"Wear masks during sex, skip kissing, masturbation is safest", Canada's top doctor advises couples

Guwahati: Amid the raging pandemic, Canada's chief medical officer Dr. Theresa Tam has urged couples to consider wearing masks while having sex. The doctor also said the couple should skip kissing during sex, going on to add that masturbation is the safest sexual option right now.

Although the risk of contracting the virus from semen or vaginal fluid is minimal, sexual activities with strangers could increase the risk of infection, Dr. Tam said in a statement, adding that activities that involve close face-to-face contact, like kissing, are "high-risk."

"Like other activities during Covid-19 that involve physical closeness, there are some things you can do to minimize the risk of getting infected and spreading the virus," she said.

Dr Tam asked also the couples to monitor their partner's symptoms ahead of any sexual activity, adding that "the lowest risk sexual activity during Covid-19 involves yourself alone."

While asserting that sexual health is an integral part of overall health, she assured Canadians that they "can find ways to enjoy physical intimacy while safeguarding the progress we have all made containing Covid-19."

Meanwhile, another study, conducted by researchers at Harvard University that was published in June also held that wearing a mask while having sex was advisable in view of the ongoing pandemic situation.

The study went on to add that though sexual abstinence carried the lowest risk of infection, it was not "feasible" for many. Before having sex with strangers, the study advised that the "patient should be counselled on the risk of infection from partners".

Minimising the number of sexual partners, avoiding sex with partners who have Covid-like symptoms, avoiding kissing and sexual behaviours that carry a risk of "decal-oral transmission" or involve semen or urine, wearing a mask, showering before and after sexual intercourse, and cleaning of the physical space with soap or alcohol wipes, were also suggested some "risk reduction techniques" by the study.

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