Introduction

     You switch on your television to see a family serial in between comes the commercial break. A family of parents & adolescent son & daughter is shown watching TV. On screen appears our star of millennium Amitabh Bachchan. He gives some information about HIV/AIDS. He teaches the young impressionable minds about safe sex. He says use condom & you are safe. The parents try to distract their adolescent son & daughter by asking them to bring newspaper or water, our megastar warns parents not to let young ones remain ignorant about HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) & AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). However the fact is he is keeping the generation Y ignorant about the fact that using condom while having sex is not “safe sex practice” but low risk activity.

You switch to sports channel & here you have our cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar telling the youngsters that condom protects you from HIV/AIDS the way helmet protects him from bouncers of Rawalpindi Express Shoaib Akhtar.

You feel bored & switch over to entertainment channel. In commercial break you see a man knocking the door of a prostitute now respectably called Commercial Sex Worker. In the background we hear the voice of Munnabhai asking the man whether he takes precaution. He says “Condom liya na bhai” (I am using condom).

You switch off the TV & start reading a newspaper. Again you see a big advertisement of a condom which tells that condom protects you from HIV/AIDS, STD (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) & pregnancy.

You go out for shopping. A city bus stops before you. It has a message on its back. “Condom kab kab, yaun sambhand jab jab” (use condom whenever you have sex.)

You discuss this condomania with the schoolteacher & he opens before you Teachers’ workbook on “Adolescence Education Program” which was proposed by Human Resources Development (HRD) ministry for teaching students of IX & X. It teaches children Practice the ABC of prevention:

• A- Abstinence.
• B- Be faithful.
• C- Use Condoms correctly & consistently. (31, 115, 117)
• D= Death:

  This is a reality & young people need to accept that if they have sexual intercourse & they do not use condoms, they are putting their lives at risk. (119).

  You visit a hospital & you see a poster which shows be faithful to your partner &/or use condom every time you have sex.

  Anywhere you go you are being stalked by condom. It has become omnipresent. This awareness campaign is targeted at adolescents & youth.

  Why there is so much fuss about condom?

  Basic modes of HIV transmission are
  • 1) sexual transmission
  • 2) blood contact
  • 3) mother to child transmission.

  About 86% transmissions are through sexual route. Hence this aspect is mostly emphasized in any campaign of AIDS awareness.

  As adolescents & youth are sexually active & may contribute in spread AIDS. They are being taught about how to protect themselves from AIDS. They are being taught about “safe sex”. They are being taught that they should refrain from indiscriminate sex activity as this lead to spread of AIDS as no one knows which stranger is having HIV. They are taught that they should be faithful to their partner .So far so good.

  They are also being taught that if they can’t resist the temptation they should use condom while having sex, as it is a “safe sex practice.”

  Is sex using condom really safe sex?

  The scientific answer is ‘NO’.

  This is what official website of Centre for Disease Control & Prevention Atlanta, USA http://www.cdc.gov/condomeffectiveness/latex.htm states about effectiveness of condom..

  The surest way to avoid transmission of sexually transmitted diseases is to abstain from sexual intercourse, or to be in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship with a partner who has been tested and you know is uninfected.

  For persons whose sexual behaviors place them at risk for STDs, correct and consistent use of the male latex condom can reduce the risk of STD transmission. However, no protective method is 100 percent effective, and condom use cannot guarantee absolute protection against any STD. Furthermore, condoms lubricated with spermicides are no more effective than other lubricated condoms in protecting against the transmission of HIV and other STDs.

  In order to achieve the protective effect of condoms, they must be used correctly and consistently. Incorrect use can lead to condom slippage or breakage, thus diminishing their protective effect. Inconsistent use, e.g., failure to use condoms with every act of intercourse, can lead to STD transmission because transmission can occur with a single act of intercourse.

  When used consistently and correctly, male latex condoms are highly effective in preventing the sexual transmission of HIV infection (i.e., HIV-negative partners in heterosexual serodiscordant relationships in which condoms were consistently used were 80% less likely to become HIV-infected compared with persons in similar relationships in which condoms were not used) and can reduce the risk for other STDs, including Chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis, and might reduce the risk of women developing pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)

  If used consistently and correctly, the female condom might substantially reduce the risk for STDs.

  There are two primary ways that STDs can be transmitted. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), as well as gonorrhea, Chlamydia, and trichomoniasis – the discharge diseases – are transmitted when infected semen or vaginal fluids contact mucosal surfaces (e.g., the male urethra, the vagina or cervix). In contrast, genital ulcer diseases – genital herpes, syphilis, and chancroid – and human papillomavirus are primarily transmitted through contact with infected skin or mucosal surfaces.

  All the above given examples prove that condom can reduce risk of AIDS but it can’t eliminate the risk.

  The question is ‘‘Do we want to reduce the spread of AIDS or we want to stop its spread?” If we want to stop its spread we have to clearly warn the people about sex using condom being a low risk activity & break the myth of so called safe sex.

  Secondly we should encourage the boys & girls to marry as soon as they grow up & are in a position to support themselves & their families (Of course the minimum age prescribed by government must be complied with.)

  The parents of marriageable boys & girls must take extra efforts to make marriage easy, simple & economical so as to facilitate this process fast. With reduction of expenses on marriage & by making it easy & simple they can help make this world a healthier place to love & live.

  The only solution is “Make marriage so easy that illicit sex becomes difficult.” Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be Upon him).