Due to a recent change by Washington University SHCS, students will now have more sex protection choices on campus.
Student Health and Counseling Services (SHCS) recently began offering non-spermicidal condoms to students, in response to student requests and a new study released by the Center for Disease Control (CDC).
Although WU has provided free condoms on campus for years, SHCS decided to switch from spermicidal to regular condoms in part because of recent study by the CDC, which found spermicidal condoms may actually increase the risk of spreading the HIV virus.
For students who want spermicidal condoms, SHCS provides a small tube of spermicide and instructions for use along with the condoms.
“The CDC has recommended the use of condoms without spermicide,” said Dr. Laurie Reitman, director of SHCS. “I know that students on this campus don’t all necessarily know that or believe that.”
Reitman explained that spermicide has an abrasive effect on a woman’s vaginal walls that can cause sores. During sex, a condom may slip, and HIV infected fluid could be more likely to infect the woman through these sores.
However, many students do not consider HIV the greatest risk of having sex, according to Reitman, These students worry more about unwanted pregnancy, and would prefer using condoms with spermicide.
“We want to provide the best possible options for students. So what we decided to do is provide condoms that have a water-based lubricant, but we know that some may want to use spermicide,” said Reitman.
Spectrum Alliance, the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual group on campus, had protested the use of spermicidal condoms for another reason.
“All the condoms in SHCS had spermicide in them, which is not the best thing to use if you’re going to have anal sex because it’s an irritant,” said junior Naomi Klein, past Spectrum president. “We thought they should have some that are spermicidal and some that are not so that people can choose what they want.”
Klein explained that homosexual couples don’t risk pregnancy, and that spermicidal condoms for these couples proved to be unnecessarily irritating.
In addition to the new condom type, SHCS also changed the packaging. Instead of a traditional plastic wrapper, the condoms come in a small cardboard packet resembling a matchbook.
Reitman said that bashful students won’t feel so obvious with the discreetly packaged condoms, even though SHCS phone numbers appear on the back.
“If somebody has it in her purse it doesn’t necessarily look like a condom,” said Reitman. “We’re using it both as a marketing of phone numbers and a method of providing students a way to reduce the risk of sexually transmitted diseases.”
Furthermore, condoms are available in restrooms around campus as well as in SHCS, offering students a more discreet method of stocking up.
“Nobody sees you take them, so there’s absolutely no embarrassment in that,” said sophomore Daniel Rubin. “But I’m a firm believer that if you’re too embarrassed to buy condoms, then you shouldn’t be having sex in the first place.”
SHCS replaces the condoms when the baskets in the restrooms run low. In addition, there was a small increase in the condom price for SHCS due to new packaging and the optional spermicide. According to Debra Hart, associate director of SHCS, the spermicidal condoms cost $.14, while the newly packaged non-spermicidal condoms cost $.31 per condom. There is an additional charge for the spermicide of $.19 per package.
“Honestly, we didn’t purchase as many spermicide packages as we did condoms, but people are taking as many spermicide packages as they are condoms,” said Hart. “Part of the extra cost was the detailed instructions about how to use the spermicide on the condom packages.”
On the whole, Klein is enthusiastic about the changes.
“I wouldn’t be embarrassed to grab some,” Klein said. “I think there are people who would definitely pick them up and it’s great that they have them for free, because it encourages people to use condoms.”

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