LESBIAN RISK

More Evidence of Lesbian Risk-Taking

In the largest study ever conducted of lesbians, researchers in Sydney, Australia interviewed 1,432 women who had sex with women [WSW] and who visited a Sexually Transmitted Infections [STI] clinic between 1991 and 1998. These subjects were individually matched to a set of controls, namely, the next woman patient at the clinic who said she had never had sex with a woman.

All of the women were routinely given a battery of tests for a variety of STIs, including Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Chlamydia trachomatis, Trichomonas vaginalis, Candida, and bacterial vaginosis. Genital herpes and genital warts were diagnosed clinically. In addition, each of the patients was given an extensive sexual history.

Contrary to the standard liberal refrain about lesbians, women who had sex with women [WSW] were rather different from the group of controls, even though the controls - having come to the STI clinic out of personal concern about STIs and residing in the central city - were probably atypical of heterosexual women in general.

Stability of Sexual Orientation 283 (20%) of the 1432 WSW reported that they had only had sex with women in the last 12 months. Overall, 93% of the 1432 WSW “reported previous sexual contact with a man.” That is only 7% of ‘lesbians’ had not had sex with a man. This finding jibes closely with both the 1983-84 FRI survey and the 1994 Univ. of Chicago study, both conducted in the U.S., where only about 5% of lesbians hadn’t had sex with a man.

Age Distribution The WSW had an age range of 14-56, while the controls ranged from 16 to 78. Though the median age of the two groups did not differ, there were very few older WSW, none even in their 60s. In most studies, it is difficult to find homosexually active WSWs who are in their 50s. A 1996 U.S. government sex survey found that the oldest woman who reported sex with another woman was aged 49. It is even rarer to find those who are homosexually active into their 60s. This new study was no exception. Nor do the results from Sydney contradict FRI’s finding that WSW have a median age of death somewhere in their 50s.

Number of Sex Partners Besides the obvious fact that WSW had more female sex partners than the control group (by definition), the median number of male sex partners for WSW was also statistically greater than for the controls (12 v. 6). 9% of WSW v. 2% of controls reported more than 50 lifetime male sex partners. 15% of WSW v. 5% of the controls furthermore said that they had had sex with a homosexual or bisexual male.

Sex with an injection-drug user was reported by 21% of WSW v. 6% of controls. Additionally, WSW more frequently reported sex with a heterosexual man who had had multiple partners (19% v. 17%).

As to lesbian partners, 80% of WSW reported 5 or fewer female lifetime partners, while 8% reported more than 10 lifetime female partners. By comparison in the FRI study, the median number of sex partners (both male and female combined) for self-avowed lesbians was 9 and the mean number was 78. It cannot be determined from the published report for sure, but it appears that the set of WSW from Sydney may have reported more total lifetime sexual partners than the FRI sample of lesbians. Quite possibly this was because the Sydney sample came from an STD clinic. But maybe lesbians as a whole have expanded their sexual activities over the last 10-15 years.

Sexually Transmitted Infections Compared to the controls, WSW were statistically more apt to have bacterial vaginosis (8% v. 5%) [WSW who reported sex only with women in the past 12 months had 10%], hepatitis C (5% v. <1%), hepatitis B (5% v. 3%), and to report a past history of STIs (44% v. 32%) than the controls (see Figure 1). The controls were more apt to currently have genital warts (11% v. 8%) than WSWs, but WSW were more apt to report a history of having had genital warts. Interestingly, these findings confirm what the 1983-84 FRI survey first found: that the incidence of STDs is greater among lesbians than heterosexual women.

Other Risky Behaviors WSW were more apt to be smokers (49% v. 38%), more apt to have ever injected drugs (23% v. 4%), more apt to be a ‘sex worker’ (i.e., prostitute) (22% v. 11%), more apt to have gotten pregnant (52% v. 44%), and more apt to have gotten an abortion (38% v. 27%) (see Figure 2). WSW also tended to more frequently consume large amounts of alcohol per week (12% v. 10%). The FRI study also found that lesbians more frequently reported an abortion, and were more apt to get ‘high’ on various substances.

Those lesbians who said that - during the last 12 months - they had only had sex with women were broadly similar to other WSW. Only 25% of these ‘pure’ lesbians had never had sex with a man. Indeed, 4% of the ‘exclusive’ WSW v. only 2% of the heterosexual controls reported sex with more than 50 lifetime male sex partners. This same subset of the WSW was more apt to report sex with a homosexual/bisexual man or with a person who shot drugs. They were also more apt than the controls to have shot drugs (22% v. 11%) and to have engaged in prostitution (16% v. 11%).

The picture painted by this study is in broad agreement with FRI’s nationwide survey conducted in the early 1980s. In the FRI study, women who called themselves lesbians or bisexuals reported more lifetime sexual partners than women who called themselves heterosexual. Similarly, lesbians in the FRI study reported more criminality and involvement with prostitution. Other studies of lesbians - when compared to a reasonably well-matched set of controls - have come to the same general conclusion: lesbians are more criminal and more involved in prostitution. Even a recent U.S. government study found the same general outcomes. WSW reported more risky sexual behavior, more sexual partners, more substance abuse, and more socially disruptive behavior than their heterosexual counterparts.

Pity the children who are adopted or foster-parented by lesbians! Not only will their ‘parent’ often be a disturbed individual who tends to do more socially disruptive things, but their lesbian parent’s associates are likely to be the same.

Reference: Fethers K, Marks C., Mindel A, Estcourt CS. Sexually transmitted infections and risk behaviours in women who have sex with women. Sexually Transmitted Infections 2000;76:345-349.