Researchers followed 595 males ages 12 to 24 years old who engaged in homosexual acts in eight large cities, interviewing them in bars, clubs, parks and other venues. Among the 64 who use methamphetamine, 54% had an STD, and 86% had two or more partners within the past 90 days. One-third said they had sex with someone who had HIV, and 52% had sex with someone who used IV drugs. The meth group was less likely to use condoms and more likely to have dropped out of school. Over 70% were homeless or had been homeless. Some of these percentages were more than double the rates of the group that did not use methamphetamine.

This study appears in the journal Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.

A previous study from California State University found that the methamphetamine use is associated with high-risk sexual behavior, whether homosexual or heterosexual, and a higher risk for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. This research team also found that teenagers who use methamphetamine have more sexual partners, are more likely to be involved in a pregnancy, and more likely to have unprotected sex than teenagers who do not use this drug. Among men who have sex with men, those in the California study who have HIV and use methamphetamine are the ones least likely to use condoms, and to have an average of ten partners a year.

"Methamphetamine use was consistently associated with high risk sexual behaviors, HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases," according to the authors of the study.

This study was published in February 2011 edition of the journal Current Opinion in Infectious Diseases.
 

The findings present a different picture of the sex-related industry than previous years, in which customers could be found at traditional establishments like nightclubs or bars. While avenues for finding prostitution customers such as strip clubs have seen a drop of about half, use of social media sites for business continues to climb.

Facebook was the most frequently used social media outlet for prostitution workers in New York, the subject of the study that included participation from nearly 300 women involved in the sex industry. Participants said Facebook was used by more than 80 percent to help locate new business, a much higher figure than the 61 percent who posted ads for their services on Craigslist.

Social media and online networking tools have continued to quickly gain momentum as resources for finding customers in the sex industry. Researchers noted that even three years ago, in 2008, one-fourth of study participants’ regular customers were gained from Facebook usage.

The rise in usage toward Facebook as a recruitment center for the sex industry could represent the nonspecific guidelines issued by the site toward its use. Facebook administrators have not formally restricted the use of the site for locating sexual partners, although the site does prohibit illegal activity. Prostitution, however, is not illegal in every state, providing what some call a loophole for Facebook to be utilized to boost the sex industry.

Furthermore, Facebook retains a popular, widespread use for non-sexual connections, giving it a more secure feeling to users than other social media sites. In terms of the sex industry as a business, the study, conducted by Columbia sociology instructors and printed in Wired magazine, also said that people who work in the sex industry used BlackBerry smartphones more often than other types of phones, which they suspect adds to the experience of hiring "professional" sex industry personnel.

Craigslist, in comparison, removed its category for "adult" offerings such as prostitution one year ago. The site has seen declining rates of usage by sex industry workers, while Facebook use continues to grow. Traditional "escort" services have also seen a decline in use, a drop of around 10 percent, and researchers believe more prostitution workers are looking for more removed ways of finding customers and arranging deals. This theory emerges at the same time as other recent research suggesting that many people transition online-based relationships into real-world encounters, and that those who use sex-based communications like sexting or sex chat sites are more likely to cheat on a spouse in a real-life setting.

Researchers also suspect customers and workers may prefer the ability to create false identities with social media tools as they seek anonymity in their relationships.

Sextortion is a relatively recent but rising form of cybersex crime, in which someone threatens to post naked or illicit photos of someone else online unless they comply with their demands. Typically, sextortion victims are females who are teens and too ashamed or fearful to tell a parent or adult what is happening. Victims of sextortion can also be young children, who are vulnerable enough to cooperate with demands for sexually explicit photos or pornographic videos from a home Web cam.

Courage, say detectives, is a key ingredient in helping stop the crime. The victim must come forward, say Ohio detectives and members of the Attorney General’s department, in order to begin stopping the criminal. Ohio officials are working together in a combined effort called the Regional Electronic Computer Intelligence Task Force, aimed at stopping sextortion.

As the Ohio Attorney General’s Office says, many victims start out in seemingly benign conversations online or in chat rooms. Some, including a teen girl whose story appears in the Kansas City Star article, were lured in with promises that her online "friend" would get her into modeling. When she complied with her sextortionist’s request to pose in illicit pictures and post them online, the requests became more sexual – and she declined. That’s where sextortion escalates, because the blackmailer threatens the victim into performing more acts under fear that he or she will post nude photographs online for all their friends and family to see.

