Not What You Want to Hear When Someone is Holding a Scalpel to Your Balls
It’s Spring Break! Only it really, really shouldn’t be. I remember, one of the first times I taught Intro to Human Sexuality, looking at the course calendar mid-semester and thinking “Oh shit, I’m sending these kids on Spring Break without having discussed condoms or contraception.” I rearranged instantly. Unfortunately, a sex-positive, safer-sex lecture, 36-pack of condoms, and a truck full of IUDs aren’t nearly enough to keep the throngs of college students who have descended on Florida cities safe this year. We’re still in the middle of a pandemic. The vaccination rates are great (kudos to the Biden Administration for exceeding its 100 million shots in 100 days goal) and there is hope (I hugged my fully vaccinated parents last weekend of the first time in a year). But we’re not out of it yet, despite what the governor of Florida may wish to believe. My state (NJ) is doing a good job getting shots into arms, but it was announced last week that we have the highest per capita infection rate in the country, and it’s still climbing. I get it, we’re done with zoom and Netflix and the five people we’ve been allowed to see in person this year. College students feel robbed of carefree experiences they expected and should have been allowed to have. But it feels like we’re back to where we were last year during Spring Break—begging people (young and old) to take this seriously. Only this time we’re doing it knowing that over half a million people have died. We’re tired, but if we do it right, Spring Break 2022 can be all about margaritas, wet tee-shirt contests, and hook-ups with guys named Chad (as long as they’ve had the sex-positive, safer-sex lecture first).
Seattle’s FLASH Curriculum Works
A new study, published in the February issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health, shows what sex educators have known for years, the FLASH curriculum works. FLASH is a sexual health education curriculum developed by the Seattle & King County Public Health Department that is widely used across the country. FLASH has been continually updated since it was first developed 30 years ago and is based on the most recent research on how to prevent teen pregnancy, STDs, and sexual violence. Along with Our Whole Lives and Rights, Respect, Responsibility, it is one of the ones sex educators have been recommending for years.
With good reason.
The new study is the result of a 5-year evaluation project funded as part of the federal government’s Teen Pregnancy Prevention program (which was put into place by Obama and survived an unsuccessful cancellation attempt by Trump). The study included over 1,500 young people in public schools in the South and Midwest; half received FLASH as their 9th or 10th grade health class and the other half received a standard knowledge-based sex ed curriculum.
When comparing the two groups of young people, researchers found that those exposed to the FLASH curriculum had increased confidence to say no and to acquire and use condoms effectively, and an increased understanding that birth control is effective and that teens are effective birth control users. In addition, among those who had not had sex prior to the program, FLASH users showed increased birth control and condom use when they did become sexually active.
King County Executive Dow Constantine said in a statement: “This is why we fought the legal battle against Donald Trump – to produce peer-reviewed, scientific evidence of what works to prevent unintended teen pregnancies. The positive results mean parents, teachers, and school administrators can feel highly confident that using FLASH is the right thing for students.”
And, young people liked it—90% of those who took FLASH said they’d recommend it to a friend. A ringing endorsement to be sure.
Could Birth Control Pills Help Alleviate Concussion Symptoms in Female Athletes?
Spring has sprung around the country, and while we’re still in the middle of a pandemic, many young people will be participating in outdoor sports like soccer, field hockey, and lacrosse. Unfortunately, more than a few of those will likely experience a concussion. New research suggesting that female athletes have fewer concussion symptoms during certain parts of their menstrual cycle has scientists wondering if birth control pills could help others.
Researchers at Northwestern University enrolled 30 female college athletes three to ten days after they’d suffered a concussion. They assessed their symptoms using a series of questionnaires, used MRIs to look at brain flow, and took blood to test progesterone levels. They then matched each participant to a healthy athlete who did not have a concussion based on age, ethnicity, contraceptive use, and where they were in their menstrual cycles.
The study, published in the Journal of Neurotrauma, found that athletes who were in the luteal phase of their menstrual cycle—which happens after ovulation and is marked by an increase of progesterone in the body—had increased blood flow to their brain. Specifically, they had more blood flowing to the middle temporal gyrus, a portion of the brain that “is important for information processing and integrating visual and auditory stimuli…[and] has been implicated in social anxiety disorders.” These athletes reported being less stressed after their concussion than those at different phases who had less progesterone/less blood flow. Stress is an important symptom as college athletes lose time in their courses to concussion recovery and often have a lot of work to make up.
The researchers say that this study fills a large gap in concussion research most of which, not surprisingly, has been done on male athletes. Amy Herrold, one of the authors, explained that men with similar symptoms tend to recover faster than women. Herrold and her co-author are planning additional research but in the meantime, she said: “Clinicians also may want to evaluate wider use of hormonal contraceptives that raise progesterone levels for athletes who are at risk for incurring a concussion or mild TBI as there could be potential for neuroprotection.”
March is the Most Popular Time for Vasectomies—But Don’t Call it March Madness
The N.C.A.A. is suing a urology group in Virginia, not for the first time, for co-opting the phrases March Madness/ March Mayhem to promote its vasectomy services.
Apparently, men across the country who are considering vasectomies have been having the same thought for years, “if I do it in March, I can recover on the couch while watching college basketball.” It’s not a ridiculous idea. The male sterilization procedure takes about 15 minutes and requires two or three days of rest afterwards (often while holding a bag of frozen peas between your legs). Why not do it when you have some guaranteed entertainment? And if you’re a basketball fan, now is that time.
Urologists have been commenting on this for years, noting a 30-40% increase in procedures in March. Dr. Pranav Sharam, a urologist with Texas Tech Physicians, told everythinglubbock.com that he really does see the connection: “I mean, I really think it’s driven by the tournament and the fact that it gives guys an excuse to watch TV for two days straight.” Sharam added, however, that urology groups across the country have been making the connection for men for years now.
One group, Virginia Urology in Richmond, has gotten in trouble with the N.C.A.A. for doing just that. The group first ran ads talking about “Vasectomy Madness” in 2011, pointing out that it was a way to secure three days of basketball viewing with no guilt from the wife (their heterosexist assumption, not mine). The college athletic association sued for trademark infringement. In a 2016 settlement, the association won rights to the phrase and then licensed it to the urology practice. It seems that that license has expired, or, perhaps, the urologists wanted to get around paying for the use of the word madness because in the last few years they have gone with “Vasectomy Mayhem” instead.
It was not enough of a distinction for the N.C.A.A. which seems to feel it owns the word madness and any and all synonyms for one month of the year. The association has sued again.
It may be a while before we know the outcome of this ridiculous dispute, but I would argue that it’s bad advertising no matter what—madness and/or mayhem are the exact opposite of what you want when someone is holding a scalpel to your balls.