Condoms, when used consistently and correctly, are the only form of protection that can help stop the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).International AIDS charity organization AVERT lists this fact as a top reason for using condoms during sex.As the Supreme Court of Canada sits poised to decide whether or not law should apply to people with HIV who don’t disclose their status to partners but who are being treated – under the pretext that since their viral loads may be lower, the risk of infection to others is lower – the rate of new HIV cases in Canada remains steady.Yes, HIV can be treated. Yes, people can live with HIV. But do they want to?According to a Canadian AIDS Society report 2,417 Canadians were diagnosed with HIV in 2009. An estimated 12 people are infected every day.The Ontario Ministry of Education curriculum says in Grades 9 and 10 students learn what leads to responsible sexual relationships. They learn how to prevent STDs through abstinence and the use of condoms. And they learn how to use decision-making to promote healthy sexuality.That education continues in Grades 11 and 12.But that curriculum isn’t enough, says the AIDS Society of Simcoe County.We are 30 years into the HIV epidemic and yet we still do not have a rigourous education program with leadership from all tiers of government and buy-in from teachers.Yes, the curriculum exists, and there is a mandate to implement it, but how it hits the ground is too inconsistent to be effective. The federal government offers no leadership, and provincially, sex education is left in the hands of teachers and school boards.But there is a stigma associated with talking about sex and it can’t continue to exist.Some adults remain uncomfortable talking about sex with children.So children are left to learn about sex from their friends, and from the Internet.Their peers are just as confused, and the Internet doesn’t promote healthy sex; it sells sex.That’s not good enough.Yes, the decision rests with us to protect our own health, but the tools aren’t being given to society’s youth so they may better understand that decision.There remains a fundamental problem in Canadian society that sex and sexual health are just not discussed in detail.We have to change that.
