Porn-viewing encourages condom use: Study

Zee Media Bureau

New York: Those who consider pornography as taboo may have a change of mind after this revelation. A new research has revealed that viewing porn may have positive effects with regard to practicing safer sex.

This means, that viewing porn may actually promote the use of birth control and contraceptives.

The research findings showed that men who view pornographic content wherein condoms were being used, were more likely to use condoms while indulging in sexual intercourse.

The research also suggested that watching internet-based sexually explicit media showed no evidence of emerging public health issues.

"Actually one type of pornography was associated with higher rates of condom use -- men who viewed more pornography containing condom use engaged in fewer condomless anal sex encounters,” said one of the researchers Eric Schrimshaw, associate professor at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health in the US.

"Even those who took part in compulsive pornography viewing were not more likely to engage in condomless anal sex," Schrimshaw noted.

However, watching pornography containing condomless anal sex was associated with more condomless anal sex behaviour.

Results were based on an online survey of 265 men who have sex with men and who had viewed sexually explicit media in the past three months.

Participants were recruited via ads on Craigslist and Facebook and asked about the amount, compulsivity, and proportion of condomless anal sex and anal sex with condoms.

Eligible men for the survey were at least 18 years of age and resided within 50 miles of New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore or Washington, D.C.

The study was published in the journal PLOS ONE.

(With IANS inputs)