I recently read some statistics (referenced below) on American sexual behavior. Keep in mind that although interesting and thought provoking, data derived from surveys is never completely accurate because people lie (gasp, suprise!) Here are some interesting hilights and then a thought provoking question of my own:
- The average american has 11 different sexual partners in their lifetime.
- (my opinion) The average hobbyist has probably had more partners than the average american. For discussion purposes, lets assume that number is greater than 30 partners.
- It is generally accepted that 20% of americans carry the genital herpes but many are unaware that they have it due to the lack or mildness of symptoms.
- (my opinion) One should not assume from this that the odds of having genital herpes go up by slightly less than 2% for every sexual partner however because the odds of being exposed to the virus are much higher if one has sex with someone in the 11+ partners than if they were to have had sex with a first timer.
QUESTION: If 20% of "average" americans (who have only had 11 partners) have genital herpes, what do you think those odds are for the average hobbyist or average provider?
Interesting Links:
http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/Poll...=156921&page=1
http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/research/ak-data.html