You Know How to Prevent STIs, but How Do You Stop the Flu and COVID During a Hookup?

This story originally appeared on Out.Safe sex usually involves regular STI testing, condoms, and PrEP, but during cold and flu season there are other things to worry about. Getting sidelined by the flu is no fun, and now we have to worry about COVID-19 as well. Masking and social distancing help to stop the spread of disease, but what do you do during a hookup? Being in close proximity to another person means that your chances of catching something go up, but luckily there are things you can do to protect yourself and your sexual partner during the time of year when it seems like everyone is getting sick.How likely are you to get COVID-19 or the flu while having sex?COVID-19 and the flu aren't sexually transmitted infections, but being up close and personal with someone who could be contagious is still a concern. “There are a handful of small, limited studies examining transmission of respiratory viruses during sex but there is not a reliable percentage for catching COVID or flu during sex,” says Dr. Andi Toufexis, a family medicine physician and founder of the sexual health education platform Your Doctor Bestie. “In general, close contact with someone who has respiratory symptoms increases the risk of catching COVID or flu.”Basically, you can’t social distance when you’re having in-person sex, so your risk increases because you're breathing so close to another person.“I think there is certainly an increased risk of transmission because of the type of contact,” says Dr. Josefina Batista, the pediatric medical director at Midwest Express Clinic. “You know, you’re kissing, breathing heavily, you’re close to someone’s face for an extended period of time, sometimes the ventilation is poor.”If you eat in restaurants, go to indoor concerts or movies, or work in an office, you risk contracting COVID-19 or the flu. But the risk is even higher during sex, a fact that means coitus with multiple people in a closed room increases your likelihood of ge