Condoms or no condoms, sex is great says Sex Professor
THE Daily Mail Reporter has news: “It’s official: Condoms DON’T make sex less enjoyable.”
No. It isn’t. The news is based on a survey carried out at the School of Public Health-Bloomington, Indiana University. The research was led by self-styled ‘sex professor’ Dr Debby Herbenick, who has “consulted for a range of corporations and organizations on issues related to study design, condoms…” She supports increased use of condoms.
Researchers reviewing an online questionnaire of the sex habits of men and women from 18-59, found participants consistently rated safe sex as ‘highly arousing and pleasurable’ – the same score as unprotected sex.
So. Everyone agreed that sex is enjoyable. The researchers did not ask men and women if condoms made sex less or more enjoyable. All we know is that given the option of sex or no sex, most would go for sex.
The Daily Mail Reporter ploughs on:
He said: ‘The U.S. continues to grapple with high rates of sexually transmitted infections, HIV, and unintended pregnancies. We need to understand how people make choices about the products they use and how these products contribute to the safety and pleasurable aspects of their sexual experiences. This is particularly important as the products themselves evolve and become more mainstream in American society.’
“He” is Dr Debby. Such is the level of research that the DMR has rebranded Dr Debby as a man.
What Dr Debby actuall said was:
“Health educators often recommend condoms, but sometimes people worry that they make sex feel less natural or less pleasurable. We haven’t found this to be the case when you actually look at people’s experiences of condom use.”
You never asked. She says:
We analysed the most recent sexual experience for 18 to 59 year olds. We looked into all kinds of factors that went into:
what sex was like for them
what they did
who they did it with
whether they used a condom
whether they used lubricant
their ratings of the experience
Then we were able to statistically analyse these and see whether using a condom or lubricant was linked in any specific way to their experience.
No. You never asked about enjoying sex with condoms.
We found that sex was largely rated very pleasurable and satisfying by women and men during their most recent act, whether or not they used a condom or lubricant. Those that used condoms found sex to still be highly pleasurable and highly arousing. There were still high rates of orgasm reported by both women and men.
But she never asked if sex was more or less arousing with a condom. All she found out was that most people like sex. She adds:
…certainly today’s condoms – which benefit from innovative design – give the opportunity for people to find a condom that works for their bodies, for their partner and for the experience that they are having.
The Mail then adds:
Sexually transmitted infections are passed on during sex without a condom. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates there are 19 million new infections in the U.S every year.
Chlamydia is one of the most common types, with 1.3m cases reported in the U.S, and 152,828 new cases reported among 16 to 24-year-olds in the UK in 2010. Sufferers can remain symptom free but if left untreated can lead to serious long-term health problems.
But if condoms make no difference to enjoying sex, why do the people no use them? Don’t the facts make a mockery of the research..?
Posted: 23rd, January 2013 | In: The Consumer Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
