Safe sex

1. Hold the base of the condom as you pull out to avoid slippage.

2. Remove the condom and throw away in the trash, not the toilet.

3. Did you just have sex 30 minutes ago and want to start round two? Use a fresh condom. It doesn't matter if you didn't even ejaculate or if the condom still fits snug on your penis. For every single sex act, use a new condom.

Sex workers are professionals and make it their business to ensure they do not catch or pass on diseases.

This includes all diseases – sexually transmitted infections, diseases of the skin, colds, coughs, flu and any other infection. That is why you should never visit a sex worker if you are at all ill.

Arrive in clean clothes, having bathed and cleaned your teeth.

Sex workers insist on cleanliness. Some will require you to shower on arrival, and some will wash your body as part of an erotic service. Clients and potential clients need to understand that this work provides the sex worker with a livelihood, and catching diseases and becoming ill will disrupt their income as well as their health.

It should be clear that you are far more likely to catch a sexually transmitted infection from someone you pick up in a bar or an amateur than from a professional. The reason for this is that professional sex workers are much more likely than other people to engage in safer sex.

! Condoms that are made of animal membrane do not protect you as well as others. Stick to latex or polyurethane, or talk to your doctor about your other options.

! Do not try to be extra safe by using more than one condom; this causes extra friction which will make the condoms more likely to break.

! Never reuse a condom. If you take the condom off, don’t put it back on again, even if there doesn’t seem to be any fluid.

! Never keep a condom in your wallet "just in case". Body heat and pressure will accelerate the breakdown of the condom in the wallet.

! Don't put a condom on if the package was already nicked or ripped before use.

! Never flush a condom down the toilet, which can cause it to overflow. Having someone remove your used condom from your plumbing is far more embarrassing than wrapping it up and throwing it someplace inconspicuous.

! Remember not to mix oil-based lubrication of any kind (not just store-bought) with latex condoms! Any oil-based substance can very quickly weaken latex and make it break. This includes hand lotion, Vaseline, cold cream, baby oil, and even chapstick.

!  Novelty condoms, such as glow in the dark condoms, might not protect against pregnancy or STD transmission, but flavored, non-novelty ones will. Check the box for details.

!  If improperly used, a condom offers little protection. Even if properly used, there is a small possibility of pregnancy or transmission of sexually-transmitted diseases.

!  Do not put a condom on you or your partner's tongue, or in your mouth as a preventative measure during oral sex. To do so could result in asphyxiation and death. The male condom is designed for the penis only.

!  Mutual masturbation can spread STDs if you get fluids on your hands. This is unlikely but still possible.