Forget Covid, is Japan’s real pandemic actually syphilis?
Japan’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases announced the grim news on December 14 that cases of syphilis were at a historic high in the country.
This year’s number of reported syphilis cases hit 7,134 from January to December 5. The number is the highest since measurements began.
Syphilis is increasing nationwide, though Tokyo, Osaka, and surrounding areas saw a particular surge in reported cases: Tokyo led the pack with 2,226 cases, followed by Osaka with 761 and Aichi with 379. In terms of per-population rates, though, the rural prefectures of Kochi, Okayama, and Miyazaki had the most cases. There were also 19 cases where the syphilis infected a fetus in the womb in a pregnant woman.
This is not a shock development. Syphilis has been on the rise in Japan statistically since 2010, with the previous high being 2018’s 7,007. There was a slight lull in 2019 and 2020, perhaps prompted by the headlines that record number attracted. And which has led to further complacency.
The media likes to talk about sexless Japan a lot and, since the pandemic, lower opportunities for young people to have date and have sex in general. Perhaps the real story should be that people are still having sex, but just without condoms.
No doubt fueled by a diet of adult video, where the presence of condoms is hidden by the mosaic, and where it is standard for the male to finish things by shooting his loading over the female — usually the face — couples have normalized unprotected sex in Japan.
