Shan Boodram: Here’s the deal: it's normal to be freaked out by sexually transmitted infections. No disease is ever fun, and they can be even less fun when they have to do with sex. 

But actually? STIs are avoidable, treatable, and preventable. 

So let's cover the facts. Because just a few key pieces of information can help you have a safer sex life. 

Hi! I'm Shan Boodram, and this is Crash Course: Sex Ed. 

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Where there are humans, there are germs. We sneeze, we get our hands dirty, and sometimes, we get sexually transmitted infections, or STIs, which are infections that can be spread through sexual contact. 

In fact, in 2018, the CDC estimated that over 67 million people in the US had an STI, with about 20 million new cases every year. And almost half of new cases showed up in people between the ages of 15 and 24. 

When it comes to STIs, there are a lot of myths out there. Here's a big one:

"STIs are so common because they're hard to prevent and treat."

Actually, most are pretty easy to avoid, but many people just don't know how to prevent them. And most are also easy to treat.

For the few that aren't curable, there are options to minimise their impact on your life and make sure you don't pass them on. 

So, let's get into it. .

Most STIs can be put into one of two categories: bacterial or viral. 

The most common bacterial STIs are gonorrhoea, syphilis, and chlamydia. They're spread through bodily fluids or direct contact with a rash or sore during unprotected sex. 

And by "fluids," I don’t just mean semen: Depending on the STI, "fluids" can also mean vaginal fluids, preejaculate, or saliva, and these can be exchanged through penetration, oral sex, anal sex, sex toys, or even rubbing genitals against each other. 

Luckily, we've got a highly effective solution: wrap it up.

No, not that kind of wrap [burrito shown], this kind of wrap [packaged condoms shown]. Thank you  

One of the easiest ways to avoid catching an STI is to use a barrier method of protection, which prevents direct contact.

Like external condoms for penises, internal condoms that go inside a vagina or anus, and dental dams, which can be placed over a vulva or an anus before engaging in oral sex. 

And because sex toys can also spread bacteria and STIs, it's important to clean those after every use, usually with hot water and antibacterial soap. 

Condoms can also help make them safer, especially with new or multiple partners. 

But while barrier methods are really good at preventing STIs, they're not perfect — they can malfunction, and there can be user error. 

That's why STI testing and open dialogue among partners is so important. You can even make it flirty! 

"Show me your results and I'll show you mine."

Now, if you do get a bacterial STI, there is a really effective cure for them: antibiotics.

There are even preventative antibiotics, like the one called Doxycycline that someone can take up to 62 hours after a barrier method fails, or if they don't use one. 

But they're not meant to replace barrier methods. And at the time of recording this video, Dozycycline is only recommended for cis men and trans women. 

As for when to seek treatment? Sometimes, it's clear that something is up down there — pain, unusual discharge, sores, or even flu-like symptoms with syphilis in particular. 

But there's also this other myth floating around: that if you don’t have any symptoms, you don't need to worry about having an STI. 

Here's the truth, though: most STIs are asymptomatic, meaning someone might not notice having any symptoms at all. 

Teen Shan: So I could get an STI and not even know it? 

Shan: Mmhmm. That's why it's so important to get tested regularly, especially if you're having sex with multiple partners, or the person you're having sex with is having sex with other people.

Because even when someone isn't showing symptoms, they're still able to pass on the infection to someone else. And a long-term infection, even an asymptomatic one, can lead to irreversible damage to the reproduction organs. 

And hot tip: don't just assume your doctor is testing you for STIs if they take your blood or urine sample. If you want an STI test, you gotta ask for it.

And if you don't feel like you can ask your regular doctor, you can check out your local Department of Health, Planned Parenthood, or another STI testing option near you. 

Now, bacterial STIs aren't the only ones out there. There are also STIs caused by viruses. And unlike their bacterial cousins, viral STIs can't be cured — but medications can keep symptoms in check.

The most common viral STIs are herpes, Human Papillomavirus aka HPV, hepatitis B, and Human Immunodeficiency Virus or HIV. 

All of these can be transmitted through sexual contact with an infected person, so barrier methods are a key part of preventing them. 

But what does it look like to get one? 

Let's start with herpes. There are two kinds. HSV-1 usually causes cold sores on the mouth, while HSV-2 usually causes sores around the genitals. 

