Just before Valentine's Day, this February 13th marks
International Condom Day
.
The initiative, promoted since 2009 by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), seeks to promote condom use in all populations.
According to the foundation, 98% of new HIV cases occur from not using it.
The
Pan American Health Organization
also warns about the dangers of having unprotected sexual relations.
According to the agency, there are about 200,000 new transmissions of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) per day in the region.
For Natalia Haag, national director of HIV Testing and Prevention of AHF Argentina, one of the most important purposes of the anniversary is, precisely, “to give continuity to the free and accessible condoms.”
Since 2002, it has been regulated throughout the country that the free delivery of prophylactics
is a mandatory public service
in health centers, hospitals, foundations and some NGOs.
The AHF campaign this year uses the slogan
Always in Fashion
to “raise awareness about correct use throughout the encounter,” says Haag, “and inform about the existence of other types of condoms, such as internal or vaginal, or field of latex for all types of practices.”
The foundation had already warned according to a survey carried out in 2021 that only “
5% of adolescents
and 13% of young people claimed to always use a condom.”
The situation is even more worrying if the latest survey by the National Ministry of Health together with FUSA and UNICEF is taken into account.
The report indicates that there is a high incidence of syphilis in the adolescent population.
“Although the age group of adolescents and young people between 15 and 24 years old represents 15% of the population, they account for
44% of
syphilis cases,” the document reads.
If the anatomist
Gabriel Fallopian
lived in this era he would not be very happy about the situation.
Above all, after more than 500 years ago the Italian pioneer began using a rudimentary “wrap” precisely to prevent syphilis in his patients.
4 curiosities that you may not have known about condoms
But you may not know some information about the manufacture and use of condoms.
Below we present some.
The “first condom” was made from animal guts
Very hygienic, right?
However, evidence shows that the oldest example of a condom that has survived to this day dates back to the
17th century
.
Back then, these reusable “liners” were made from the guts of animals like sheep or pigs.
Centuries ago, before latex was used, animal guts were used as a barrier method.
Photo: Shutterstock illustration
It is also believed that much earlier, in Ancient Egypt, another similar method of contraception was used that wrapped the male member in pieces of linen or other cloth.
Before using a condom, always check four things
It is necessary to check that any condom, free or generally sold, contains this information: the date of manufacture, the
expiration date
and the batch number.
Don't miss any of this data, they all function as control mechanisms to make sure it is still effective.
Also, make sure it is completely sealed and
that it “skates” inside the packaging
.
Check all the information on the packaging beforehand.
Using the correct diameter prophylactic is also important.
Photo: Shutterstock illustration
The fourth aspect that you must take into account is
the correct diameter
.
It has nothing to do with the length of the penis and ensures that the prophylactic will “fit” properly.
This is shown on the packaging under the heading
“nominal width”
.
You can know it this way: I measured the diameter of the erect penis and divided it by two, the result will correspond to the nominal width.
The latex to make a condom comes from a tree
The main component to make a prophylactic is
latex
, whose origin is natural.
In reality, latex is a milky liquid that is extracted from
Hevea brasiliensis
, also called “rubber tree”. The plant, native to Brazil, can reach 30 meters.
Paradoxically, Brazil is no longer one of the majority producers worldwide.
A fungus, called
Microcyclus ulei
, spread extremely easily in the plantations that were created last century and destroyed almost all national production.
Today,
Southeast Asia
is the region that produces 90% of the rubber (and latex) used worldwide.
The latex extraction process can take between 4 and 5 hours.
Photo: Shutterstock illustration
To extract the latex from the plant, “grating” is used, superficial cuts made in the trunk until it begins to drip, when it is deposited in a first container.
Later, this “raw” latex must be transformed.
You can know everything about this process in this note.
Bangkok, the city of condoms?
Bangkok
, the capital of Thailand, has its own
Condom Museum
.
Admission is free, as it is under the purview of the national health authority.
You can see packages and presentations of hundreds of brands and even see some simulation of the resistance and durability tests to which batches of prophylactics are subjected during their production.
It is not the only place that honors condoms in the Thai city.
Just as in Amsterdam there is the Condomerie, a store specialized in all types of condoms, in Bangkok the
Cabbages and Condoms Cafe
(Pumpkins and Condoms Café, in Spanish) uses this contraceptive method in all the decorative pieces in the place.
Do you want to see a Santa Claus made of condoms? Go to that establishment.
Facade of the Cabbages and Condoms Cafe, in Bangkok, Thailand.
Credit: Instagram @cabbagesandcondoms
The cafe allows its clientele to take prophylactics for free and, they maintain, the main purpose is to promote condom use and safe sex.