In Ohio, many cases have involved sextortion with someone the victim is already acquainted with, or in a relationship with – such as a boyfriend who is angered at the end of the relationship. Officials urge parents to help children and teens understand what this crime means, and to help them feel secure in coming forward immediately if they are in danger of sextortion crimes.

A popular book published in 1970, Human Sexual Inadequacy, focused on the optimism and failings that are involved in diagnosing and treating sexual dysfunction. The problem behind this theory is determining who exactly gets to decide what is "inadequate" when it comes to sexual practices.

Today, this question was addressed by health journalist Ray Moynihan and Mintzes, a University of British Columbia assistant professor. These colleagues set out to try and expose the misdealing in the pharmaceutical industry and how companies in this field aim to profit from women’s perceived sexual inadequacies.

They argue that they have exposed an industry that is desperate to find illness where none exists, and to exploit dysfunction in order to turn a profit. They also suggest that based on statistics alone, female sexual dysfunction (FSD) affects as many as two thirds of the female population. The problem is that the definition of the condition – and the condition itself – is so vague, that the stats are virtually meaningless.

Still, pharmaceutical companies have identified FSD as the next big thing in its industry, much like male sexual dysfunction and attention deficit disorder in years past. The researchers argue that personal, interpersonal, cultural, psychological and historical sources drive female sexual inadequacies. They also suggest that pharmaceutical companies will exploit such feelings of low self worth, offering medication to cure an ill that may not even exist.

Known popularly as "sexting," the act of sending sexual pictures with cell phones is becoming a new problem for teenagers across the country – but it’s also a problem for people who leave a relationship and a partner seeks revenge by sending out nude photos of the person for multiple sets of eyes. The same practice is happening on social media networks, with young teens being sent sexual messages by online predators and people using threats to post naked pictures of people as blackmail.

As Malloy addressed a crowd recently during Sexual Assault Awareness Month, she asked people to remember that sexting and similar acts are not to be taken lightly and result in sexual assault victims.

For teens, the problems associated with cyber sexual assaults can escalate quickly with "smut lists," Malloy also warned, which means a person’s name is given out over Internet sources as someone who is "easy" or promiscuous. Some teens have been so shaken up over this type of sexual harassment that they become severely depressed. Girls whose names have appeared on "smut lists" should be watched by family members and friends, says Malloy, because they could have a very traumatic and unexpected response to the act. Across the country, three suicides have been linked to smut lists.

Malloy called for more awareness and more recognition of sexting, smut lists and other forms of cybersex-related crimes as true acts of sexual violence or harassment, in order to prevent the tragic damage these acts can bring to girls and women.

Kids have also become bolder behind the computer screen. There is a false sense that they are not in danger and that talking to strangers online is just harmless fun. Most youngsters think that nothing bad can ever happen to them. However, sex predators don’t come online and have ‘sex predator’ written across their forehead. They will begin a simple conversation in a chatroom or start playing a video game so that they can gain the trust of the child, making it easier to sexually exploit them later.

In fact, the North American Man/Boy Love Association, otherwise known as NAMBLA, used this ideology in its literature. The organization directed its members where to locate underage boys and instructed them how to gain their trust. Bethesda, Ohio Police Chief, Tim Zdanski says that they have had cases where predators have engaged in online gaming with children for a period of two years before petitioning them for sex.

Zdanski says that parents aren’t always aware that their children are talking to strangers via chatroom, messaging, e-mailing, or online gaming. He points out that many of these interactions require no parental consent, so they make easy targets for attracting child prey. Facebook is also being used for this purpose. Not long ago, FoxNew.com reported that NAMBLA was using Facebook as a means to befriend children and gain their trust.

Dateline reporter Chris Hanson teamed up with the activist group, Perverted Justice, to see just how prevalent sex predators were on the Internet. In the show, "To Catch a Predator," profiles of underage decoys were created, and the responses started pouring in. All conversations between each decoy and predator were recorded and transcribed. The decoy would then solicit a meeting with the predator where he would instead be confronted by Hanson, who would question him about the transcribed conversation.

