We all have a good idea of how many sexual partners we’ve had. But how many partners have they had
and what about the partners of those people? Even if your own number is low, the number of people
you’ve been exposed to via indirect sexual contact is almost certainly far higher, including countless
people you haven’t even met. The size of this network can actually be quantified and estimated based
on the number of your sexual partners and their average number of partners.
In the calculator below, the number of people you’ve been exposed to within six degrees of connection
is calculated. Input the number of direct partners you have had and how many partners you estimate
each of those partners has had before you to see the true scale of your sexual exposures throughout
six degrees.
While it might be shocking to see your number of exposures as a percentage of the population of a
major city in your country or the nearest global city, indirect sexual exposure can have a far reach
when a person’s sexual history is combined with that of his or her partners and partners’ partners –
and so on for six degrees of connection. The implications are unnerving, as the greater this number of
indirect sexual exposure, the greater one’s risk of contracting a sexually transmitted infection. Seen
at this scale, the true level of risk from unprotected sex will hopefully have users think again about
precarious relations.
Other recently published calculators make assumptions about the sexual history of your partners and
their number of contacts. However, this can produce exaggerated results and an inflated number of
indirect exposures. Our calculator allows you to select your own estimate of the average number of
partners that your partners have had before you. As graphed above, the exponential behaviour of this
situation is revealed. That is, your sexual exposure grows exponentially with the number of partners
that your partners have had. This is further compounded by the number of people that you have slept
with directly, the latter of which is revealed by the various lines on the graph.
Even if you and all of your partners have only single-digit numbers of direct sexual partners, this
can quickly add up to hundreds of thousands of indirect exposures - a number that more than justifies
taking precautions. Remember: Just one exposure is all it takes to contract a sexually transmitted
infection, but correct usage of protection such as condoms can stop a transmissible infection in its
tracks. If you aren’t using condoms, it’s all the more important to know your status with regular STI tests.
Given the sheer number of sexual exposures that many of us will face throughout our lives, taking an
active role in your personal health and wellness is more important than ever. At zavamed.com, we offer
a range of treatmentswith medical professionals on a variety of sexual
health concerns such as sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Several STI tests are available as
well as numerous discreet treatment options, including Chlamydia treatment and Herpes medication. All of this is available
from the privacy of your own home. Visit zavamed.com today
to find out how you can look out for your health, both now and in the future.
Methodology
Sexual exposure was derived using established formulas for a finite geometric series, which, when applied to this situation, allow
the following formula for sexual exposure to be derived:
Fair Use
zavamed.com encourages the embedding of this interactive and the hosting of screenshots of it as well
as the graph above. To embed the (responsive) calculator, you may access an embed code in the
interactive above, and as seen here. When using any of these assets, or
discussing the results of this calculator, we ask that you link to this page so users and those
interested may learn more about the project.
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