The sexual act between the male and the female of the species is nature's way of procreation of the species. The natural sexual act takes place within the species. It is do reproduce themselves spite of various difficulties and risks involved in the process of reproduction, nature has endowed this act with a heightened sense of pleasure and satisfaction, just like it has, the act of eating and drinking, or else no one would bother to go through the trouble and tribulations of either eating and drinking or reproducing.
Nature having made sure that members of animal species get pleasure out of the sexual act, has nevertheless endowed man with the ability to think, and thereby, has put a responsibility on him to exercise this option with care and prudence worthy of the status man has achieved in the hierarchy of evolution.
Members of most other animal species are guided, purely by their natural sexual instincts, into the sexual act, irrespective of considerations like its consequences, one's health and ability to support the progeny, selection of appropriate sexual partner or the obligation of taking care of the partner and the progeny. By virtue of their status in evolution, and their ability to acquire information, knowledge and understanding, human beings are obligated to nature and society to use their discretion before engaging in the sexual act. To make sure that men and women entered this relationship shouldering all its related responsibilities, society has framed the laws of marriage.
It is not within the scope of this section to go into the anatomy and physiology of reproduction which is nature's objective of the sexual act. We hope you will be in a position to acquire information in these areas if you have not already done so. We will only discuss a few problems connected with the sexual act and reproduction which come within the purview of health.
a) Readiness of the body to engage in the sexual act : Since the consequence of the sexual act is pregnancy, child birth and its related responsibilities, it is important that the body of the woman be physiologically ready to take the burden of pregnancy and child birth and that she be emotionally and mentally mature Keeping in view the physical, mental and emotional growth of men and women, the into this alliance with thought and circumspection. It is our responsibility as responsible citizens to respect this law and to prevent its breach.
b) Choosing your partner in marriage : Here again the scope of this section does not permit an exhaustive discussion of this very important aspect of marriage. You will have to educate yourself about this through other sources. All that we would like to mention here is that marriage between close relations (consanguineous marriages) have very high chances of abnormality in the offspring. Many diseases and defects of the body systems are carried by genes, which make up an individual - half the genes coming from the father and the other half coming from the mother. Many of these genes carry only recessive traits of a disease which get overshadowed by its absence in the other partner and thereby either remain recessive or over a few generations eventually get diluted out. If, however, they are matched by a similar recessive gene from the other partner, the disease trait becomes dominant and manifests itself in the progeny. It is therefore very important for the health of your progeny and lineage to avoid marriages with close blood relations.
c) Birth Control : Even though nature intended the sexual act for reproducing one's self, if every sexual act ended up in the birth of a progeny, nature itself would end up in chaos. There are, therefore, to some extent, checks and balances within nature to prevent this -hormonal changes that the female body undergoes immediately after conception, that prevent further conception till not only after the birth of the baby but till a few months after that. Beyond this, it is in your hands to make sure that we provide enough gap between our progeny to enable the mother to recuperate totally from one pregnancy and child birth, as well as to be able to take proper care of the baby tilt the baby is able to fend for himself within the protection of the home and family. It is also left to us to decide how many children we can afford to have. It is however obvious that in our country we have by and large given no thought to this, hence the population is what it is today and its related consequences which are all around us to see and experience - crowding of cities and villages, not enough food, water, shelter to meet every one's needs, not enough facilities for medical care, education, even to be able to earn a living.
Thanks to the advancement of science, many methods are now available for us to practice safe sex and keep a control on births. There are the oral contraceptives, the intrauterine devices, the vaginal sponge that acts as a sperm barrier and also contains a spermicide, the diaphragms and cervical caps, the condoms, and of course sterilization. Then there is the rhythm method and the coitus intemptus technique and douching. You will need to find out from your doctor which of these is available and suitable for you.
d) Sexually transmitted diseases : The name of the Roman goddess of love, Venus, is preserved in the term venereal diseases because they are transmitted by sexual contact. Today, however, we use a broader phrase, sexually transmitted disease (STD) to refer to both venereal diseases as well as other diseases that get transmitted through sexual activity. Among these is the acquired immuno deficiency syndrome or AIDS which has been identified only recently.
Except for pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) which is a serious complication among women, STDs affect both men and women. Chlamydia, a bacterial infection, is the most prevalent. It spreads because it has no obvious symptoms, and victims live for years without realising they have it. It can cause sterility in men as well as women. It is important that women undergo tests of chlamydia at least once a year. It also infects babies of infected mothers at birth. It can also be fatal for the mother.
The second most common STD that has afflicted mankind for centuries is Gonorrhoea caused by bacteria. Fortunately, cures are available today. Trichomoniasis, a type of leukorrhoea is another infection that causes an irritating itching condition in women. It is caused by a parasite that you can catch also through douche syringes,.towels, toilet seats, on beaches and around swimming pools. It means it can spread without sexual contact as well.
Venereal warts even though painless, can be serious and require medical attention. If left untreated, they can increase the risk of penile cancer in men and cervical cancer in women. Syphilis has been mankind's main health scourge. Today it is largely under control but it can still be fatal. Syphilis affects men three times as often as women. Approximately half the male victims are homosexuals. It is caused by bacteria.
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