I mean, really?

I was browsing FOXNews (which has seemingly gotten dumber since the election) and came across this gem of advice by Dr. Yvonne Fulbright*, who obviously is not a microbiologist or virologist. Good gawd!

Another thing to keep in mind is that when someone has the common cold sore (a.k.a. oral herpes — HSV-1) and goes down on you, you could contract genital herpes, or HSV-2.

Say what?!?!

Ok, a bit of basic virology here: HSV-1 and HSV-2 are two different viruses. In addition, a simple internets search (like this one) would have revealed some good information on this question.

Genetically, HSV-1 and HSV-2 are about 50% identical to one another. They are not the same virus. If you have HSV-1 and "go down" on your partner, they won't get HSV-2, they'll get (if they get anything at all) HSV-1**. It is possible to get HSV-1 below the belt, and HSV-2 above it, and while it's uncommon, it's not impossible.

So, are we all clear on this now?


*FOXNews is a conservative site, so why is their "sexpert" plastered on the front page?

**To claim that if someone has HSV-1 and they perform oral sex on their partner, their partner might get HSV-2 is akin to telling someone that they could get HIV from having sex without a condom even if the other person is also HIV negative. The question remains ... where the hell does the HSV-2 (or HIV) come from! The only plausible answer is ... it doesn't come from anywhere, because it's IMPOSSIBLE.