Information on safe sex practices should be provided as part of travelers’ health advice, say researchers, after two new studies reveal that a high number of adults report finding new sexual partners while abroad. Share on Pinterest Researchers found many adults acquire new sexual partners when abroad, but they may be putting their health at risk by doing so. The studies found that these adults are less likely to engage in safe sex practices – such as condom use – and more likely to engage in other risky behaviors, including use of alcohol and illicit drugs. The two papers were recently published in Sexually Transmitted Infections – a journal of The BMJ. For the first study, co-author Dr. Clare Tanton, of the Research Department of Infection & Population Health at University College London, United Kingdom, and colleagues analyzed data from the third National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (Natsal-3). The researchers identified 12,530 people aged 16-74 who reported having at least one sexual partner in the previous 5 years. Of these individuals, around 1 in 10 men and 1 in 20 women reported having had sex with a new partner during their travels abroad in the past 5 years. On assessing results by age, the researchers found that 1 in 20 men and 1 in 40 women aged 35 and older reported having had sex with a new partner while abroad. According to the team, these numbers are likely to rise alongside the aging population and the increase in relationship breakdowns. “These proportions are likely to increase as older people maintain good health, have the financial means to travel, and are now more likely to experience partnership breakdown,” they explain, “and so older age groups should also be considered for health promotion messages by health professionals when consulting for travel advice.”

Risky behavior higher for travelers who have sex with new partners Adults who reported having sex with a new partner on their travels were more likely to have a higher number of sexual partners overall, the researchers report, and they were also more likely to have engaged in risky behaviors, such as having sex without a condom, using illicit drugs and excess alcohol use. Visits to a sexual health clinic were more common among adults who had sex with new partners while abroad, as were reports of being tested for HIV or receiving a diagnosis of a sexually transmitted infection (STI). Men were more likely to have had sex with at least one new partner that was not from the U.K. during overseas travels than women, the researchers found, at 72 percent and 58 percent, respectively. Individuals in this group reported a higher number of sexual partners, and they were also more likely to have had more than one sexual partner at the same time. Men in this group were also more likely to have paid for sex, with 1 in 4 men reporting having ever paid for sex with a partner from outside the U.K. or having done so in the past 5 years. This behavior was more common in older men aged 35-74 than younger men, according to the team, and these men also had more sexual partners than younger men. Overall, the authors say their findings indicate that those who engage in sex with new partners while overseas are more likely to engage in behaviors that may negatively impact their health. They add: “Sex while overseas may itself be less likely to be protected with the ‘freedom’ of travel, and also potentially in the context of other behaviors like alcohol and drug use, which may prevent people from adopting safer-sex behaviors, putting them at risk of transmitting and acquiring STIs, as well as other adverse sexual health outcomes including unintended pregnancy and sexual violence. This argues for the importance of holistic travel advice addressing sex in the context of broader health behaviors.”