Pubdate: Thu, 29 Nov 2007
Source: Badger Herald (U of WI, Madison, WI Edu)
Copyright: 2007 Badger Herald
Contact:  http://www.badgerherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/711
Author: Mary Duke
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?135 (Drug Education)

SEX GROUP LOOKS AT VARIOUS MYTHS

University of Wisconsin's Sex Out Loud addressed several myths about 
drugs and sex Wednesday in efforts to raise awareness on sexually 
transmitted diseases.

Kelly Gersonde, Sex Out Loud program facilitator, said UW needs to 
discuss the issue of drug use in order to recognize the potentially 
dangerous sexual health risks associated with it.

"Chances are you aren't going to ask your partner to use a condom 
when you are high on drugs," Gersonde said. "This leads to unsafe sex 
and the risk of getting any type of sexually transmitted disease."

Gersonde said there is a concerning misconception that drugs act as 
an agent to increased sexual behavior, and some people think they 
would perform better when engaging in sexual activity.

According to Gersonde, students should watch for Rohypol, also known 
as a roofie, a widely used date rape drug.

"It's a sedative drug that is commonly used in sexually assault 
because the victim does not know what happened up to four hours after 
taking the drug."

Chris Daniels, Sex Out Loud program director, said though law 
enforcement focuses on illicit drugs, they should also worry about 
legal drugs, like over-the-counter and prescription drugs.

"We have all heard about the war on drugs, but this discussion only 
involves these hard drugs," Daniels said. "Over-the-counter and 
prescription drugs, nicotine or alcohol is not included in this discourse."

Daniels said while there are many stories of parties that involve 
hard drug use, little attention is given to prescription drugs.

"In truth, you can actually achieve some of the same highs from 
taking prescription drugs that you get from some of the illicit 
drugs," Daniels said.

Prescription drugs' easy accessibility make them just as dangerous as 
illicit drugs, Daniels said.

"The reason why prescription drugs are really problematic is that 
they are really easy to get," Daniels said. "Think about what is in 
our medicine cabinets, and it is also relatively cheap. It is far 
cheaper to go to get Robitussin than cocaine."

Daniels said the accumulation of all types of drug use is presenting 
a big problem for society.

"Arrests for drug-use violations are happening in high frequency, and 
little news on rehab facilities are its success," Daniels said. 
"About 1.5 million offenses and arrests for drug law offenses took 
place this year."

According to Daniels, to combat this situation people need to learn, 
at a younger age, the seriousness of drugs and their effects on the body.

"We are not educating ourselves on the effects of these drugs," said 
Daniels. "A lot of times teenagers and students will overdose on 
these drugs because we don't talk about their effects."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom