Sexuality Group One's Blog

Sunday, March 30, 2014

March Blog- Danger of Birth Contro

Danger of the Pill and Other Forms of Birth Control

By: Caroline Christy

In todays society the media is flooded with “16 and Pregnant” and “Teen Mom 1,2,3..”, and even some of my friends that I grew up with and are my age are havin

g kids. I have to ask myself have they never heard of birth control? Well after doing some research even if they have its not always 100% effective.

It is estimated that 150 million women worldwide take birth control. Many people take birth control pills not only to prevent pregnancy but also to help with cramping, spotting, acne and irregular periods. [1] But they do not consider what the birth control is masking over; it could be a very serious medical problem. One of the main concerns with taking birth control pills is that you are putting synthetic hormones into your body and tricking your body to think that you are pregnant, and then when you start taking the placebo pills your body experiences a huge drop in its estrogen levels which causes your body to go on its period. This is problematic as your body gets used to having a certain level of estrogen and then all the sudden it drops to a much lower level.

The pill is not the only form of birth control that has risks. The birth control shot, which is commonly known as the Depo-Provera shot, can increase a women’s chance of getting HIV. [2]Also the shot has not been around for to long of a time so the long-term side effects are up in the air. Another downfall is women can react differently coming off the shot, it is unclear how long it would take a women to get pregnant after coming off of the shot. It could be as soon as 3 months or as long as 2 years. The uncertainty is what is scary.

The NuvaRing is another form of birth control that is inserted vaginally and then removed during your menstrual week. The main problem with the NuvaRing is that it can cause blood clots, just like any other birth control, but NuvaRing is

notorious for causing these in women.[3] Many people have filed law suits against this company because of the horrible side effects it has caused and even death in some cases.

Just like any other medicine out there in the world birth control has its pros and cons. At least in this day and age we do not have Comstock Laws[4] that prevent the information for circulating. It is a women’s job to be informed and look up which birth control will would best for her. I know for me personally writing this blog has given me a lot of information I did not know before.

[1] "Body Ecology Healthy Diet." All Body Ecology Articles. N.p., 29 May 2008. Web. 31 Mar. 2014.

[2] "Body Ecology Healthy Diet." All Body Ecology Articles. N.p., 29 May 2008. Web. 31 Mar. 2014.

[3] "How Does NuvaRing Work?" NuvaRing: How It Works. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Mar. 2014

[4] Opposition of Birth Control (Lecture, UNC Charlotte, Charlotte, NC, 2/4/2014)

The Prevalence of Sexually Transmitted Diseases in the Victorian Era

by Sam Ackels

The 19^th Century, or “Victorian Era,” was an extremely revolutionary time in America. The American Revolution was now over and America began to see exponential economic growth. Society became increasingly industrialized and modernized. Science and medicine also had a giant breakthrough in this era with many bright minds like Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell. All of these new ideas and technologies inspired Americans to question their roots and begin to ask more questions. This led to much experimentation, especially sexual experimentation, in this era as shown through these various social and biological ideas.[1] This newfound sense of liberation encouraged young Americans in this time period to be free and express themselves without the fear of going against old traditions.

As one can imagine, the amount of sex Americans were having during this time period was extremely higher than the past. Sex became extremely widespread throughout this time period and began to reach a point where it could not be well controlled. STDs began to infect people at an alarming rate and no methods of combating STDs were yet developed. The most common STD in Victorian America was syphilis with an estimated ten percent of all Americans suffering from it.[2] Syphilis is a chronic contagious usually venereal and often congenital disease caused by a spirochete (Treponema pallidum) and if left untreated producing chancres, rashes, and systemic lesions in a clinical course with three stages continued over many years.[3] Since medicine and contraception was a relatively new thing in this era, help was nearly impossible to come by and there was no readily available cure. In an attempt to combat syphilis, doctors and inventors such as Charles Goodyear began developing and advocating the use of rubber condoms which were now extremely cheap and easy to make compared to the sheep guts condoms previously reserved for the upper class.[4] Treatment and prevention was not just reserved for males, however. Most females used douching as a method of treating syphilis and other possible STDs.[5] Douching is essentially spraying water into the vagina in an effort to clean it out. No real cures would arrive until the twentieth and twenty-first centuries but at least the American people had a head start on treating these awful diseases.

