A survey by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) published earlier this week indicated that as many as 2.33 million Taiwanese men visited adult entertainment establishments this year, with an estimated 470,000 paying for sex — with 30 percent of those not using protection.
The survey asked participants if they had visited establishments associated with the sex trade in Taiwan, including saunas, hostess clubs and certain tea shops, and whether they had paid for sex with male or female professionals from escort or “compensated dating” services.
Only 70 percent of the men who said they paid for sex — which is not allowed under Taiwanese law — said they used protection, the survey said.
The CDC study aimed to uncover details of the sexual practices of men over 20 and the factors attracting them to the sex industry, to aid HIV prevention efforts.
It drew its findings from 1,091 male participants aged 20 and up.
CDC Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) said this year’s survey showed a large increase in the number of men who said they paid for sex in the past 12 years.
The survey indicated that the most likely demographic to pay for sex was single men under the age of 50 who hold management-level jobs and make at least NT$50,000 (US$1,572.60) per month.
Meanwhile, another CDC survey of 1,072 Taiwanese men aged between 15 and 49 found that 46.3 percent of those with multiple partners did not use protection in their most recent sexual encounters, compared to 44.2 percent of respondents overall.
The data released did not differentiate between married and unmarried men.
Of the respondents, 35 percent said they did not use protection during their very first sexual encounters, though that was down from the 48.3 percent who said the same last year.
Sixty-seven percent of interviewees said they were unaware that using oil-based lubricants can nullify the protection provided by latex condoms.
The CDC said the numbers show that more effort is needed in promoting condom usage as a means of birth control and preventing sexually transmitted diseases.
Meanwhile, the survey also revealed that more young men are having sex for the first time at age 19 or younger — 22.9 percent this year, up from last year’s 16.8 percent — Chuang said.
Chuang explained that interviewees cited diminished sensation and the inconvenience of keeping condoms on hand as the predominant reasons why they chose not to use the birth control method.
In light of the rising number of new HIV cases — 28,526 at the end of last month — the CDC urged the public to use protection during sex.
From January to last month, the nation saw 2,051 new cases of HIV, of which 90 percent contracted the disease from unprotected sex, the CDC said.
Nearly half of HIV/AIDS patients — 46.6 percent — are aged between 25 and 34, while 25.1 percent are between 15 and 24.
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