Cardiff ranked the worst UK city for people getting STI checks in new sexual health study

Cardiff has been named the UK’s worst city for sexual health in a new sexual health study.

According to research conducted by Medicine Direct, just 22% of people from the Welsh capital would be willing to wear a condom during sex while 11% said they wouldn’t get an STI check after having unprotected intercourse.

If they were to contract an infection, 25% of locals wouldn’t be confident recognising the symptoms.

The city was closely followed by Glasgow and Belfast.

But it’s Edinburgh, which came in at number four, which has the highest number of people who have never been tested for an STI - with an astonishing 76% owning up.

So which UK city is hailed for being the safest when it comes to sex?

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Bristol has the lowest number of people who have never been tested for an STI at 41% while only 17% said they would wait until developing symptoms to book an appointment at their local GP.

The findings came from a survey of 2,368 people from 28 UK cities who were asked questions about sexual health.

Research indicated that one of the biggest reasons why 32% of Brits don’t bother getting tested is because they don’t think they’re at risk of STIs. While a further 33% were reportedly never taught about the risks at school.

“In light of our findings, we want to try and address the conversation about positive sexual health,”superintendent pharmacist at Medicine Direct, Hussain Abdeh, said. “Our survey has highlighted that people are taking a risk with their own health, and other people’s.”

“It’s worth remembering that some STIs, such as chlamydia, may have no visible symptoms but can be very damaging if left untreated.”

READ MORE: STIs among young people are on the rise, but why?

Last year, it was reported that STIs are on the rise among young people with a case of chlamydia or gonorrhoea diagnosed every four minutes in England.

Further findings revealed that over 144,000 of those diagnosed back in 2017 were between the ages of 15 to 24.

From the condom’s bad reputation to a lack of awareness on the symptoms of common STIs, a large number of young people are not fully informed on the dangers of not having regular check-ups.

What are the symptoms of an STI?

Although a large number of sexual transmitted diseases are symptom-less, there are telltale signs to look out for.

According to the NHS, you should be aware of the following:

• Unusual discharge from the vagina, penis or anus

• Pain when urinating

• Lumps or skin growths around the genitals or anus

• A rash

• Unusual vaginal bleeding

• Itchy genitals or anus

• Blisters and sores around the genitals or anus

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