[1] Marsh, Jan. Victoria and Albert Museum, "Sex & Sexuality in the 19th Century." Accessed March 30, 2014. http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/s/sex-and-sexuality-19th-century/.

[2] John H. Stokes, The Third Great Plague: A Discussion of Syphilis for Everyday People (Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Company, 1920), 26.

[3] Merriam-Webster, "syphilis." Accessed March 30, 2014. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/syphilis.

[4] Case Western Reserve University, "19th Century Artifacts." Accessed March 30, 2014. http://www.case.edu/affil/skuyhistcontraception/online-2012/19thCentury.html.

[5] Ibid

Just How Much Sex Education Are We Getting?

By: Jordan Barker

Sex education is something that most people take lightly. The funny thing is, it’s something kids and teenagers must know in order to make the right decisions when they are presented. I can remember my own sex education classes as I was growing up. I had three classes throughout my life, one in fifth grade, one in seventh grade, and one in ninth grade. As I was sitting through those classes, I could remember feeling weird and uncomfortable. I never wanted to go to the classes and I took them sort of as a joke. I had a lot of friends that would make jokes out of the topics we discussed so I thought it was funny and somewhat pointless. I really didn’t know just how important those classes were.

After being in the history of sexuality class, I understand how those sex education classes were needed and just how important they are. I believe every kid growing up should know what’s out there and what could happen with their body. I think if kids knew what could happen, there would be less teen pregnancy and STD’s happening in our world because the teenager would be informed. As I was doing some research, I found that there is a debate going on about whether sex education should be a mandatory in schools or whether it shouldn’t be discussed at all. Personally, I believe it’s an important topic that should be discussed at school as well as in the home by the parents. Its been said by some health professionals that kids with good sex education will allow them to gain a better understanding of their body and help them to build a positive attitude. Good sex educations allows kids to have better communication skills and build relationships easy as well help them resist pressure and the media. Bad sex education, or none at all, could expose kids and teenagers to abuse, exploitation, far, and even ill health. [1]

From that information and from personal knowledge, I decided to support sex educations in schools. While it may be a big debate, there are a lot of problems in this world that could be solved if people were just a little informed before they made their decisions. In my eyes, it can’t hurt to teach kids about things they will encounter throughout there time in school. It can only prepare them for the future with hopes that they will make the right decision when the time comes.

[1] Atwal, Kay. Newham Recorder, "Big Debate: Should Children at School have Sex Education." Last modified July 10, 2013. Accessed March 30, 2014. http://www.newhamrecorder.co.uk/news/big_debate_should_children_at_school_have_sex_education_1_2272544.

Divisions of Reform Physiology

DIVISIONS OF REFORM PHYSIOLOGY

By: Vincent Bohnert

Some people in the 18^th century were very conservative when it came to sex. These people thought sex before marriage was a sin and that even masturbation was unethical. On the other hand, there were also more than a fair amount of people who thought oppositely, claiming that sex was in fact normal, ethical, and morally acceptable. These two vastly different views became the extremity divisions of reform physiology and influenced many people’s beliefs.

