Welcome to season two!! We are talking about other viruses in this season so check it out!
We talk today about all the things monkey pox.
What kind of virus is this? Why is it in humans? Is it deadly? Is it an STI? What's the deal with bedsheets? Kids? Vaccines? Prevention? Your mail?? Is it a gay disease?
We got a ton of questions from friends and family and spend the episode doing our best to answer them. One thing is for sure, we need to not characterize this as a gay illness or an illness of men who have sex with men. While it is important to know who conditions and diseases are affecting so that we can target our strategies to effectively protect our communities and population, we need to do a better job taking into consideration the social contexts of that information so we do not further stigmatize, condemn, disparage already marginalized or made to be insignificant populations. Illnesses can hit a community through the kind of food they eat, the kind of clothes they wear, the hygiene they practice, their access to safe housing, the jobs they do, the health care they have access to, and the way they socialize. Mode of transmission is discussed at length and focusing on sexual orientation or the gender spectrum can further stigmatize these communities. Let's be scientific about this!
Check out these references:
https://www.verywellhealth.com/can-you-contract-monkeypox-from-surfaces-6499690
https://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta-news/early-data-shows-monkeypox-disproportionately-affecting-black-men/D5C6I4VUSVBUZLMBFO75SETFGI/
https://www.statnews.com/2022/08/11/new-data-from-several-states-show-racial-disparities-in-monkeypox-infections/
https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/transmission.html
https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/symptoms.html
https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/vaccines.html
https://www.cdc.gov/poxvirus/monkeypox/treatment.html
Thanks to Jeff Jeudy for rocking us out!
Send questions and comments for this episode or others or requests at drtonianddraimee@gmail.com
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