NATIONAL CONDOM MONTH!GET PASSIONATE ABOUT PREVENTION!

According to my favorite site, http://www.brownielocks.com/, February is National Condom Month! James R. Allen, CEO and President of ASHA said,"Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) remain one of nation's biggest public health threats, and it is high time that we as a nation get serious, get passionate about addressing the problem". I could not agree more with this statement. Teens are becoming more and more sexual at a young age. Yet, at their young age they are not aware of the various forms of STDs.This is expected since many parents and schools choose to ignore the problem rather than to sit down and explain various forms of contraception to their children. However, I don't think college students have any excuse when it comes to not using contraception. Here are a few facts about the consequences of choosing to have relations with various partners with no condoms:

• Every year there are ,approximately, 15 million new cases of STDs! That's an extremely high number!
• In the U.S., 65 MILLION people are living with a chronic STD such as herpes or HPV!!
• In most STD cases, 2/3 of the victims are under the age of 25
• 1 in 4 new STD infections occur in teenagers
• About 15% of American infertile women are infertile due to an untreated STD
• It cost more than $8 BILLION to treat and diagnose STDs

Who wants to live a life with the consequences of a STD that could have been prevented by using a condom? It's not a hard decision.Being "caught up in the moment" can have devastating consequences. Don't let your partner influence you into not using condoms! GET PASSIONATE ABOUT PREVENTION!

Now,here's a story that really touched my heart and grabbed my attention. Little Anabelle Whitehouse is a 5 year old girl with a rare genetic disorder called icthyosis. Only 1 out of 200,000 or 300,000 Americans live with icthyosis. This rare disease causes Anabelle's body to literally shed its skin every day. Her parents have to rub a full-body exfoliating lotion on Anabelle every half an hour so her skin won't turn into hard,thick scales; and she has wear bandages various times a day. Thankfully, her disorder does not effect her life expectancy. She lives her life like any 5 year old little girl should.


BERKELEY STUDENTS, don't forget that it's BLACK HISTORY MONTH!

 There are various activities going on on our campus this month! Don't forget to get involved and check them out.

VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION!

DON'T FORGET TO COMPLETE YOUR TAXES,OR REMIND YOUR PARENTS, SO THAT YOU CAN RE-APPLY FOR FAFSA! IT'S VERY IMPORTANT SO THAT YOU CAN RECEIVE ALL THE FINANCIAL AID POSSIBLE THAT YOU DESERVE FOR YOUR EDUCATION!