❤️ Share the Love — Not the Infection

❤️ Share the Love — Not the Infection - Public Service Announcement (PSA)

Know Your Status. Protect Your Partner. Stop the Spread of STIs. 

A Sexual Health PSA from INTIMACY KIT® & THE INTIMATE KIT®

Sexually transmitted infections remain a major public-health concern in the **United States, Canada and around the world**—and many people who have an STI don't know they have one.

 According to the World Health Organization, **more than 1 million curable STIs are acquired every day worldwide** among people ages 15–49, and the majority are asymptomatic. That means someone can look healthy, feel healthy and still unknowingly transmit an infection.

❤️ **Knowing your status is part of protecting yourself and the people you care about.**

United States &  Canada: STIs Still Matter In the United States, the CDC's provisional 2024 surveillance recorded **more than 2.2 million reported cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis combined**.

Although those three reported STIs declined overall from 2023 to 2024, their combined burden remained higher than a decade earlier, while **congenital syphilis remained a particularly serious concern.**

Canada faces similar challenges. More than **42,000 gonorrhea cases were reported in 2023**, and Canada's infectious-syphilis rate remained **77% higher than in 2018**.

❤️ These infections cross borders. Prevention should too.

Chlamydia & Gonorrhea

Chlamydia and Gonorrhea: are common bacterial STIs—and both can occur **without noticeable symptoms**. Untreated infections can lead to serious complications. Gonorrhea also presents another concern: **antibiotic resistance**, which the World Health Organization considers an important global public-health problem. 

Both infections can be treated, making **testing and early diagnosis especially important.**

Syphilis: Don't Call It a Disease of the Past Syphilis remains a serious concern in both the United States and Canada. It is especially dangerous during pregnancy because an infection can be passed to an unborn baby, causing **congenital syphilis** and potentially severe complications. The good news is that syphilis is curable when properly diagnosed and treated.

 ❤️ **Get tested. Get treated. Protect each other.**

Herpes: Genital herpes is extremely common and can sometimes be transmitted even when there are **no visible sores**. There is currently no cure, but antiviral medications can help manage outbreaks and reduce transmission risk. Condoms can reduce risk, although they cannot completely prevent infections transmitted through skin-to-skin contact. 

HIV: Prevention Has Changed Lives HIV has not disappeared, but advances in prevention and treatment have transformed what an HIV diagnosis means. Modern prevention includes condoms and **PrEP**, while effective HIV treatment can reduce viral load to undetectable levels.

❤️ U=U: Undetectable = Untransmittable

A person living with HIV who takes treatment and maintains an undetectable viral load has effectively no risk of sexually transmitting HIV. **Education replaces fear. Knowledge fights stigma.**

Oral Sex Isn't Risk-Free: STIs including **gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, herpes and HPV** can potentially be transmitted through oral sex. Condoms can provide a barrier during oral sex involving a penis, while **oral/dental dams can provide a barrier during oral-vaginal or oral-anal contact.** It's an important part of safer-sex education that is often overlooked.

❤️ TALK. TEST. PROTECT.

❤️ **TALK** openly with your partner.

❤️**TEST** according to your healthcare provider's recommendations—even when you don't have symptoms.

❤️**PROTECT** with condoms and appropriate barriers, and consider HPV and hepatitis B vaccination.

❤️**TREAT** infections promptly and encourage partners to seek testing or treatment when appropriate. Most importantly, never shame someone for getting tested, asking about protection or talking about sexual health.

❤️ Safer Sex Is About Protecting Each Other Sexual health is about knowledge, communication, respect and informed choices.

 Whether you're single, dating, beginning a new relationship or have been with the same partner for years:

❤️ Learn. Communicate. Test. Protect. Connect.

❤️ At **INTIMACY KIT® & THE INTIMATE KIT®**, we believe safer sex isn't only about protecting yourself. It's about protecting each other. 

❤️** *This article is provided for educational and public-awareness purposes and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.* **© 2026 INTIMACY KIT® & THE INTIMATE KIT® | Sexual Health Education & Awareness**