Over the past couple of days, I've been alarmed to read advice given to athletes by journalists (with no medical background) and by doctors on Fox news and other media sources. You deserve the whole truth from the scientific community. And 238 research scientists and public health experts are not given the opportunity (nor have the time) to keep hammering away at the latest social media trend: To downplay Zika and its spread by all forms of unprotected sex. If you haven't, read the "Rio Olympics Later" open letter spearheaded by Dr. Attaran: http://rioolympicslater.org In the right sidebar are two important updates: Health experts' response to WHO on Zika and the Olympics (May 30, 2016): http://rioolympicslater.org/health-experts-response-to-who-on-zika-and-the-olympics-may-30-2016 and the more recent draft form of "Why the World Health Organization is wrong about travel and Zika (June 13, 2016)". Full disclosure: I studied nursing, orthotics/prosthetics, and ophthalmic assisting. I was briefly redeployed as a front line worker during the SARS epidemic in 2003. What You Are Not Being Told . . . 1) It's not going to "winter in Rio" like you've been told. In fact, "temperatures will likely run in the middle 80s to near 90 F (29 to 32 C) throughout the Olympic Games." Source: http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/rio-olympics-weather-forecast-heat-humidity-to-reign-over-summer-games-one-month-outlook/58583785#.V32AZGrk0TU.facebook FACT: The Aedes mosquito rearing at National Institute of Unani Medicine Bangalore takes place in culture rooms that simulate natural climatic conditions. Temperature is set at 27°C ± 2°C; water temperature should be 27°C (80°F). Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3992806 Therefore, Brazil's outdoor "winter" temperatures this year will not be averaging around 75 F (24 C). The outside temperatures will actually be perfect for the Aedes aegypti to thrive in August (and probably September too). For more on U.S. temperatures: http://currents.plos.org/outbreaks/article/on-the-seasonal-occurrence-and-abundance-of-the-zika-virus-vector-mosquito-aedes-aegypti-in-the-contiguous-united-states 2) The sexual spread of Zika is being downplayed, ignored, or not accurately depicted. FACT: Even after removing pregnant women from the data, the researchers found women were 90 percent more likely than men their age to be infected. After age 15, once sexual activity began, the rates in females shot up. Between the ages of 25 and 29, women were three times as likely (as men the same age) to be infected with Zika. Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/05/health/zika-virus-sex-spread.html In the first 14 seconds of this kxan news piece: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_pdkslbkvg it revealed "Texas now has 53 confirmed cases of Zika but none of them yet from mosquitoes." What shocked me is when I visited the CDC's website and looked at a (mostly green) map. At the top, it states: "Sexually transmitted cases are not reported for areas with local mosquito-borne transmission of Zika virus because it is not possible to determine whether infection occurred due to mosquito-borne or sexual transmission." Look at sentence above the map: http://www.cdc.gov/zika/geo/united-states.html In this CBC news item: http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/zika-funding-obama-1.3661581 I openly asked (since there are countless people defending the Olympics in Rio right now). And here is what transpired: Alan Douglas responded: @Rose Webster "So, doesn't this mean then that they are ignoring that crucial data? No. It means that all cases are assumed to be mosquito-borne because it would be nearly impossible to determine otherwise. Only in the most exceptional of circumstances would it be possible to determine sexual transmission. It would have to be known beyond doubt that the person infected had never been exposed to vector mosquitoes. Rose Webster (ME) @Alan Douglas And yet coupling two possible reasons into one means they can state: "There are no sexually transmitted cases recorded" which is inaccurate. They simply don't know if cases were transmitted by mosquitoes or sex. It disturbs me no end that the sexual transmission of this virus is so downplayed. Seems impossible to find the sentence: "Men and mosquitoes spread Zika" anywhere. Alan Douglas @Rose Webster How do you propose to distinguish between sexually transmitted cases and mosquito transmitted cases? It does NOT mean there are no sexually transmitted cases, a notion that can only come from misunderstanding the data. I have never seen anything even remotely "downplaying" sexual transmission. Rose Webster (ME) @Alan Douglas If there can be no way to distinguish between either sexual transmission and mosquito-borne transmission, then a separate category (map colour) is warranted. Choose red for areas where it could be either (is my suggestion). That way, it can left open to interpretation by those who visit the map. It's a crucial fact for those who quote this data and relay it to the public. Funny how the CDC chose green for all those areas (a colour often associated with "safe" or "okay to go"). Subtle, but noticeable to those familiar with subliminal messages. Lumping sexual transmission in with mosquito-borne transmission completely downplays the possibility (or rather, probability) that men are transmitting this virus at alarming rates. Sexual transmission has been so downplayed it's ridiculous. And as annoyed as I am at those who seem to not care that (in this headline alone) half the babies died (related to Zika), I'm disturbed by doctors in a position of power. If women transmitted this virus (and we didn't know for how long) I'd bet my bottom dollar that the headlines would read: "Women Not Allowed at Olympics for Fear of Spreading Zika". Any women care to chime in? After that, "commenting was closed for this story" unfortunately. 3) In this February 23rd, 2016 Courthouse News Service post by Sean Duffy: http://www.courthousenews.com/2016/02/23/us-sees-more-sexually-transmitted-zika-cases.htm I found the most disturbing evidence that the CDC has known for months about sexual transmission but is failing to provide the public with the data (and "lumping" data in together on their mostly green map): "The agency would not say where the new sexually transmitted Zika cases were discovered since the risk applies to all women in the United States, Dr. Jennifer McQuiston, deputy incident manager for Zika virus at the CDC, told CNN." BOOOO! Grab a conscience. Your job at the CDC is to protect public health (not help line the pockets of the IOC or 1 percent in society). And I've said it before, Zika is worse than Ebola in terms of controlling its spread. The CDC admits, "we don't know exactly how long Zika stays in semen." Why Zika is Worse Than Ebola . . . In my mind, it's because 80 percent of those infected have no symptoms and we don't know how long it remains in semen or elsewhere in the body (or whether if can be reactivated like shingles or post-polio syndrome). If men were ill in bed for the entire time that Zika was in their system, I'd be less worried about its spread. Because when men "feel fine" they are more apt to engage in sexual behaviour. And "80 percent of men admit to having used at least one tactic to avoid using condoms during sex," according to a new survey published in the Journal of Sex. "Eighty per cent of people who are infected aren't aware so the question is might men have this in their semen and not even be aware they're transmitting it," said Dr. Mark Loeb, a physician and professor in the department of pathology and molecular medicine at McMaster University Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/zika-virus-sexual-tranmission-who-1.3431458 Based on the fact that 40% to 50% of men never go back for semen analysis after their vasectomy. Source: http://www.vasectomy-information.com/post-vasectomy-sperm-count I'm not inclined to feel assured that men traveling to areas where the Brazilian strain of Zika is circulating will even get checked. And to expect all women to believe that "men never lie" about where they travel to or who they are intimate with would be insane. Nor should men believe women "never lie"; but it is women who will be the ones who may die during unsafe or late-stage abortions. It is women who may have to deal with excruciating decisions related to their pregnancies. I'm sure some men care too, but statistically, the numbers don't look good. Men are leaving women in Brazil who have "Zika" babies. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96KnaIlK4eE And infidelity is becoming more common among people under 30. Many experts believe this increase in cheating is due to greater opportunity (time spent away from a spouse), as well as young people developing the habit of having multiple sexual partners before marriage. Source: http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB122782458360062499 Additionally, roughly 30% to 60% of all married individuals (in the United States) will engage in infidelity at some point during their marriage, Buss, D. M., & Shackelford, T. K. (1997). Susceptibility to infidelity in the first year of marriage. Journal of Research in Personality, 31, 193-221. I think it's high time that we demand the CDC and Health Canada implement Level 3 travel restrictions. Allowing 1/4 of a million men (or more) to attend the Olympic Games in Rio is just asking for a global pandemic. Money cannot mean more than lives. Thank you for reading this update in full. Authors note: I cannot use italics or hyperlink. Ergo, links are not hidden. How your signature helps: each time a supporter signs a petition, an email is automatically sent directly to those being petitioned (governments, companies and individuals). When hundreds or even thousands of emails arrive in their inboxes, the message is impossible to ignore. Keep up-to-date: a new Facebook page devoted to keeping the public and athletes fully informed: https://www.facebook.com/StopZikaFirst