Backpackers survey reveals HIV concern

Backpackers heading for Australia are being warned of the dangers of casual sex after a survey revealed worrying statistics about young travellers to the country. According to the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper, the survey carried out at Sydney University showed that more than half of those questioned had “sex with a new partner in the previous three days”, and some 39 per cent had sex with someone they on the day they had met. More worrying that that is the fact that one per cent of those surveyed – 559 backpackers aged 15 to 39 – admitted to being HIV-positive, with half the sample saying they had sex in Australia without using a condom. Cari Egan, who completed the study, said inhibitions were lowered by a “disturbingly high consumption of alcohol”. She is quoted as saying: “Half of the sample never used a condom during sex with someone new. Twenty-five per cent of backpackers never used a condom. The global health implications of unprotected sex within the context of travel have been of great concern to many researchers and sexual health clinical staff.” Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad Ltd