A CONFESSION: LETTING MY GUARD DOWN
Shortly before my 28th birthday, I discovered that a friend of mine was HIV positive. He wasn’t a very close friend, but I knew him quite well and it came as a shock to me because he was well educated, intelligent and financially established in the world, and I believed that people like him did […]
INNOVATIVE GAY MEDICAL PRACTICE LAUNCHED IN PRETORIA
Addressing the unique needs of gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM), a new professional, confidential and upmarket medical practice has been launched in Pretoria. 1081 Medical Practice aims to provide a range of specialised medical services to gay men, with a focus on sexual health and well-being. It offers clients […]
LARGER MEN LAST LONGER IN BED DURING SEX
In surprising results from a new study, researchers have found that chubbier men tend to have more endurance in the sack than fitter men. Researchers from Turkey’s Erciyes University said that men with excess body fat lasted an average of 7.3 minutes while having sex, while their skinnier brothers only managed 1.8 minutes. And the […]
DESIRE FOR INTIMACY MAY LEAD GAY MEN TO USE PrEP
A new study has found that intimacy is a powerful factor in the choices some gay and bisexual men make when it comes to HIV prevention. Researchers concluded that a desire for intimacy among these men, who are in steady relationships where both partners are HIV negative, is a major reason for them not using condoms, even […]
CROSSING OVER (An anonymous writer’s reflection on drug culture)
When I was in high school my poodle got tick bite fever and because we lived on a farm we kept pet meds in the fridge. The hardest thing for me to do was to puncture her skin and inject the Phenamidine. I knew if I didn’t she would die. So I saved her life. […]
WHO: HOMOSEXUALITY-RELATED ‘DISORDERS’ SHOULD BE DROPPED
A World Health Organisation (WHO) working group has called for the scrapping of so-called “homosexuality-related psychological disorders”. While homosexuality itself is no longer recognised as a psychological disorder, a number of “disorders” deemed to be related to homosexuality have remained in WHO’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD). This includes, for example, a person’s confusion around […]
NOVEL HOME-BASED STD TEST LAUNCHED
Many of us fear the embarrassment or possible rejection of discussing our sex lives with doctors and nurses. That often means that we suffer in silence, living with possible STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) instead of getting tested and treated. Now, a new home-based STD test for chlamydia and gonorrhoea, which can be ordered online via […]
OUT ADVISES GAY AND BI MEN ON USE OF PrEP
A local LGBT health group says not all gay and bisexual men should necessarily use HIV prevention medication, although it could be a highly effective option for some. OUT Well-being, the Tshwane-based LGBT organisation, has sought to offer clarity on a recent international recommendation that gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men […]
LET’S TALK ABOUT SEX BABY, LET’S TALK ABOUT HIV…
One of my favourite sitcom quotes comes from Will & Grace when Karen tries to coax Jack into sleeping with Beverly (Lesley Jordan) for money. “Oh you’ll do it. You’ll do it the same way any self-respecting woman does. Get on your back, point your heels to Jesus and think of handbags.” Don’t know about […]
WHO: GAY MEN SHOULD TAKE HIV PREVENTION MEDICATION
For the first time, the World Health Organisation (WHO) says that gay men and men who have sex with men should take preventive antiretroviral medication as an additional method of preventing HIV infection, alongside the use of condoms. Known as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), the medication, if taken consistently as prescribed, has been proven to dramatically […]