image:6512:0::0

It is a frightening thought, yet as figures have recently shown, the numbers of new and confirmed cases of sexual infections such as Herpes, has gone up 2.2% in the last two years.

It has been reported this week that the total of new infections in 2006, were 376,508 new cases, bringing the total up to now 620,000 since 2005, according to the Health Protection Agency found, and it is the young community who are the most at risk.

They are still taking safe sex too lightly, according to the new study. Youngsters aged between 16 and 24 years are particularly laid back, it would seem, when it comes to having sex with or without protection. Perhaps one of the worst diseases to be picked up nowadays is chlamydia which can also effect fertility in both males and females. When the figures are scaled down, the rising of such figures of STD's appear worse. As much as one in ten young people today are tested positive with Chlamydia.

At the same time, it is not just the heterosexuals who are putting themselves in such a dangerous position, the report also shows the dramatic increase in confirmed HIV cases amongst homosexual men. Whats more, the figures have been rising steadily over the last twenty years, with no sign of the figure coming down. So far, around 73,000 people in the UK alone, are living with AIDS - perhaps more worryingly, a third of these don't even know they have the virus. It is thought that around 2,700 new cases of the virus were confirmed in 2006 in gay men in particular.

So how has such a costly campaign gone wrong? Surely young people are more aware of the potential dangers of sexually transmitted diseases than ever before? Now, the government have been forced to rethink their actions to prevent figures from rising.

Behind the new figures, and head spokesperson and director for the Agency is Professor Pete Borriello, he told BBC News,

As BBC reports:

"We have to get the message across that a casual shag should not mean syphilis, gonorrhoea, chlamydia or any other STI. We need to change attitudes towards condom use. It should be clunk clip every trip."

He also spoke of the need for gay men to get regularly tested for HIV. Young heterosexual people should also get tested for chlamydia at least once a year and particularly if they change sexual partner in that time.

Chief executive of the Brook clinic service - for young sexually active adults giving them support and advice, said,

As BBC reports:

"This is a strong signal, yet again, that we must do more to improve the sexual health of our young people."

In the same vein, the HIV and sexual health charity, The Terrence Higgins Trust have also aired their concerns over the growing figures of infections. Nick Partridge, their chief executive said,

As BBC reports:

"Despite our best efforts and those of hard-pressed clinics, the HIV epidemic in the UK is getting worse. It's clear that we can't tackle it on our own. We need more investment in HIV prevention, more HIV testing in local communities and stronger national leadership. This is a real test for national government and local health services - and one we can't afford to fail."

So the message has to be straight and simple, yet somehow young people, both gay and straight won't heed the warnings. The only thing left would be the shock tactic - if it gets youngsters wearing condoms more often, it may just have to be the way forward to stop the numbers of new cases rising...