Most young adults pride themselves in 'knowing it all'. From which college to choose, which job to take, or the best hangout spot on a Friday night. And, they most certainly think they know everything there is to know about sex whether they are having it or not. But, when asked to produce the facts about STDs they give the blank stare like they forgot about a pop quiz in English class.

So, are you afraid of being left in the dark?

It's time to ditch the dark and learn these truths about STDs:

• 19 million new sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) occur each year.
• Almost half of them among young people ages 15 to 24.
• 10,000 teens are infected by STDs per day, that's one every eight seconds!
• One out of every four sexually active teens has an STD, and one in two sexually active youth will contract an sexually transmitted infection (STI) by age 25.
• For females, more cases of syphilis were reported between the ages of 15 to 24 than any other age group in Florida.
• Approximately 18% of all new HIV diagnoses are among young people aged 13 ― 24
  years old.
• Two out of every three reported STD cases in Florida were under the age of 25.
• One out of every 33 persons with a reportable STD in Florida is co-infected with HIV.
• An estimated one in five Americans have genital herpes infection and up to 90 percent of them don't even know they have it.
• Floridians between the ages of 15 and 24 represented only 13 percent of Florida's population in 2011, but accounted for 70 percent of reported cases of Chlamydia infections.
• Gonorrhea rates for 15 to 24 year olds are at least twice as high as any groups over age 25
  in Florida.
• 40 percent of older adolescents surveyed incorrectly believe that the contraceptive "pill" and "shot" protect against STDs and HIV.
• Some young people, including those who have had abstinence education, consider oral and anal sex to be abstinent behaviors and do not realize these behaviors present risks to STD transmission.

Don't be in the dark about your health. Talk to your partner and health care provider about risk factors and safer sex methods to reduce your changes of getting an STD. Make an appointment for STD testing and step into the light!

Hearing the news that you've contracted an STD can be a devastating blow both physically and emotionally. With all the thoughts racing through your mind, the toughest one to grasp will no doubt be telling your partner the news so they can get tested. If you're having trouble finding the words to say, visit www.inspot.org or click the link below to help.

If you can't tell them about an STD
in person or over the phone