Seniors Learn the Ins and Outs of Safe Sex

By Rebecca Dellagloria, the Miami Herald
February 11, 2009

Most people don't want to think about it: Grandma and Grandpa having sex.

But they do. A lot. And it's not always safe sex.

On Tuesday, groups of apt and sexually active seniors spent the day at the Michael-Ann Russell Jewish Community Center in Northeast Dade, learning about the risks of unprotected sex in between relishing the ins and outs of getting it on.

Miami Metrozoo ambassador Ron Magill kept the crowd roaring, with his candid photos of animals getting down in the wild, and demonstrations of the distinctive sounds of tortoises experiencing coital bliss.

He passed around a penis bone from a large walrus, called an oosik and almost two feet long. He showed pictures of a frog ménage à trois (''If you've ever had a fantasy about being with multiple partners, you want to come back as a frog,'' Magill quipped). He described how flamingos need an audience to perform and how Metrozoo often uses mirrors to get them in the mood.

An interesting tidbit: the blue whale has the largest penis of any mammal, measuring 10 feet when erect.

''God bless Viagra, Cialis, Levitra and all those other things,'' Magill said.

``Animals have a bone in their penis. We got ripped off.''

Behind the levity, however, was a serious lesson: Unprotected sex among seniors is leading to a rise in AIDS/HIV and other dangerous sexually transmitted diseases.

Indeed, during the past decade, AIDS cases among those 50 and older have risen by 500 percent, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nationally, about one in 10 Americans diagnosed with AIDS are 50 years or older, according to 2007 data from the Florida Department of Health.

`IT'S TABOO'

But discussing sex isn't always easy among the senior set.

''We're from the old school, you never talk about sex. It's taboo,'' said Hy Posner, 85, of North Miami Beach. ``It's more wide open now, it's good.''
The JCC's health fair, dubbed ''A Sexy Affair,'' brought the risks of unprotected sex out into the open. In addition to Magill and a talk by Miami psychiatrist Dr. Marc Agronin on sexuality and aging, the fair featured a Claymation video, an animated 12-minute spot using clay figures as characters. A group of seniors from the center produced the video, which depicts a real-life, boy-meets-girl -- or in this case, Morty meets Ethel -- scenario. Two seniors find romance at a dance, and eventually discuss taking the relationship to the bedroom.

Neither have thought about the need to use condoms.

''I just read an article about infectious diseases, STDs and all that stuff,'' the female lead tells her friend over the phone. ``I read that the number of seniors with STDs is increasing.''

PRECAUTIONS

Julie Chesley, 83, one of the producers of the video, Sex and the Seniors, said she wanted to get the message out about taking precautions after reading about the rise of sexually transmitted diseases among those over 50.

''People were unaware you can get a disease at this stage in life,'' said Chesley, of Aventura. `If talking about AIDS helps one person, then our movie was a success.''

The group wrote the script, built the sets and sculpted the characters from clay, including a character who brags about her sexy cleavage and her dyed blonde locks. The animated figures openly talk about using condoms, how soon to have sex when dating, and getting checked for STDs.

The discussion opened some eyes. One 93-year-old woman, Rose, said she didn't realize women could contract STDs after menopause.

'You get these condo jockeys, they go out with a prostitute, they take care of all the ladies in the building, and then you have a problem,'' Chesley said. ``We laugh about this, but one of our members does have a certificate saying he is disease free. I can't tell you his name, because everyone will want to call him.''

Original link: http://www.globalaging.org/health/us/2009/safesex.htm