Name: ‘Quicker can be better’: San Francisco's new advice for safe sex during the pandemic is a wild read
Brand: sfchronicle.com
SKU: sfchronicle-com-51
Availability: OnlineOnly

critic

‘Quicker can be better’: San Francisco's new advice for safe sex during the pandemic is a wild read

preview

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateDays before Valentine’s Day, San Francisco’s department of public health put out new guidelines on how to have sex as safely as possible during the pandemic.The advice is specific and graphic — and, it could be argued, very San Francisco.“COVID-19 is spread when we breathe out and is especially spread when a person coughs, sneezes, and even when they sing,” “Increased breathing, like with panting, groaning, moaning or shouting, increases what we exhale, and also is believed to increase the risk of spreading COVID-19.”Other bits of advice — especially important for those getting intimate with others outside their household — include:• “Quicker can be better.” As the document states, “all sex qualifies as close contact.” It’s within six feet, and it probably goes on for longer than 15 minutes. But in general, the less time you spend with someone, the better.• Try to avoid sucking: Since mucus and saliva can spread the virus, that means that risky activities include ”licking, tasting, rubbing lips or eyes or face together, or on mouthed or spit-covered toys, or even through letting someone suck on your fingers and then putting them in your own mouth,” the document states.• ”More people, more risk”: It seems obvious, but the fewer people, the better. “Some guidelines and sexual health experts have suggested finding a “sex buddy” as a way of reducing the risk of getting COVID-19,” the document states. Another option, the document says, is making a change only occasionally. “For example, you might change or add a new or different partner only once every four weeks,” it said. “Or you might try moving from mutual masturbation to something physically closer over four weeks, as you learn more about your partner(s) and the risks in other parts of their lives.”• ”Embrace dirty thoughts. And clean surfaces”: Because sex often means touching the damp, sensitive, mucous-membrane parts of ourselves, the cleaning of surfaces, followed by disinfection, is a best practice measure for prevention.” The document also offers guidance for cleaning sex toys (as well as rings, masks and collars) that includes making sure you clean them “after they touch one body and before they touch another.” It also says: “Alcohol-based sanitizer is effective at killing the virus that causes COVID-19 but if you use alcohol-based disinfectants on sex toy you want to wash the toys afterward with soap and water too, or - ouch! - disinfectants can cause stinging and inflammation and should not come into contact with tender genitals!”• Mask up, sorry about the kissing: “Wearing a well-fitting mask that covers the mouth and nose while having sex with other people will further reduce the risk,” the document states. Also, being outside is always the gold standard — for the few city people who have a backyard — but assuming you’re indoors, aim for better ventilation. The department also suggests another option: “Maybe you’d like to watch.”Of course, sex with someone outside your household isn’t strictly allowed right now. Under California rules for “purple tier” counties, which include the entire Bay Area, people are allowed to visit non-household members only outdoors, masked, and at six feet distance. That would seem to preclude sex. But perhaps a dose of realism is needed, as Valentine’s Day approaches.Asked for comment on the document, the San Francisco Department of Public Health noted that it published safer-sex guidance first in 2020, and “the safer sex guidance was updated this week to reflect the latest science on COVID-19."Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Area’s largest water districts.More for youDespite the department’s efforts, UCSF infectious disease expert Dr. Monica Gandhi said she thought the guidelines’ specificity may actually cause more confusion than benefit.“It’s getting into ludicrous territory when you overprescribe like this,” she said. “I think we have to trust the public with again, knowing about core things ... and let (them) decide for themselves how they will be conducting such personal things such as their sex lives.”By this point in the pandemic, she added, most of the public already “has PhDs in SARS-COV-2,” and should be continually reminded of the simple core messaging: masks, ventilation, and social-distancing.By looking at the guidelines, she said, it would appear San Francisco’s Department of Public Health is encouraging people to have sex outside.“I don’t think that’s appropriate,” she added.Annie Vainshtein is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: . Twitter:Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Area’s largest water districts.

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigateDays before Valentine’s Day, San Francisco’s department of public health put out new guidelines on how to have sex as safely as possible during the pandemic.The advice is specific and graphic — and, it could be argued, very San Francisco.“COVID-19 is spread when we breathe out and is especially spread when a person coughs, sneezes, and even when they sing,” “Increased breathing, like with panting, groaning, moaning or shouting, increases what we exhale, and also is believed to increase the risk of spreading COVID-19.”Other bits of...

public

Annie Vainshtein

Delivering the Bay Area’s best journalism every day. Subscribe and support the newsroom: http://SFChronicle.com/subscribe

‘Quicker can be better’: San Francisco's new advice for safe sex during the pandemic is a wild read

No article scores yet.

CRITIC REVIEWS

PUBLIC REVIEWS