Study: Almost
half of Irish gay men have unsafe sex

A new study indicates that nearly half of Irish gay men questioned about their sexual practices were not using condoms. This confirms the worst fears of HIV/AIDS educators, who knew the safe-sex message was often falling on deaf ears, but even they are expressing shock at the results of the newly released study. Equally shocking was that researchers also found the number of gay men being tested for HIV had fallen dramatically over the past four years. In 2000, nearly 70% of Irish gay men went for blood tests to determine their status, but by 2004 that number had dropped to less than 50%. The survey, carried out for the Gay Men's Health Project and presented at a recent Gay Health Forum in Dublin, showed that men under 20 were the least likely to have been tested but that of those people who were tested, men in their 30s and 40s were the most likely to receive a positive result. Researchers found that people with more education and higher-paying jobs were more likely to be tested, while the unemployed and working poor were the least likely. (Sirius OutQ News)