58 Percent Of Brits Have Never Had An STI Test, Survey Finds

Almost three out of five Brits have never had an STI test, a survey has found.

This figure was considerably higher among 53 to 71-year-olds, with 85 percent of respondents in this demographic claiming they have never had an STI test... and lord knows what they were getting up to in the swinging sixties and seventies.

The findings are based on a survey of 2,368 UK adults, conducted by online pharmacy Medicine Direct.

The survey found that a third of people had never been educated about STIs at school, while a further 20 percent said the education they did receive on the subject was poor or awful.

The research also highlighted the fact that many people are erroneously lax about STI testing, with more than a quarter of people saying they would only get tested if they were displaying symptoms of an STI.

While this may seem like a logical approach, it overlooks the fact that some STIs, such as chlamydia, tend to be mostly symptomless. If left untreated, the infection can result in reproductive complications and infertility.

Medicine Direct

The research was undertaken as part of a wider campaign by Medicine Direct to raise awareness about symptoms of STIs and the importance of testing, while also tackling the taboo surrounding the subject.

The campaign - called Fruit Of Your Loins - uses pretty disgusting pictures of real fruit to highlight STI symptoms, although basically they're less disgusting than the real thing.

The survey also found that men were less likely to get tested and that 18 percent of people wouldn't feel confident spotting STI symptoms.

Perhaps most shocking of all was the fact that two percent of respondents said they thought STIs were a complete myth. That might not be a large percentage, but if you scale that up to the whole UK population as a whole, that's thousands of dangerously ill-informed people potentially having sex out there.

Hussain Abdeh, superintendent pharmacist at Medicine Direct, said: "In light of our findings, we made our fruity guide to STI symptoms to try and raise the conversation about positive sexual health and to make it easier to spot potential STI symptoms.

Medicine Direct

"With how easy it is these days to get your sexual health checked - whether by postal tests, sexual health clinics or your GP - we've identified a real area of improvement for our sexually active population.

"It's worth remembering that for some STIs, such as chlamydia, there can be no visible symptoms - but they can be very damaging if left untreated. That's why it's so important to work regular STI testing into your life and treat it as a normal part of your lifestyle as a sexually responsible individual.

"We really hope to help make it normal to check your sexual health regularly and, if in doubt, check it out."

Now there's an idea we can all get behind.

Topics: uk news, Sex and Relationships, Health

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey