February 14 brings up images of beautiful flowers, heart-shaped boxes of candy and condoms. Condoms? Yes, February 14 is not only Valentine's Day but National Condom Awareness Day.

If you look at it rationally, it makes sense to connect condoms and romance. If condoms were regularly used, the number of unintended, surprise or mistimed pregnancies would be greatly reduced. Just as importantly, condoms are the best way to prevent the spreading of sexually transmitted disease.

Approximately 19 million new cases of sexually transmitted disease (STD) are contracted every year in the United States: about half among young people 15-24 years of age. The best way to prevent the spreading of sexually transmitted infections is through abstinence or to be in a monogamous relationship with a partner who has been tested for STDs. If sex is practiced in any other situation, the best prevention of STDs is the usage of condoms. But all condoms are not equal: latex condoms protect against STDs better than polyurethane and lambskin condoms. Ingredients will be listed on the condom package along with whether or not they are labeled for disease prevention.

Do we need a National Condom Awareness Day? According to the American Social Health Association there are more than 50 million people estimated to have genital herpes, 20 million people with HPV and over 1 million people estimated to have HIV/AIDS in the United States alone. With these facts, the importance of condoms can't be ignored.

Since many STD infected individuals will not even know they are infected, they are at risk of potentially infecting it onto others. If they do infect someone else, that person can in turn, transmit it to someone else and on and on. By simply blocking the exchange of body fluids that may contain infectious agents, condoms can save lives.