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A sexual health expert has explained how millennials could be on the cusp of driving a surge in HIV cases, in a massive “nuclear chain reaction”.

Speaking exclusively to Daily Star Online, NHS sexual health consultant Dr Peter Greenhouse explained how Tinder is driving an increase in how quickly young people are changing sexual partners.

“Dating apps increase how quickly people can change from one partner to the next or have concurrent relationships,” Dr Greenhouse explained.

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“It’s much easier to do that with the likes of Tinder - compared to before where you’d have to meet people face-to-face or on Facebook etc.

“The app takes the initial embarrassment away and means they are far more likely to start new relationships.

“There’s nothing intrinsically wrong with that but [Tinder users] are changing partners more frequently which means by definition there will be more infections.”

Dr Greenhouse told us in addition to the increase in sexual partners, millennials are growing up in a generation where internet porn is their method of being taught about sex.

“[There has been a] substantial increase in people either wanting to have rectal sex or being asked by their new partner to do rectal sex whether they like it or not.

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“[Porn] dramatically increases the acceptability and pressure to perform rectal sex,” he said.

Rectal sex is a much more efficient method of transmitting STIs and HIV “because the rectum isn’t designed to take the knocks,” Dr Greenhouse explained.

“Heterosexually, you are more likely to get HIV because more people are doing more rectal sex with more people.”

Dr Greenhouse said the only thing keeping a lid on a heterosexual HIV explosion is condoms.

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He warned if young people stop having protected rectal sex, HIV transitions will reach a tipping point and “explode” in a massive “nuclear chain reaction”.

“I worry in the grand scheme of things that if enough young heterosexual people change partners frequently enough and have unprotected sex then at some point there is going to be quite a bit more HIV around in the heterosexual community.”

“Unless people are absolutely meticulous about using condoms for rectal sex, it is inevitable there will be more HIV transitions.

“Luckily it hasn’t reached a tipping point yet.

HIV transitions will reach a tipping point

“HIV is only very highly infectious in the first few weeks at the start of contracting it.

“The amount of virus in the bloodstream is enormous for the first two or three weeks of infection, then settles down to a low level.

“So what really matters is how many partners you can turn around in the first two weeks of the infection.

“You only need a small number of people to be doing that and bumping into other people before you get your explosion.

“It’s a bit like a nuclear reaction,” Dr Greenhouse warned.

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Individual symptoms of HIV vary from one person to another, but symptoms in the early stages can include:

With such a vast array of symptoms, HIV testing is vital to ensure a proper diagnosis.

If you think you’ve been exposed to HIV, or have an active sex life with casual sex partners, regardless of whether you are showing symptoms of HIV or not, it’s important to get tested.

Daily Star Online has approached Tinder for comment.