Why It's Important to Use a Condom During Oral Sex

As sexy and pleasurable as you may think oral sex is, it can be dangerous for someone who is not practicing safe sex. The idea of using a condom or a polyurethane sheet may make you feel like you're being cheated out of pleasure, but it is possible to still enjoy this sex act while practicing the same amount of safe sex as you should with regular intercourse.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that, "Even though the risk of transmitting HIV through oral sex is much lower than that of anal or vaginal sex, numerous studies have demonstrated that oral sex can result in the transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)."

Other examples of STDs can be transmitted from unprotected oral sex, including herpes, syphilis, gonorrhea, genital warts (HPV), intestinal parasites (amebiasis) and hepatitis A.

So how does one use a condom during oral sex? Here are the steps.

Step One: Carefully take the condom out of its package and unroll it to its full length.

Step Two: With sanitized scissors (use alcohol), clip the tip of the condom off.

Step Three: Cut the ring (band) of the condom off on the other end.

Step Four: Cut the condom lengthwise from the bottom of it to the top in one long slit so it shapes into a rectangle.

Step Five: Place the condom directly over the vagina the entire time during oral sex. Do not let your bare mouth or tongue touch the vaginal or anal area without the condom covering it.

Step Six: If you're a clumsy partner or just getting used to the act and split the condom with your teeth or any other way, use another condom and follow steps 1 to 5 again. Do not continue to use the same condom repeatedly for oral sex in the vagina (cunnilingus) or oral sex in the anus (anilingus). Oral sex with a penis (fellatio) should also be done with a condom to practice safe sex. It's also a great excuse not to swallow for those who think that's gross.

Step Seven: If you are allergic to latex condoms, use polyurethane sheets. They're pre-cut and specifially for oral sex. You can get them for free at HIV/AIDS testing locations like BEHIV on Chicago's north side.

It may sound a little odd to use this precaution while giving oral sex, but women do bleed once a month so the blood level is there. This may be obvious to some, but for the freaky ones out there, you should never perform oral sex on a woman during her period. If your partner has a sore in his mouth that bleeds (ex. wisdom tooth pulled, tongue bleeding, bleeding gums), have oral sex with extreme caution.