Top Six Inaccurate Sex Facts on the Web
By Lou CabronMay 6th, 2009
Dr. Sophia Yen, a Stanford University Medical School instructor, believes the following six medical facts about sex are the ones most often overlooked or reported incorrectly by medical sites on the web.
1. Emergency Contraception is available over the counter.
In most states that's for women over the age of 18, but by early May of 2009, that age will drop to 17. And in nine states, it's already available without any age restrictions.
Alaska
California
Hawaii
Maine
Massachusetts
New Hampshire
New Mexico
Vermont
Washington
California
Hawaii
Maine
Massachusetts
New Hampshire
New Mexico
Vermont
Washington
2. Emergency contraception doesn't cause an abortion.
It's not RU-486 — it's a way to prevent pregnancy from occurring.
3. IUDS are safe for adolescents
4. Birth control pills won't make you gain weight.
"You know, maybe one in a thousand may gain weight," says Dr. Yen, but in general the research shows people do not gain weight on birth control pills."
5. PAP smears aren't necessary until women turn 21.
Or until three years after women become sexually active. (Unless they're HIV-positive or have a suppressed immune system.)
6. Herpes can be transmitted by kissing.
Click here for our article about the study
May 7th, 2009 at 5:37 am
Hi. Excellent article! Just a suggestion re this sidebar — it confused me that the title says “inaccurate sex facts” but the items are the *accurate* facts, if you see what I mean.
In other words, I would have expected the items to be the falsities:
1. Emergency Contraception *isn’t* available over the counter.
I work in this area, so if it confused me it will probably confuse those who aren’t familiar with the accurate info.
Great job, and thanks for doing it.
May 8th, 2009 at 7:16 am
What Suzie said. And perhaps links to examples published on the Web?
May 8th, 2009 at 8:00 am
Where are the promised inaccurate “facts?” Article seems to want to present six corrected “facts” but meaning as written is ambiguous to the point of possibly being dangerous, e.g., #6: Is is accurate or inaccurate to state that herpes can be transmitted by kissing? Impossible to answer with confidence given this headline and this one sentence paragraph.
May 8th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
yes, reheadline plz thx
May 12th, 2009 at 12:37 am
[...] “Even widely trusted sites like WebMD are not that accurate when it comes to adolescent reproductive health,” says Dr. Sophia Yen, a Stanford University Med School instructor in Adolescent Medicine. She conducted an online review last summer and concluded many of the web sites weren’t just incomplete — they were often wrong, wrong, wrong. [...]