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Chlamydia growing health problem among young people

Category: Chlamydia

Women and young people are among the most affected by the increasing prevalence of chlamydia and other sexually-transmitted diseases.

One reason for the increasing rate of the diseases is the fact some people are spreading them without realizing they are infected, the New York Times reports. Chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis are all treatable with antibiotics and if caught early, can be completely cured.

"Condoms are a very good way to reduce the risk of getting infections," said Dr. Stuart Berman, an epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "If you use them all the time, and use them correctly, they work."

With chlamydia, if the condition is left untreated, people can develop pelvic inflammatory disease, which occurs in 40 percent of women with the condition who do nothing about it, says the CDC. Also, if a woman doesn't know she has the disease and gives birth, she can pass it on to her child.

Berman recommended women who are sexually active and under the age of 26 should get chlamydia testing annually.