The show ran for three years before its last episode in December 2007. Hansen says in that time he interviewed 200 prospective sex predators, most of which were arrested. The show was taken off the air in part because of its popularity and the fact that fewer predators were showing up to meet the decoys as a result.

The show helped raise awareness that sex predators are only a click away. Parents should stay in constant communication with their children and be aware of all time spent on the Internet. Programs such as WebWatcher can help track children’s history online. Even FBI agent, Diane Holtz, maintains that children should not be allowed to use computers alone. Many abused children don’t tell what’s happened to them because they feel they are responsible or don’t understand that they have been victimized. The best means of prevention is education and honest communication.

?This complex form of sexually dysfunctional behavior can involve deliberate avoidance of sex from one spouse to another – or simultaneously the opposite behavior, which is manifested as sexual addiction. Even though the symptoms of the disorder may appear different, at the root of most types of sexual anorexia are factors including fears of intimacy, aversions to close relationships or even a desire for control.

Similar to eating disorders such as anorexia, people with sexual anorexia may show obsessive thoughts or behaviors, but related to the act of sex instead of food. This can be obsessive avoidance, denial or even “binging” behaviors. Sexual anorexics may avoid sexual contact altogether, or may participate in episodes of frequent and repeated sexual encounters where an intimate relationship is not present – such as with a prostitute or with pornography.

?For women, sexual anorexia may be linked to emotional damage endured as a victim of childhood sexual abuse. As adults, the sexual abuse may manifest as a desire to retreat from sexual behaviors of a belief that they are “unworthy” to participate in healthy sexual behavior within an intimate relationship.

Contrary to stereotyped beliefs that males are often interested in sex, men with sexual anorexia may avoid sexual activity with a spouse or partner. Sometimes, sexual anorexia is demonstrated in men who have problems with physical arousal, hormonal deficiencies, or erection problems and so they avoid sex altogether for fear of shame. In other cases, men with sexual anorexia may become obsessed or addicted with masturbation but avoid sexual contact with their spouse for fear of emotional intimacy.

??Even when engaged in a positive relationship, people with sexual anorexia may be unable to express sexual interest for their partner. As a result, a spouse may become involved with sexual relationships outside the marriage or abuse pornography.

??For people with sexual aversion, the desire to avoid sex can be even more severe. Thoughts about sexual behavior being repulsive or disgusting can occur, and the disorder is included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. For some people, this includes acts like kissing or hugging, which can trigger serious levels of anxiety.

??Cory Schortzman, who is recovering from sexual anorexia and operates a counseling center for sexual addictions, has spoken out about sexual anorexia on national television. He says his behaviors, which included an addiction to masturbation, were rooted in false beliefs that his wife could bring emotional harm and was untrustworthy. Some people are also believed to avoid sex with a partner or to engage in sexually compulsive behaviors outside of marriage because of a desire to manifest control over the situation.

??Schortzman believes nearly one-third of people in the U.S. could have a sexual addiction or a disorder like sexual anorexia, and that the problem is based in a person’s inability to get their emotional needs resolved. Treatment for sexual anorexia focuses on solving the emotional problems that create a barrier for the person toward achieving trust and intimacy, rather than the obsession with sex itself.
 

This recent Cincinnati News report focused on this issue and how teens can find themselves easily over their heads. A 16-year-old girl was dating an adult male and quite taken with him, she e-mailed him naked pictures of herself. When she sought to end their relationship, however, he threatened to post the pictures on the Internet. He even went so far as to insist she sleep with him. Desperate, she turned to her parents, who contacted the police.

The teen and her adult lover met online and without really developing a personal relationship, began sleeping together, exchanging naked photos and more. This type of relationship – or lack thereof – demonstrates the ways teens today are manipulating cyberspace to put themselves and others at risk.

Many a parent today is unaware of what devices with Internet connections and texting can do. They are also unaware of the risks teens take when they take naked pictures of themselves or others. Even receiving naked pictures can put the teen at risk.

Law enforcement around the country are now putting together presentations for schools so that teens and their parents understand the risks in cyberspace. Both groups need to be aware that nothing exchanged in the Internet is private and a simple joke can land someone on the sex offender list for life.
 

