Fact Sheet Number 152
- WHAT ARE CONDOMS?
- WHAT ARE THEY MADE OF?
- HOW ARE CONDOMS USED?
- NONOXYNOL-9
- CONDOM MYTHS
- THE BOTTOM LINE
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PrintA condom is a tube made of thin, flexible material
that is closed at one end. Condoms have been used for hundreds
of years to prevent pregnancy by keeping a man’s semen out of
a woman’s vagina. Condoms also help prevent diseases that are
spread by semen or by contact with infected sores in the genital
area, including HIV. Most condoms are made to go over a man’s
penis. A new type of condom was designed to fit into a woman’s
vagina. This “female” condom can also be used to protect
the rectum.
MADE OF?
Condoms used to be made of natural skin (including lambskin) or
of rubber. That’s why they are called “rubbers”. Most
condoms today are latex or polyurethane.
Lambskin condoms can prevent pregnancy. However, they have
tiny holes (pores) that are large enough for HIV to get through.
Lambskin condoms do not prevent the spread of HIV.
Latex is the most common material for condoms. Viruses can
not get through it. Latex is inexpensive and available in many
styles. It has two drawbacks: oils make it fall apart, and some
people are allergic to it.
Polyurethane is an option for people who are allergic to latex,
but only the female condom and one brand of male condom are made
of polyurethane.
USED?
Condoms can protect you during contact between the penis, mouth,
vagina, or rectum. Condoms won’t protect you from HIV or other
infections unless you use them correctly.
- Store condoms away from too much heat, cold, or friction.
Do not keep them in a wallet or a car glove compartment.
- Check the expiration date. Don’t use outdated condoms.
- Don’t open a condom package with your teeth. Be careful that
your fingernails or jewelry don’t tear the condom. Body jewelry
in or around your penis or vagina might also tear a condom.
- Use a new condom every time you have sex, or when the penis
moves from the rectum to the vagina.
- Check the condom during sex, especially if it feels strange,
to make sure it is still in place and unbroken.
- Do not use a male condom and a female condom at the same
time.
- Use water-based lubricants with latex condoms, not oil-based.
The oils in Crisco, butter, baby oil, Vaseline or cold cream
will make latex fall apart.
- Use unlubricated condoms for oral sex (most lubricants taste
awful).
- Do not throw condoms into a toilet. They can clog plumbing.
- Put the condom on when your penis is erect – but before it
touches your partner’s mouth, vagina, or rectum. The liquid that
comes out of the penis before orgasm can contain HIV.
- If you want, put some water-based lubricant inside the tip
of the condom.
- If you are not circumcised, push your foreskin back before
you put on a condom. This lets your foreskin move without breaking
the condom.
- Squeeze the air out of the tip of the condom to leave room
for semen (cum) and unroll the rest of the condom down the penis.
- Do not “double bag” (use two condoms). Friction
between the condoms increases the chance of breakage.
- After orgasm, hold the base of the condom and pull out before
your penis gets soft.
- Be careful not to spill semen onto your partner when you
throw the condom away.
The female condom is a sleeve of polyurethane with a closed end
and a larger open end. There is a flexible ring in each end.
- Put the condom in place before your partner’s penis touches
your vagina or rectum.
- For use in the vagina, squeeze the smaller ring and insert
it into the vagina, like inserting a diaphragm. The larger ring
goes over the opening to the vagina to protect the outside sex
organs from infection.
- For use in the rectum, remove the smaller ring. Put the condom
over your partner’s erect penis. The condom will be inserted
into the rectum along with the penis.
- Guide the penis into the large ring to avoid unprotected
contact between the penis and the partner’s rectum or vagina.
- After sex, remove the condom before standing up. Twist the
large outer ring to keep the semen inside. Gently pull the condom
out and throw it away.
Nonoxynol-9 is a chemical that kills sperm (a spermicide). It
can help prevent pregnancy when it is used in the vagina along
with condoms or other birth control methods. Nonoxynol-9 should
not be used in the mouth or rectum.
Because nonoxynol-9 kills HIV in the test tube, it was considered
as a way to prevent HIV infection during sex. Unfortunately, many
people are allergic to it. Their sex organs (penis, vagina, and
rectum) can get irritated and develop small sores that actually
make it easier for HIV infection to spread. Nonoxynol-9 is not
recommended as a way to prevent HIV infection.
Condoms don’t work: Condoms prevent HIV transmission
very well if they are used correctly every time you have sex.
Condoms break a lot: Less than 2% of condoms
break when they are used correctly: no oils with latex condoms,
no double condoms, no outdated condoms.
HIV can get through condoms: HIV can not get
through latex or polyurethane condoms. Don’t use lambskin condoms.
When used correctly, condoms are the best way to prevent the spread
of HIV during sexual activity. Condoms can protect the mouth,
vagina or rectum from HIV-infected semen. They can protect the
penis from HIV-infected vaginal fluids and blood in the mouth,
vagina, or rectum. They reduce the risk of spreading other sexually
transmitted diseases.
Condoms must be stored, used and disposed of correctly. Male
condoms are used on the penis. Female condoms can be used in the
vagina or rectum.
Revised September 15, 2001
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New Mexico AIDS Education and Training Center
and the New Mexico Department of Health