The ethics of safe sex [letter]

The article by Broom and Rickett (NZ Med J 1988; 101: 823-6) questions the wisdom of the safe sex campaign which is based on promoting the use of condoms. In stating the disadvantages of this technological solution (condom rupture and slippage) the authors have overlooked other more subtle considerations. For example 1 of the benefits of natural sex is the absorption from the vagina of hormones and prostaglandins in seminal fluid. By using condoms with the object of blocking transmission of the AIDS virus we also block transmission of many beneficial substances. Aesthetic considerations of importance to sensitive women are further devalued. Broom and Rickett quote from D H Lawrences poem "Sex and Trust"; one can find the same theme in Shakespeares sonnet 129 which begins: "Th expense of spirit in a waste of shame/is lust in action"; and in the work of many other writers. It may be argued that one cannot read poetry to teenagers clamoring for gratification but one has to start somewhere and if parents could get their own values right it would be salutary. Broom and Rickett rightly point out that the condom is a glib and easy option. Safe sex publicity should inform the public of the price it will pay for adopting this option. (full text)