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Can Herpes type 1(cold sores) be spread--even if you haven't had them in years--through sex?
Like many people I get cold sores. Someone told me they aren't an std. But if you have a cold sore open you can spread it, you can get them "down there" (because its a nerve ending), and its called Herpes type 1... umm... yeah....
so what's the truth?
YES - they can.
'Cold sores' are actually outbreaks of oral (mouth) herpes.
Oral herpes/cold sores are usually caused by a virus called hsv-1, herpes simplex 1. (They can also rarely be caused by herpes simplex 2, hsv-2, the virus that often causes genital herpes).
Because the herpes is on your mouth, and not your genitals, and because oral herpes can be passed mouth to mouth by an affectionate kiss without any form of sexual contact, oral herpes is not classed as an STI.
HOWEVER, hsv-1 can EASILY be passed, through oral sex, from the mouth to a partner's genitals. Once on the genitals, we call hsv-1 an incurable STD, even though it is still the same virus that causes mouth herpes/cold sores (and is no more severe on the genitals).
Oral herpes is less infectious when there is no cold sore present, but you can STILL spread it, even if you have not had a cold sore in years. Like genital herpes, oral herpes is quite often infectious without the person showing symptoms.
If the person receiving the oral sex also gets cold sores, the risk is incredibly low. This is because once you have herpes on the mouth, you start to produce antibodies to that type of herpes, which prevents you from getting it in a second location such as on your genitals.
If the person receiving the oral has NEVER had cold sores, however, they may not have oral herpes, and are at a much higher risk of catching it genitally.
About half of genital herpes infections these days are hsv-1, and genital hsv-1 is usually caught through receiving oral sex from a partner that has oral hsv-1.
I have genital herpes, caused by hsv-1, and yes, I caught it through receiving oral sex. My partner had had cold sores in the past, but hadn't had one in years. I had never had one. It does happen!