The Christian Reform Physiology, which held more of a traditional perspective on sex, based their ideals on religious practices. Sylvester Graham, a noteworthy person of this division, wrote A Lecture to Young Men (1832), which argued that there are two kinds of appetites that young males and females can have: an appetite for nutrition (hunger and thirst), and an appetite for reproduction (sex). To help these young men and women out with both of their appetite types, Graham invented what he called the Graham cracker. This snack was produced in part to get Americans back to eating whole grain foods and as a way to fulfill sexual impulses that will inevitably arise. Graham thought that masturbation damaged people’s health in general so he launched an anti-masturbation campaign in which he trained adolescents not to masturbate by telling them to exercise constantly, and by conforming them to a non-spicy, low meat diet. Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, another advocate for this trending anti-masturbation crusade, believed that a remedy for male masturbation was circumcision. He, like Graham, also created a food to help with inappropriate urges: corn flakes.[1] The similarity between corn flakes and graham crackers is that they are both plain foods which these two gentlemen idealized as the perfect diet in order for young men and women to have self-control.

http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/John_Harvey_Kellogg_ggbain.15047.jpg

Dr. John Harvey Kellogg

https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRuOe4Xu-n1XB0bRxSf95xyvh5yAVEy_Ypv-igLz2lMeq-sIChOog

On the more radical side of reform physiology were a group of people known as the Free Thinkers. The Free Thinkers thought sex was perfectly natural and healthy, contraception and abortion were both ethical, and that interracial sex was moral. Robert Dale Owen wrote Moral Physiology; or a Brief Plain Treatise on the Population Question (1831), which became the first American work to offer arguments for decreasing births and it also offered practical advice on contraception.[2] Another man, Charles Knowlton wrote Fruits of Philosophy (1832) which described sex as pleasurable and it also contained many birth control methods that couples could use if necessary.[3] Both of these men expressed their viewpoints in a more philosophical and logical fashion which is more or less the definition of a Free Thinker.

Robert Dale Owen
http://www.biography.com/imported/images/Biography/Images/Profiles/D/Robert-Dale-Owen-9431081-1-402.jpg

[1] Soniak, Matt. Mental Floss, "Corn Flakes Were Invented as Part of an Anti-Masturbation Crusade." Last modified December 28, 2012. Accessed March 30, 2014. http://mentalfloss.com/article/32042/corn-flakes-were-invented-part-anti-masturbation-crusade.

[2]Encyclopædia Britannica Online, s. v. "Robert Dale Owen", accessed March 30, 2014, http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/436270/Robert-Dale-Owen.

[3] Horowitz, Helen. History Engine Tools for Collaboration Education and Research, "Charles Knowlton and The Fruits of Philosophy." Last modified 2006. Accessed March 30, 2014. http://historyengine.richmond.edu/episodes/view/4762.

Male Circumcision

Male Circumcision

By: Courtney Brown

Male circumcision is seen as a socially acceptable practice that is done today by most parents. Male circumcision is surgical removal of some or the entire foreskin of a man’s penis. People have their male child circumcised as a baby today mostly because they see it as unclean or just because everyone else does it. According to the CDC male circumcision will reduce and lower the risk of STDs and acquiring HIV from an infected partner. The risks of this procedure include pain, bleeding, and infection. [1]

To have foreskin is a good thing according to some doctors because it protects the penis from irritants of urine and feces that may not be cleaned off well enough. The foreskin is very sensitive and when removed the penis will lose a lot of sensitivity because the glans become hard and tough. In sexual intercourse, a man who is circumcised will not feel as much pleasure as a man who isn't because of loss of sensitivity therefore leading to usage of lubricants for satisfaction. The practice of circumcision is solely based on the wants of the parents and their opinions but in reality not being circumcised isn't such a bad thing because it can be just as clean as a circumcised penis. Circumcision originated a long time ago because it is even mentioned in the bible in Exodus and the Book of Genesis. In Exodus it tells of Moses son being circumcised with a flint knife by his mother. In Genesis it tells of Abraham being circumcised in return for being the father of a many nations and all of his sons after him on the eighth day of life. [2]