Either way, the virus is most often transmitted by contact with sores, but it can also happen even when none are visible. 

Once someone gets it, the herpes is there for keeps. It can go dormant for long periods of time and then pop back up in times of stress or when their immune system is otherwise compromised. 

So, folks with herpes won't always have sores but may experience "recurrences." 

But even though herpes isn't curable, it is very treatable. There are prescription medications that can help manage flare-ups and put the infection back into dormancy. 

Up next, there's HPV. Unlike the two kinds of herpes, there are over 200 kinds of HPV. Which sounds scary, but for the vast majority of people, their immune system will clear out an HPV infection pretty quickly. 

There are a few strains that can stick around and cause genital warts, and other strains can cause cells at the site of infection to behave in a way that can lead to cancer. High-risk HPV strains most commonly cause cervical cancer, but can also cause other cancers. 

The good news is, there's an HPV vaccine. And it's so effective that in places where it's been rolled out, researchers have seen drastic decreases in cervical cancer in the decades that followed. 

Your doctor can give you more information on the vaccine if you're interested, your check your records to see if you already got it. There's also a vaccine for hepatitis B, which is transmitted through fluids from unprotected sex or sharing needles.

And speaking of life-saving science, here's a viral STI you might have heard about before: HIV. 

This was once a deadly disease, but now it's considered a chronic, manageable illness for those who are able to access care — and it can be prevented, too. 

HIV damages a person's immune system, making it hard to fight everyday infections, and it can sometimes lead to an ongoing condition called AIDS. Although not everyone living with HIV develops AIDS. 

In the US, gay and bisexual men are the group most affected by HIV, but it can affect people of any sexual orientation, and be transmitted through many kinds of sex — or no sex at all, like through an infected needle. 

That said, anal sex is significant riskier for the transmission of HIV than vaginal sex. That's because anal and rectal tissue is thin, allowing the virus increased access to the bloodstream. 

While I can't stress enough how important condoms are, there's an added option for HIV prevention: 

For people who are at higher risk of being exposed, their doctor can prescribe a medication called pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, which is taken as a daily pill or a bimonthly injection. 

When it's taken properly, PrEP reduces the risk of getting sexually transmitted HIV up to 99%. 

There are also medications that can be taken if someone thinks they were exposed to HIV. If taken within 72 hours of contact, it can prevent infection. These are called post-exposure prophylaxis drugs, or PEP. 

Some people think that PrEP and PEP are only for gay men, but that's not true! STIs do not discriminate based on sexual orientation. 

And if someone is HIV positive? There are medications like antiretroviral therapy that can help them live a normal, healthy, and long life, and prevent them from passing the disease on to others. 

And scientists around the world are working hard to develop an effective HIV vaccine. Unfortunately, though, there's still serious stigma around HIV in most cultures. 

That means medicines like PrEP and PEP — as well as programs to help people afford them — may not be talked about. So, some people are speaking up to change that. 

Teen Shan, let em know. 

This is the famed, the fabulous, the ever-fashionable Billy Porter. He was diagnosed HIV-positive in 2007, and kept it private for more than a decade. 

In the religious family he grew up in, HIV waa considered a punishment from God. And as an actor, there was a chance his disease would prevent him from getting work.

But in 2021, he took his diagnosis public. "There's no more stigma," he said in an interview. "Let's be done with that."

And Porter's joined by others with HIV in stopping the stigma, from NBA star Magic Johnson, to "Queer Eye" host Jonathan Van Ness. 

As Van Ness put it on social media, "We have come a long way in the fight against HIV/AIDS, but there is so much more work left to be done." 

So, getting an STI doesn't have to be a world-shattering thing — or something to be ashamed of. 

Overall, understanding how to prevent STIs, being aware of your own body, and communicating with your partners and your doctor are key. We're all just trying to help each other live our safest, healthiest sex lives. 

Ooh! Speaking of prevention — next time, we're talking about contraception. See you then. 

This episode of Crash Course: Sex Ed was produced in partnership with the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University. If you're interested in learning more, visit their website for resources that explore the topics we discussed in the video today  

Thank you for watching this episode, which was filmed at our studio in Indianapolis and was made with the help of all these mythbusting people. If you want to help keep Crash Course free for everyone forever, you can join our community on Patreon.