By the time they finish their first semester of college, most people know the basics of… By the time they finish their first semester of college, most people know the basics of sexual health: Always wear a condom to prevent STIs. Abstinence is the only guaranteed method of birth control.

So this year, The Pitt News decided to dig a little deeper for its “safe sex” piece. Here’s what we found:

Myth: Simply keeping a condom free of holes is enough.

Fact: Read the boxes twice. Most condom companies put additional labels on their packaging. Trojan, for example, warns customers to avoid exposing condoms to direct sunlight or storing them in wallets or places where temperatures climb above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Doing so can compromise the quality of the latex, which has an average shelf life of four to five years if properly cared for, Trojan writes on its website.

Myth: Students should get regularly tested for sexually transmitted infections.

Fact: This myth rests on a technicality. Technically, students only get tested for a sexually transmitted infection when they have symptoms for one. Students who don’t have symptoms for an STI and simply want to see if they’re “clean” should instead request a screening, Jaime Sidani, a health educator in Student Health Service, said in an e-mail. The student health fee, which all full-time students pay with their tuition, covers one HIV screening every 12 months for no additional charge. This is an oral swab test, and it will produce results in 20 minutes. Students can also get one free screening for most other STIs every 12 months, as well. Sidani said a clinician decides which STIs to test people for based on their sexual history and risk factors.

Myth: Gardasil, the vaccine often used to prevent HPV, is only for women.

Fact: This past October, the Food and Drug Administration approved the use of Gardasil for boys and men aged 9 to 26. While women use the vaccine to prevent the types of HPV, or Human Papillomavirus, which most commonly cause cervical, vulvar or vaginal cancer, men and boys and can now use it to prevent two types that cause genital warts. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection and a leading cause of genital warts, according to a news release from the FDA. Both genders take the vaccine, which is produced by Merck & Company Inc., as a series of three shots, which are spread out over a 6-month period. Men should contact their doctors to see if they are prepared to give them the Gardasil vaccine. Some places, such as Planned Parenthood, have reported a lag between the change in guidelines and the availability of the vaccine for men.

Myth: Birth control and vaccines are always expensive.

Fact: Taking care of your sexual health doesn’t always have to take a toll on your wallet. We all know it’s easy to find cheap condoms on campus — Student Health Service offers them at a reduced price, and the Campus Women’s Organization often has them, as do other groups. Merck runs a program that offers free shots to some women who make less than $21,660 per year. Generic versions of some forms of birth control, such as the Plan B emergency contraceptive, are also available and are sometimes cheaper. The generic version of Plan B is levonorgestrel, a hormone that typically works by stopping an ovary from releasing an egg, according to the Food and Drug Administration.

Myth: If you’re purposely not having sex in college, you’re alone.

Fact: As times have changed, so have many students’ opinions about abstinence. Sure, we’ve all heard the stereotype that religious students on campus abstain from sex. (Read more p. 8) But the American College Health Association, a national group that surveys college students’ health practices, found in the fall of 2008 that about 35 percent of men and about 33 percent of women said that they hadn’t had sex (oral, vaginal or anal) within the past year.

And a few more reminders:

— Have “the conversation” with your partner before having sex. Are you ready emotionally? Have you and your partner been tested? How many partners have each of you had in the past?

“If you are not ready to have sex with someone, don’t!” Sidani said. She said that’s one of the decisions students commonly regret.

— Know that your judgment will become impaired when you drink alcohol or do drugs.

— If you’re sexually active, get screened regularly for sexually transmitted infections.

 — If you have questions, contact your doctor.