Published in Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment, the study authors believe people with a tendency toward pedophilia may have a set of circumstances prior to birth that have an impact on their physical development characteristics.

More than 1,000 men who underwent assessments for pedophilia were studied at the Kurt Freund Laboratory in Canada during an eleven-year span, from 1995 to 2006. Researchers observed that there were physical differences in stature among participants with desires for the abnormal sexual behavior of pedophilia than those without the tendency for the behavior.

Lead researcher for the study, Dr. James Cantor, used MRI imaging to explore the brain structure of pedophiles. Findings included the discovery that people who sexually offend with children have smaller amounts of white matter in their brains, which is the material that helps map the brain and body systems.
In addition, people with the sexual disorder of pedophilia – also classified as a mental disorder – were more likely to have IQ levels that were not as high as non-pedophiles, were held back in school for failing grade levels more often and may have higher rates of injuries to the head while growing up.
Definitions for pedophilia differ, ranging from psychiatric definitions to those used by law officials and society at large. Pedophilia has a medical diagnosis that classifies it as a personality or psychiatric disorder in which an adolescent older than 16 years, or an adult, has a strong sexual desire for children younger than 13 years, or prior to puberty.

The connection between abnormal behaviors or disorders and physical traits is not new in the field of research. Studies involving Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia have also showed height differences among patients, with affected patients being about two centimeters shorter than others, on average.
Treatments for pedophilia involving antidepressants and similar drugs for mental illness have not shown high success rates toward managing the abnormal sexual urges. Researchers hope learning more about the physical differences between sexual predators and non-predators could lead to preventative strategies toward sexual disorders like pedophilia.

Other therapies for the sexual disorder of pedophilia have included medications to lower testosterone levels in males and aversion treatments based in electric impulses, though this is not a commonly used approach today. Some theories about sexual disorders like pedophilia say offenders may return in their mind to earlier times in their childhood and often have difficulty with adult relationships.

Though it doesn’t mean pedophiles have a biological excuse for their actions, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health study could prompt further research into the physical connections, even at the fetal development level, toward understanding why some people have the sexual disorder of pedophilia or other abnormal sexual behaviors.
 

Researchers from the Bradley Hasbro Children’s Research Center also found that teens with ADHD and conduct disorders or angry and hostile behavior are more likely to be sexually active than their peers, which raises their risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases. Teens who also had a co-occurring disorder such as anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder were also at a higher risk of participating in risky sexual behavior.

Larry K. Brown, MD, of the Bradley Hasbro Children’s Research Center and lead author of the study, said that these disorders may be linked to risky sexual behavior because they are often associated with impulsive behavior, which can also apply to sexuality. He added that these teens need to be screened and monitored for risky sexual behavior as part of their mental health treatment.

The study looked at 840 teenagers Providence, Atlanta and Chicago, Illinois, who were participating in Project STYLE, an HIV prevention program for youths and parents with severe mental health disorders. The participants were asked questions about psychiatric symptoms and their sexual behaviors. The teens also underwent urine tests to determine whether they had a sexually transmitted disease.

More than half of the participants were female African-Americans, and the average age was 15. The study included 153 teens with mania, 48 with internalizing disorders, 282 with externalizing disorders, 252 with co-occurring disorders, and 105 who were in treatment but didn’t meet the criteria for any of the assessed diagnoses.

More than half of the teens said they had a history of vaginal or anal intercourse. Of those who were sexually active, 29 percent had unprotected sex the last time they had intercourse. About 31 percent had been sexually active within the last 90 days, with an average of two partners, and 15 percent reported having four or more partners. About 14 percent tested positive for a sexually transmitted disease.

The researchers found that teens with mania are at an even higher risk for sexually transmitted diseases and HIV, as they had significantly more sexual partners and were four times more likely to contract a sexually transmitted disease. Brown said that this is interesting because there is currently little information on teens with mania. Adults with mania are known to engage in risky sexual behavior, but data like this wasn’t previously available for teens with the disorder.

Source: Science Daily, Certain Psychiatric Disorders Linked With Risky Sexual Behavior in Teens, Study Finds, September 28, 2010