The Standard Group Plc is a multi-media organization with investments in media platforms spanning newspaper print
operations, television, radio broadcasting, digital and online services. The Standard Group is recognized as a
leading multi-media house in Kenya with a key influence in matters of national and international interest.
Nairobi City at night.
Most holiday seasons are rarely over without emotional, physical, financial, and worst of all, health-related mishaps.
Some of the most common issues that follow festive season-related indulgences, sometimes under the influence of alcohol, are unplanned pregnancies, Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) and infections such as HIV.
Jackson Kiilu, a clinical officer and the Machakos County Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission focal person, says women from low-income households aged between 18 and 24 are usually the most at risk of such.
“This is because they look for an extra coin during the festivities by cohabiting with men who have just gone to the villages from towns,” says Kiilu, partly blaming the same on peer pressure.
STDs are caused by bacteria, viruses or parasites transmitted through unprotected sex and skin-to-skin genital contact.
Bacterial infections include chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis, while viral infections include genital herpes, Hepatitis B, Human Papillomavirus (HPV), and HIV. Parasites will be responsible for trichomoniasis and pubic lice.
Kiilu says travellers are at high risk of acquiring STIs if they have unprotected sex outside a monogamous relationship, engage in casual sex or engage sex workers as some “may be less inclined to follow social moral standards dictating their behaviour, with some looking for adventurous opportunities, while the long term travelers may also be at a risk due to loneliness.”
Kiilu advises travelers to avoid overindulging in alcohol, which may impair judgment, increasing the risk of making unsafe choices.
The Ministry of Health 2014 HIV data picked out geographic location as a factor in HIV prevalence, with new infections occurring in major cities like Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu, while the 2018 Kenya Aids Response Progress Report classifies Kisumu, Siaya, Homa Bay and Migori as hyper-endemic with above 11.1 per cent of HIV prevalence. This is above Nairobi, Busia, and Vihiga’s which are at between five per cent and 11 per cent.
Peer pressure is one of the leading causes of unplanned pregnancies, STIs, and HIV/Aids. Dr Geoffrey Wango, a counseling psychologist and lecturer at the University of Nairobi also lists young adults aged 14 to 23 as the most vulnerable, as this is the age “when boys and girls want to try alcohol for the first time, try smoking or inhaling shisha... and this comes with its own downsides,” like road and traffic accidents.
Kiilu advices patients on HIV medications to pack adequate supplies before travelling, and if they forget, to ensure they have medical cards for sourcing in public facilities.
“I know some people may want to hide their drugs as the tins make a lot of noise when one is traveling. But you can use cotton wool to muffle the noise from the drugs in the tins,” he says.
join