The Dangers of Kissing! By Mrs Vera West

     As I have been arguing for many years here, a return to chastity is the only sure way to avoid a whole host of sexually transmitted diseases. And, on the STI front things are getting worse, with kissing now becoming a danger. Apologies for discussing a somewhat unpleasant topic for Christian conservatives, but those of us with children and grandchildren, in this hyper-sexualised culture, need to be up to date on the issues. Here is the report:
  https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-7010325/Kissing-tongues-likely-spread-gonorrhoea-oral-sex.html

“Kissing with tongues can spread the sexually transmitted infection gonorrhoea, researchers have warned. Scientists say the STI can be caught through saliva – despite the NHS dismissing kissing as a way of passing it on.
And spreading the infection this way may be more common than expected, the Australian researchers claimed. They found gay men were more likely to have gonorrhoea in their throat than their penis – and the risk of spreading it was greater for kissing than for oral sex. Antiseptic mouthwash could, the scientists suggested, be created to try and kill the bacteria, which can cause a sore throat and swollen lymph nodes. The research into oropharyngeal gonorrhoea comes amid growing concerns about 'super' strains of the STI that are becoming resistant to medicine. Scientists at Monash University and the Melbourne Sexual Health Centre in Australia surveyed around 3,000 gay and bisexual men in the city.

'A number of pieces of evidence suggest transmission from the oropharynx [back of the throat] may be more common than previously thought,' Professor Eric Chow and his colleagues wrote in the paper. '[The bacteria] can be cultured from saliva, suggesting that the exchange of saliva between individuals may potentially transmit gonorrhoea. 'Several case reports in the 1970s suggested kissing as a mode of transmission for oropharyngeal gonorrhoea... but kissing has always been neglected as a risk factor'. Professor Chow said a rise in global reports of gonorrhoea strains which are evolving to stop antibiotics working against them is cause for concern. Doctors and scientists must find new ways of stopping the infection, he warned, and efforts are currently focused on encouraging condom use during sex. Discovering a way the bacteria are spreading under the radar could lead to new ways of spotting it sooner and preventing infections.

Men in the study were more likely to have gonorrhoea in their throat than in their penis or anus, the researchers found. More than six per cent had the infection in their mouth while just under six per cent had it in their anus, and only three per cent in the penis. And the proportion of men with the STI was higher in a small group (52 men) who reported having only kissed men in the past three months without having sex. Those who did the opposite – sex without kissing – were the least likely to have the STI, compared to only-kissers or those who did both. Kissing more partners also led to a significantly higher risk of the infection – those who French-kissed four or more men were 46 per cent more likely to have it. This risk rose to 81 per cent if they also had sex with the people they kissed, showing the risk increase for sex (35 per cent) was smaller than that for kissing. 'Previously, it has generally been assumed that oropharyngeal gonorrhoea can only be acquired from an infected penis or anus, not from another man’s [throat],' the researchers said.

'Hence, the importance of the oropharynx has been neglected in gonorrhoea transmission. 'Our results suggest kissing with or without sex may be a risk factor for oropharyngeal gonorrhoea.' In contrast to the team's findings, the NHS website says: 'Gonorrhoea is not spread by kissing, hugging, swimming pools, toilet seats, or sharing baths, towels, cups, plates or cutlery.' The scientists added that using spit as lubricant during sex or oral contact with the anus could also spread the infection from the throat to the anus or genitals. They acknowledged the study, based on homosexual men at only one sexual health centre, may be difficult to apply to the wider population, but women can also catch oral gonorrhoea. Super gonorrhoea – strains of the infection which have evolved to resist treatment with typical antibiotics – is becoming a growing concern around the world. Experts have warned it will only be a matter of time until the infection becomes untreatable with current methods. Two women in the UK were this year among the first to be diagnosed with super gonorrhoea, with both their infections being traced back to holidayers in Ibiza.”

     Now while much of this item relates to the study of gay people, there should be caution, just like in the early days of HIV/AIDS, where it was regarded as a gay disease only. The super gonorrhoea can spread though activities now unfortunately common among young heterosexuals, so this disease threat will be facing young sexually active people. It is yet another risk to add to an ever-growing set of threats facing the young people of the world today. The original Sexually Transmitted Infections article is:
  https://sti.bmj.com/content/early/2019/04/16/sextrans-2018-053896

“Abstract
Objectives A mathematical model suggested that a significant proportion of oropharyngeal gonorrhoea cases are acquired via oropharynx-to-oropharynx transmission (ie, tongue-kissing), but to date, no empirical study has investigated this. This study aimed to examine the association between kissing and oropharyngeal gonorrhoea among gay and bisexual men who have sex with men (MSM). Methods MSM attending a public sexual health centre in Melbourne, Australia, between March 2016 and February 2017 were invited to participate in a brief survey that collected data on their number of male partners in the last 3 months, in three distinct categories: kissing-only (ie, no sex including no oral and/or anal sex), sex-only (ie, any sex without kissing), and kissing-with-sex (ie, kissing with any sex). Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to examine associations between oropharyngeal gonorrhoea positivity by nucleic acid amplification tests and the three distinct partner categories. Results A total of 3677 men completed the survey and were tested for oropharyngeal gonorrhoea. Their median age was 30 (IQR 25–37) and 6.2% (n=229) had oropharyngeal gonorrhoea. Men had a mean number of 4.3 kissing-only, 1.4 sex-only, and 5.0 kissing-with-sex partners in the last 3 months. Kissing-only and kissing-with-sex were associated with oropharyngeal gonorrhoea, but sex-only was not. The adjusted odds for having oropharyngeal gonorrhoea were 1.46-fold (95% CI 1.04 to 2.06) for men with =4 kissing-only partners and 1.81-fold (95% CI 1.17 to 2.79) for men with =4 kissing-with-sex partners. Conclusions These data suggest that kissing may be associated with transmission of oropharyngeal gonorrhoea in MSM, irrespective of whether sex also occurs.”

     Clearly, the 1960s sexual revolution is burning itself, and everybody it touches, out, and that only a return to chastity and traditionalism can save us from cultural super gonorrhoea.
  https://affirmativeright.blogspot.com/2019/05/the-war-on-chastity.html

     Footnote: suggestions of a sex strike by US feminist actress Alyssa Milano, done to protest about the winding back of abortion on demand in the US, could have the unexpected consequence of bringing back chastity into the public discourse:
  https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-05-11/whos-boss-alyssa-milano-calls-sex-strike-protest-pro-life-bill-gets-mocked

All Blog Posts Authorised by K. W. Grundy
13 Carsten Court, Happy Valley, SA.