NYC has branded it's own condoms and they are adorable in a very Metro sort of way. Doncha think? Here's a link to a story on Kaiser.Too bad the maker of these cuties --- Lifestyle condoms (Ansell) --- still put nonoxynol 9 in a number of their condom brands. N-9 is not so good for the booty, as we know, and not all that great for the vagina either. This spermicide is IRRITATING and can actually increase the risk of HIV transmission. And as for its spermicide qualities --- not really necessary when the condom is used correctly.
Now we are SURE NYC is not distributing N-9 condoms (right?), but still, too bad this big chunk of business ($1.57 mil) did not go to a maker of condoms who has voluntarily removed N-9 from all their products - like Durex.
Greetings all,
ReplyDeleteSpurred on by this blogspot, I went to the official NYC Condom website to see what information I could find about the actual condoms they are distrubuting other than the fact that they are Lifestyles Premium Lubricated. Amazingly, there seems to be no additional information on the website about the condoms themselves, so one can only assume that the condoms aren't lubricated with N-9. Most of the condoms that are still using N-9 are labeled "spermicidal lubricant" -- which the NYC condom is not -- so I'm pretty sure they are okay. Additionally, it's important to remember that the amount of N-9 on a spermicidally lubricated condom is not even close to the amounts used in the trial testing N-9 as a potential microbicide and, thus, is not likely to cause the level of damage that was observed in that trial. Nonetheless, avoiding N-9 is probably a wise policy given the CDC's recommendations to avoid the stuff.
That being said, and being the evidence-based kind of gal that I am, I made two calls to two different people at the NYC Department of Health asking them about the lubrication (of course, wanting to be sure that it's NOT N-9). Sadly, they couldn't tell me for sure what the lubricant is.
They did, however, give me a phone number to someone at the Ansell company (the makers of Lifestyles condoms). I placed a call to Ansell and left a message for the person whose voicemail I received, asking about the lubricant on the NYC Condoms. The next day, I received a voicemail from a nice lady at Ansell, confirming that the NYC Condoms are NOT lubricated with N-9, but instead have a silicon-based lube. She also commented that the lube sachets that are being distributed with the condoms contain a glycerin-based lube. Thus, everything that's being handed out is safe for vagina, booty, and most everywhere else.
Use them in good health, people!