Safety

Normally, when you hear about the success rate of a birth control method, it’s given to you as two numbers: the probability of failure per year when used perfectly, and the probability when used “typically.” The difference can range from minor to catastrophic. This is insane. Speaking as an engineer, a system that works well when operated perfectly and fails completely when anything isn’t operated perfectly is basically the textbook description of what a safety system isn’t. But let’s look at the numbers.

As high schools graduations are celebrated around the country, a number of seniors and parents are turning to the Princeton Review to make final choices about colleges, but the women’s rights activist group UltraViolet worries that parents don’t have all the information they need. This month, they kicked off a campaign petitioning the popular college guide to list sexual assault prevention and response rankings.

In 2005, a protein was discovered on the surface of sperm thought to enable binding to the egg. Researchers named the protein Izumo, after the Izumo-taisha in Japan, a shrine dedicated to Okuninushi, the Shinto deity of marriage. The search was on to discover a counterpart protein on eggs. Last week, we found it — and it had been under our noses all along.

Ah, sexual head trauma. If we could count the IQ points lost on headboards and walls around the world, we’d probably cry. So we won’t. Anyway, today, you’re in luck — for around $460, now you can enjoy an altogether different kind of safe sex.

Last month in Canada, Dr. Carolyn Bennett, a Liberal Minister of Parliament, sent a letter to the Conservative Federal Minister of Health, Leona Aglukkaq, expressing concern about the sex toy industry and asking the government to take action in regulating sex toys. The letter, which you can read in its entirety here, read, in part:…continue reading.

Those earth-loving peeps, they’re all over the place fighting to make sure we don’t screw up ourselves or this fine planet completely. Having made strides in green living from noms to cars and light bulbs, they’re now moving into the bedroom. Here is the latest in healthy alternatives for your loving pleasure: TOYS A surprising…continue reading.

The D.C. Council Committee on Health recently conducted a survey of D.C. high school students attitudes about sex ed, which found that students are unimpressed with the curriculum. Surprise, surprise. What is most interesting about this study to me is not so much that most teens think talking to a school nurse is like talking…continue reading.

Consumer Reports tests all kinds of products to ascertain their reliability and safety. Recently, they performed a test on 20 different brands of condoms: The condoms that received a perfect score are: Durex Performax Lifestyles Ultra Sensitive Lubricated Lifestyles Warming Pleasure Trojan Her Pleasure Ecstasy Trojan Magnum Lubricated Trojan Ultra Ribbed Ecstasy Trojan Ultra Thin…continue reading.

You can’t swing a Fendi in this town without hitting two vegans, so it makes perfect sense that people are taking their sex habits on the bandwagon. Presenting: RFSU condoms (RFSU stands for Riksförbundet för sexuell upplysning, which Swedish for Association for Sexuality Education). Their condoms are certified vegan by the nonprofit Vegan Action. Vegan?…continue reading.

Face it, few people really love condoms. But we’re eternally grateful and have learned to deal with them. Companies are always trying to innovate the product and we have them to thank for fruity-flavored blowjobs, which may not be bomb, but are far better than dentist glove-tasting ones. Of course, every once in a while,…continue reading.