Sexual health – articles and advice
General sexual health
Features on sexual health, relationships and safe practices. For detailed medical reference, see our Patient Information Leaflets on sexual health.
General sexual health
Sexual health covers more than just STIs. Learn about topics from libido changes to pain during sex and how to get support.
- Where to get help for sexual assault
- What you need to know about sexual consent
- Teenage sex education: the best digital resources for your child
- How to prevent genital irritation from affecting your sex life
- Why is sexual violence against men on the rise?
- Does smoking affect your sex life?
- Can your pharmacist help you with your sexual health?
- Is your lifestyle impacting your sex drive?
- How does having a stroke affect your sex life?
- How does alcohol affect your sex life?
- How IBS affects sex, dating and relationships
- How Crohn's disease can affect your sex life
- What young people really want from sex education
- Preparing for your smear test as a survivor of sexual violence
- What it's like to be a recovering sex addict
- How cancer can affect your sex life
- What to do after rape or sexual assault
- The most likely reasons for your low sex drive
- What happens when you visit a sexual health clinic?
- Sexual health at work - should bosses be doing more?
Birth control
Birth control gives you choices about when to have children. Learn about the different methods, how they work, and which might suit you best.
- NewFree morning-after pill now available at UK pharmacies
- Contraception videos
- What is post-birth control syndrome?
- Easy ways to get the pill: options beyond the GP surgery
- Which types of condoms are best for preventing pregnancy?
- When will I become fertile again after coming off contraception?
- What happens when you come off the pill?
- Do contraceptive pills change your behaviour?
- Does the contraceptive pill increase your risk of blood clots?
- Which medications can affect your contraception?
- The pros and cons of female condoms
- Does hormonal contraception affect your sex drive?
- What to do about contraception after giving birth
- Should you consider the copper coil for emergency contraception?
- Can you prevent breakthrough bleeding on the pill?
- Will we ever have a male contraceptive pill?
- Should you avoid the pill if you get migraines?
- Is it safe to skip your period on the pill?
- What to expect when you take the morning after pill
- Should you change your contraception to the coil or implant?
- Are fertility apps a reliable form of contraception?
- Secret shoppers: Are women given the best contraception advice?
- Morning after pill myths debunked
- What's the future of contraception?
- How long to wait before your second baby
Fertility
Trying for a baby? Learn about factors that affect fertility in men and women, and when it may be time to seek help.
- Does your ethnicity influence your fertility success?
- Video: How much does PCOS affect fertility?
- Fertility diet: what to eat when you're trying to get pregnant
- Why is egg freezing on the rise and is it safe?
- How common is male infertility, and what causes it?
- Does testicular cancer affect your fertility?
- Scientists develop sperm separation method for sex selection
- Does hormonal contraception affect fertility after you stop taking it?
- Do anabolic steroids cause infertility?
- Junk food diet linked to low sperm count
- How your lifestyle may be a cause of low sperm count
- What not to say to someone experiencing infertility
- Protecting your mental health during fertility treatment
- The truth about getting pregnant after 40
- The truth about egg freezing
- How an underactive thyroid affects fertility
Men's sexual health
Sexual health matters at every age. Learn about erectile dysfunction, low libido, and other men’s health concerns—and how they can be treated.
- What you need to know before you take erectile dysfunction medication
- Do condoms really cause erection problems?
- How to prevent premature ejaculation
- Are erection problems getting more common in young men?
- Can men get thrush?
- How erection problems can affect your relationship
- The male reproductive system
- What erectile dysfunction could mean for your heart
Sexually transmitted infections
STIs can be common and often show few symptoms. Learn how to protect yourself, get tested, and access discreet, effective treatment.
In this topic:Sexually transmitted infectionsHIV and AIDS
- STI videos
- Simple ways to help prevent vaginal thrush
- Home STI tests: how they work and what to expect
- Can you get chlamydia from kissing?
- How often should you visit a sexual health clinic for a check-up?
- What are universities doing to support student sexual health?
- Oral sex: what you need to know to stay healthy
- The STIs you've never heard of
- A chlamydia vaccine has passed initial safety tests
- Why are STIs on the rise in older people?
- Calls for improved access to sexual health services as STI rates soar
- Why regular STI checks are so important
- The best way to treat a herpes outbreak
- What you need to know about HPV
- Why is syphilis on the rise?
- How to cope with a genital herpes diagnosis
- Video: What are the different types of STI?
- Is oral sex less risky than intercourse?
- What to do if you think you have an STI
- Telling current and past partners about your STI
- How quickly do different STIs spread?
- Safeguarding your sexual health at university
HIV and AIDS
- HIV in women: what you should know
- Can you live a long, healthy life with HIV?
- Stigma of HIV and representations in the media
- Is it easy to have an HIV test?
- How to cope with an HIV diagnosis
- Who should take the HIV prevention drug PrEP?
- World AIDS Day: Where are we now with HIV?
- Women's HIV prevention: the importance of the vaginal ring
- Dispelling common myths about HIV and AIDS
- What is the difference between HIV and AIDS?
- First long-acting injectable HIV treatment approved
- How do you know if you have HIV?
- What not to say to someone with HIV
- Why is PrEP still not available on the NHS in England?
- Scientists identify a mechanism to 'neutralise' HIV
- How good is PEP for preventing HIV?
- What living with HIV is like today
- Should HIV prevention pills be available on the NHS?
- Living with HIV from birth
Women's sexual health
Women’s sexual health changes over time. Learn about conditions like vaginal dryness, pain during sex, and how to seek discreet help.
- What can cause a smelly vagina after sex?
- What can cause low libido in women?
- How to treat vaginismus
- What it's like to go through the menopause when you have HIV
- Can women take Viagra?
- The health benefits of sex toys
- How to orgasm more easily during sex
- The female reproductive system
- Video: How does PID affect fertility?
- Understanding vulvodynia and why it causes painful sex
- The most likely causes of pain during sex