As you can see circumcision has been practiced for a long time but did it come to mind that these things were done before the invention of medicine? These circumcisions were completed without any medicines and most of the time with unclean objects. Today they are still done with minor medications to ease pain but not to stop pain. Circumcision is also done as a religious reason such as in Indian cultures which is a tradition for young boys in coming-of-age rituals. Medically it is not necessary but can be used to treat certain medical conditions. [3] In the 19^th century doctors were obsessed with giving male children circumcisions because it was supposed to stop masturbation and was defined as a hygienic procedure. If this big idea that masturbation could be prevented by circumcision had never started and that it prevented various hygienic disorders I don’t believe it would be around today. Circumcision does not prevent hygienic disorders nor does not being circumcised if it’s not kept clean.

http://images.sodahead.com/polls/002219585/514178286_tumblr_lmc1dxqcSm1qaqu94o1_r2_500_xlarge.jpeg

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y171/Intactivists/circumcision_071003_ms.jpg

[1] Center for Disease Control and Prevention, "Male Circumcision; HIV/Aids." Last modified 04 15, 2013. Accessed March 30, 2014. http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/prevention/research/malecircumcision/.

[2] Warren, John. Church and State, "The Foreskin and the Origins of Circumcision." Last modified 11 27, 2012. Accessed March 30, 2014. http://churchandstate.org.uk/2012/11/the-foreskin-and-the-origins-of-circumcision/.

[3] BBC, "Cultural and health aspects to circumcision." Last modified 2014. Accessed March 30, 2014. http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/malecircumcision/cultural_1.

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Incest-Carson Cherry

Incest

When we think of incest in today’s time the first things that usually pop into our heads are back woods country people, West Virginia, meth heads, mental handicaps, and deformed babies. Incest is something that disgusts us to think about in our culture and environment but is something that was prevalent many years ago. Back during the times or royalty families were known to inbreed so that there family tree would be pure[1]. Incest was also seen in Egyptian and Roman times, it was an accepted practice by the Egyptians but it was not approved of by the Romans[2]

Not only is incest seen as morally wrong but also there are laws regarding the matter. Here in the Unites States incest is defined as “sexual contact between those so closely related that if they were to marry it would be illegal”. Just to give an example of how different cultures view incest, in India and areas of the Arab world around half the marriages happen between first cousins[3].

Here in North Carolina it is a felony to have any sexual relations between a grandparent and a grandchild, a parent and a child, a parent and a step-child, a parent and a legally adopted child, or a brother and a sister whether they are full blood related or are half siblings. If sexual relations happen between an uncle and a niece, an uncle and a nephew, or an aunt and a niece, and an aunt and a nephew they can be charge with a class 1 misdemeanor. When it comes to marriage in North Carolina you cannot get married if you are closer kin than first cousins or if you are double first cousins[4].

When it comes to children who have been born from incest couples research shows that there is a higher chance for birth defects. In a study conducted in Czechoslovakia on babies born from incest couples less than half of the children were healthy at birth, 42% of them were born with severe birth defects or either died after birth, and 11% of the children were considered mildly mentally impaired[5]. Incest will always be something that is morally wrong, taboo, and legally wrong in our culture. Incest is an act that causes effects that last a life time. It is something that cannot be tolerated.

[1] Incest Within Royal Families & Consanguinity Laws online forum, August 13, 2009.

[2] Sex info. Online, "Incest Laws in the United States." Last modified May 25, 2012. Accessed March 26, 2014. http://www.soc.ucsb.edu/sexinfo/article/incest-laws-united-states.

[3] Sex info. Online, "Incest Laws in the United States." Last modified May 25, 2012. Accessed March 26, 2014. http://www.soc.ucsb.edu/sexinfo/article/incest-laws-united-states.

[4] Cousin Couples, "U.S. State Laws." Accessed March 26, 2014. http://www.cousincouples.com/?page=states.

[5] Hal, Herzog. "The Problem with Incest." Psycology Today, October 11, 2012. http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/animals-and-us/201210/the-problem-incest (accessed March 26, 2014).