fact, 1 in 3 U.S. adults believe that you can catch an STD from a public toilet seat, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
But there’s more…
When asked about how one might contract an STD 22% of respondents believed that incidental contact was a cause for STDs and 24% of respondents believed that you could contract an STD by sharing a glass of water with an infected person.
“Taking responsibility for your sexual health is so important, not just for you, but for your partner(s),” says Chief Medical Officer of LetsGetChecked, Dr. Robert Mordkin. “Better education is needed around STDs and the serious, long-term consequences that may occur if they are left untreated. In the absence of sufficient sex education, people need to work to educate themselves and attend regular sexual health screenings.”
52% of respondents remember receiving sex education but of those, 53% say it was “abstinence-only.”
Of those who aren’t in a committed relationship, 24% “rarely” or “never” speak to a new partner about their STD status or the last time they were tested before having sex for the first time.
For those who aren’t likely to speak to a new partner about STDs, the top reason was because it can be uncomfortable to bring up (43%), while others worry about “ruining the mood” (34%). 48% of respondents don’t know how often they should be tested for an STD and 19% say they’ve never been tested.
53% of respondents say they haven’t been tested in the last year, 23% say they’re uncomfortable about being tested, and 24% worry about what the results might show.
“The increasing epidemic of sexually transmitted diseases in the U.S. and further afield highlights the need for more screening,” says Dr. Robert Mordkin “That’s where we come in, with LetsGetChecked, people have the ability to test their sexual health status from home. We are passionate about making screening more accessible to our customers.”
Luckily, there are a variety of things respondents say would make them feel more comfortable when being tested.
This includes:
- Having healthcare professionals available to help them understand the results (55%)
- Having healthcare professionals available to explain treatment options (48%)
- Being tested in their own home (52%)
