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The frequency of 'barebacking' among men depends on their relationships and number of partners, researchers argue.
A survey out of the United Kingdom this summer found some disturbing responses to how often gay and bisexual men use condoms when having anal sex.
GMFA, a gay men's health charity, found that 39 percent of British men who responded said that all or nearly of their sex in the last year was unprotected. That's more than those who said they had unprotected sex some of the time (25 percent) and those who did not have unprotected sex at all (36 percent).
While the numbers break evenly, GMFA emphasized that many men having unprotected sex chose to do so after years spent in a monogamous relationship.
"When you look at these stats, it's only a small percentage of gay men who are having lots of unprotected anal sex, who are at a high level of risk," said GMFA's Ian Howley. "So to say everyone barebacks all of the time is untrue."
However, many survey respondents said they didn't worry about protected anal sex because they take PrEP or they assume if a partner is HIV-positive, he is receiving treatments. Or they just don't care.
A popular prevention drug against contracting HIV, PrEP does not protect against sexually transmitted diseases.
