WASHINGTON - How should you talk to your children about sex? Tell them no sex, says a new government Web site that proclaims "abstinence is the healthiest choice." That's dictating values, say organizations including the American Civil Liberties Union and gay rights groups, and they want the site taken down.

One in five U.S. teenagers say they have engaged in oral sex, an activity that some adolescents view as not sex at all and certainly less risky than intercourse, according to a report obtained by Reuters.

The survey of 580 children with a mean age of 14-1/2 found 20 percent said they had engaged in oral sex, compared to 14 percent who said they had engaged in sexual intercourse, Reuters reported.

Coming soon to a cinema, Laundromat or nail salon near you: free condoms, if city officials get their way. "We can stop the HIV epidemic with the tools that we have today," Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden said yesterday. "We know that condoms prevent HIV - let's get them out everywhere."

East High School junior Cary Shapiro keeps a condom in his wallet even though he says he's never had sex. He picked it up at a concert.

Shapiro is among students who say it's time for Denver Public Schools to make prophylactics available to all high school students who want them.

JEFFERSON, Ind. ? Someone has sent condoms to high school seniors accompanied with a letter encouraging them to be safe on prom night, causing some parents to chuckle, while others are upset, officials said.

In the past week, nearly all the students in Clinton Prairie High School?s senior class have received letters containing the surprise, said David Larsh, the school?s principal.

Accompanying the prophylactic was a letter, which read as a warning for the Class of 2005 to be safe on prom night, which was held Saturday.

TRENTON, N.J. - Condoms do a great job of stopping the spread of AIDS and a pretty good job of preventing pregnancy. But the evidence they protect against other sexually transmitted diseases is surprisingly spotty.

Republican Sen. Tom Coburn and groups promoting abstinence are pushing to make condom labels "medically accurate," even blocking appointment of a new federal drug agency chief until the labels are changed. "Safe sex" advocates fear that could undermine public confidence, decreasing their use.

More Massachusetts teenagers who are sexually active are using condoms, according to a state survey released yesterday, 11 years after a landmark court ruling said schools could make them available to students.

The state survey, given to 3,500 teenagers in 51 high schools last year, shows that condom use has increased steadily since the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that schools could hand out condoms without parental consent.

Two UK surveys, 10 years apart, indicate that there's been a substantial increase in the rate of condom use, particularly among young people. However, condom use is inconsistent among people who report high rates of new sexual partners.

This may be a factor in the recent resurgence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), Dr. Jackie Cassell from the University of Brighton and colleagues at University College London surmise.

Condoms are an incredibly cool invention. They prevent disease and, if you're willing to give them a chance ... they can be fun! Several hundred years ago, people made condoms out of pigs' bladders ... but today we can buy condoms that science and technology have almost perfected for our safety and enjoyment.

When condoms fail, it is almost always because they've not been used properly. So here are the top ten tips for using condoms:

WHAT WOULD MAKE THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES DECIDE to run out and purchase a half million condoms? Ninety-three individuals diagnosed with syphilis, to be exacts--93 cases that also led to the spending of 560,000 county dollars, an educational billboard campaign and the appearance of roving Department of Health vans blood-testing citizens on the streets. Yet 414 syphilis cases were diagnosed last year, and never did Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky--the sponsor of this year's campaign--stand up to motion for a countywide safe-sex crusade. Why now? Because while not one of last year's documented syphilis cases involved a gay man, all 93 individuals testing positive this year were men who have had sex with men (MSMs), and more than half of these men were also HIV-positive.

Some Florida teens believe drinking Mountain Dew or smoking marijuana will prevent pregnancy and that swallowing a capful of bleach will prevent HIV/AIDS. One reason those dangerous myths have spread is the state's reliance on abstinence-only sex education, say advocates of a bill to require a more comprehensive approach in Florida's schools.

A Leger Marketing survey on the sexual attitudes of Canada's young women suggests our current approach to sex education isn't working.

Comprehensive, no-holds barred sex education programs were supposed to produce women who are knowledgeable, confident and capable of making smart sexual decisions.

In a nation where sexually transmitted infections (STI) are steadily increasing, many of us would rather play Russian roulette with our bodies than be seen in a drugstore buying condoms.

Access to contraception isn't the main barrier today, although if you live in a small town and your aunt works at the drug store, you may face greater challenges.

I know the standard run-of-the-mill issues that come along with straight sex, but I'm bi, so what do I need to know about the risks that come along with gay sex?

Stereotypes and misinformation about HIV that are commonplace among the general public are also evident in a surprising number of clinical staff, a study from the University at Buffalo has found. Published in the journal AIDS Patient Care and STDs, Lance S. Rintamaki's study shows that more than 25 years after its discovery, HIV still has the power to generate a broad array of stigmatizing behavior. People infected with HIV have previously labeled dealing with stigma as the most significant social and psychological challenge of the HIV experience and Rintamaki's study shows little has changed.

An experimental anti-HIV gel is safe for women to use on a daily basis, according to researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

In testing, the gel, called tenofovir, was favorably self-applied and tolerable to non-HIV-infected women, a significant boost to HIV and AIDS prevention efforts focused on next-generation microbicides to reduce infection rates, the researchers said.

It's possible to stimulate the thymus gland to produce new immune system T-cells in adults infected with HIV, U.S. researchers say.

HIV infection destroys T-cells, which leads to the collapse of the immune system and severe infection. The thymus gland produces T-cells early in life but gradually loses function and becomes mostly inactive in adulthood. That means it's difficult for HIV-infected adults to produce new T-cells to rebuild their depleted immune systems.

Approximately one-fifth of HIV-positive patients report never using condoms with regular or casual partners in a study conducted in New York and published in the February edition of AIDS Patient Care and STDs. Inconsistent use of condoms was associated with the presence of symptoms of depression, and most of the patients reporting unprotected sex had a detectable viral load.

Since administrators decided against installing condom machines in University of South Carolina residence halls, students will have to go a little further for safety when they want to go all the way.

The Residence Hall Association, representing student residents, took an opinion poll that found most USC students wanted condom machines installed in dorms. Student residents and the RHA alike said the administration's decision was a disappointment.

Ah, the swinging 60s and 70s. Those were the days. Sex was an egocentric activity engaged in, solely and indiscriminately, for pleasure.

"Spreading the love" was a humanitarian activity, not a euphemism within the medical community for the increased distribution of STDs among the population. This was all, of course, before the official discovery of AIDS by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on June 5, 1981.

Valentine's Day is fast approaching and among the chocolates and the flowers and the paper hearts, all inscribed with endearing words, there will also undoubtedly be a lot more "love making" happening than usual. Given this fact, National Condom Awareness Week, which has been recognized by the American Social Health Association, occurs annually around Valentine's Day. This year it is being held on Feb. 10 to Feb. 17 and intends to promote the use of condoms as a preventative against unwanted pregnancy as well as some sexually transmitted diseases.

Syphilis is making a comeback in developed countries, spurred by illicit drug use and high-risk sexual behaviors, and many doctors are unprepared to recognize and treat it, U.S. researchers said on Monday.

They said syphilis has been on the rise since the beginning of the 21st century in high-income countries, but because the disease had been well controlled in the 1990s, doctors may not be screening for it.

MEXICO CITY (IPS) - The HIV/AIDS epidemic remains stable in Latin America and the Caribbean, mainly affecting high-risk groups like gay men and sex workers, according to the UNAIDS report for 2008, released Tuesday.

Last year, 140,000 new infections were reported in the region, bringing the total number of people living with HIV to 1.7 million, while 63,000 people died of AIDS-related causes in 2007.