What Are the Components of Sexual Health?
Sexual Health According to the World Health Organization
Since September is Sexual Health Awareness Month in the US and the UK, we’ve been dedicating our blog and medium content to help raise awareness about important aspects of sexual health. Of course, a topic as wide-ranging as sexual health has a ton of components to it. Some might come to mind right away and be obvious; others, not so much.
To try and bring it all together, we took a look at information provided by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other health authorities to bring together an overview of what sexual health means.
Something that’s widely-accepted — something we’ve repeated ad nauseum so far this month — is that sexual health is a fundamental part of an individual’s, couples’ and families’ overall health and well-being. What’s more, when sexual health is made a priority and access to sexual health resources is widespread, it can have a positive impact on the social and economic development of communities and countries.
No matter what a particular culture’s attitude is towards sexuality and sexual expression, everyone is better off when sexual health is accepted as important, viewed positively, and treated and discussed with respect. To achieve a reality where humans are able to have pleasurable and safe sexual experiences, without fear of violence or intimidation, there are a few things that need to be in place.
- Access to comprehensive, good-quality information about sex and sexuality;
- Knowledge about the risks and potentially serious consequences posed by unprotected and unsafe sex;
- Ability to access sexual health care (like sexually transmitted infection tests and reproductive resources);
- Access to contraceptives like condoms and birth control;
- Living in a situation where sexual health is viewed positively and promoted.
It’s no secret that knowledge is power. Only when people have access to accurate and science-based information can they make the right choices for themselves and their loved ones. Part of that information is understanding the potential for negative consequences when it comes to sex.
While at its best sex can be a wonderfully enjoyable and pleasurable experience between human beings, if proper measures aren’t in place, serious health and social consequences could arise. No matter your sexual orientation, gender, relationship status, or sexual preferences, it is important that everyone be aware of the risks of sex. Such as:
- Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), like the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), chlamydia, gonorrhea, herpes and the human papillomavirus (HPV);
- Reproductive and urinary tract infections; as well as infertility and some cancers;
- Unintended pregnancy and abortion;
- Sexual dysfunctions like erectile dysfunction or premature ejaculation;
- Sexual violence and rape;
- Harmful practices like female genital mutilation.
Even when sexual health is boiled down to an overview, it can still be highly complex. Not to mention, while talking about positive sexuality and connection sounds great, it also has to be balanced with the unfortunately scarier side of sex — like unwanted pregnancy, STIs, and sexual violence.
But often, when broaching a topic feels uncomfortable to us, that’s a good sign we should pursue it further. Sexual health is exactly that kind of topic. When people live in societies where sex and sexuality is celebrated, in tandem with access to resources and organizations that promote safe sex, everybody wins.
So maybe sexual health is hard to define in just a word or two. But there’s something we should all agree on. Knowledge and information about how to have safe sex and that promotes healthy sexuality benefits us all. And that’s why we should spend the entire month of September — and all-year round — raising awareness about sexual health.
