Debunking The Myths: Can You Get STIs From Toilet Seats?

If only sex was all fun and games that is nothing more than orgasms, intimacy, babies (when you want them) and animal noises, we all won’t have much to worry about.

However, if you’re sexually active, getting a sexually transmitted infection (STI) is a real possibility and can dampen the spirit of happiness that you think sex should be all about A recent report estimates that up to 200 million new STI infections occur each year.

That’s why it’s so important to get tested regularly, be honest with your partner(s) about your sexual history and testing status, and tell the truth to your doctor whenever you visit a hospital for testing.

According to recent research from the Center for Disease Control, STIs are on the rise. Reported cases of gonorrhea, chlamydia, and syphilis have reached an all-time high worldwide and talking about them is a lot harder than talking about the common cold, flu, or even yeast infections.

It’s time however for that to change. Sexual activity is normal human behaviour and is as natural as eating and sleeping, and it only takes one sexual encounter to get an STI. As such, there is a need to stop seeing STIs and STI diagnosis as shameful because honestly, anyone could get one.

Firstly, STIs refer to any infection transmitted from one person to another through sexual contact. The infection can be bacterial (such as chlamydia or gonorrhea), viral (such HIV or herpes) or parasitic (trichomoniasis). Some STIs (not all) are completely treatable.

You may have wondered if you could get STIs from toilet seats. Here are a number of things you probably don’t know about STIs, but should.

Some STIs Show No Symptoms

Many STIs won’t raise any red flags and if they do, they’re often symptoms that can be explained away by other things like yeast infections or premenstrual syndrome-PMS (think: slight itching, discolored discharge, cramps, or back pain).

As a matter of fact, while chlamydia is one of the most common STIs in women under 25, it shows no symptoms in more than 70 percent of patients.

If left untreated, STIs such as chlamydia and gonorrhea can spread to the uterus and fallopian tubes, causing pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), which can lead to scarring of the fallopian tubes and even infertility.

Hair Preferences In Your Privates Matter

This is good news for those that enjoy waxing as doing so can make you feel healthy. A 2016 study published in the British Medical Journal showed a relationship between pubic hair removal and STI transmission of herpes and HPV through skin-to-skin contact.

Going bare also has other risks such as razor nicks, ingrown hairs, and even boils, all of which could allow for STIs to get in. If you prefer less hair, then you can try using clippers to trim the hair instead of getting rid of it entirely.

Condoms Are Not 100 Percent Safe

Yes, when used effectively, condoms offer some excellent protection against common STIs. But they’re not 100 percent perfect. For instance, animal-skin condoms are porous enough for small STI-transmitting fluids, particles, or viruses to seep through.

Even if you’re using latex condoms, which are the best for protecting against STIs, you should be aware that herpes and HPV can be transmitted via simple skin-to-skin contact, sans penetration. (That includes ball to vulva contact during sex, or any just-the-tip action, she adds.)

You Cant Catch STIs From The Toilet

While this is bt no means a way of convincing you that public toilets are good. But that myth that you can catch an STI from a toilet seat is nothing more than a health urban legend.

There’s basically no chance of catching an STI from a toilet seat. That’s because all of those little bacteria that live in our bodies don’t like living outside of human tissue, which is way warmer, wetter, and cushier than a cold, hard toilet seat. Viruses like herpes, bacteria like chlamydia, and gonorrhea can only live outside the body for 10 seconds tops!

If you are one of those people that say you have a toilet infection, stop! Get yourself and your partner tested and know there is nothing like a toilet infection. You probably got a STI from your partner.

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