Health Effects of Prostitution
Many Sex workers of today see their life of
prostitution as a career choice, especially in the state of Nevada. They will argue points of health safety and stability
under the cover of legal brothels. Other prostitutes choose this line of work out of pure desperation or are sold
into it through trafficking. Whether legal or illegal, their are many health concerns surrounding prostitution;
Physical: Injury ( bruises, broken bones, black eyes concussions)
In a 1994, in
a city in the Unites States, a study was conducted with 68 women who had been prostituting for at least 6 months. At
least 1/2 of the women had been physically assaulted, 1/3 of those women assaulted were severely beaten enough to have
suffered broken bones. Two of the women were beaten into a coma. ( Parriott, Health Experiences of Twin Cities
Women Used in Prostitution)
Gynecological: general gynecological problems, chronic
pelvic pain, pelvic inflammatory disease(PID), STD's including HIV/AIDS, chlamydia, gonorrhea, herpes, human papilloma
virus and syphilis
In the same study as above, 15% of the women had never contracted one of the STD's, 31%
of the women interviewed had experienced at least one episode of PID and among these women there was a high incidence of positive
pap-smears, several times higher than the Department of Health's cervical cancer screening program for low or middle income
women. More STD's episodes can increase the risk of cervical cancer.
Emotional:
severe trauma, stress, depression, anxiety, self medication through alcohol and drug abuse; and eating disorders
Women in prostitution are also at a greater risk for self mutilation, suicide and homicide. 46% of the women interviewed
in the above study had attempted suicide and 19% had tried to harm themselves physically in other ways.
References: "Making Harm Visible" by Janice G. Raymond, University of Massachusetts
