Genital warts can be a particularly annoying condition to afflict any person. That is because it leads to a good deal of embarrassment and discomfort, disrupting normal life to varying extents. Like the old saying goes, Prevention is better than cure, it is always wiser to try and prevent a genital warts infection rather than falling prey to it and then seeking treatment.

The good news is that genital warts prevention is easier than most people think it is. It is just necessary to know how the virus spreads, and then it is not that difficult to keep the infection at bay. It is highly contagious in nature, and the virus which causes the problem (Human Papillomavirus or HPV) is spread through skin-to-skin contact. As a first step it is important to know the symptoms and then maintain a distance from anyone in whom these symptoms are visible.

Genital warts, as the name suggests, affects the genitals and the areas around them, in both men and women. The area of occurrence of genital warts clearly establishes the fact that the infection primarily spreads through careless or unprotected sexual activities. Condoms, while offering a modest degree of protection, are not foolproof as they do not offer complete protection. Oral guards used while indulging in oral sex with an infected partner are not that secured as well. But condoms and other protections should still be used as they substantially enhance the genital warts protection level.

In the final analysis, the only reliable genital warts prevention is to stay away from all sexual activity if any of the partners has been infected. If there has been a detection, adopt a responsible attitude and don't have sex till it is fully cured. One should also bear in mind that non-sexual contact of the genitals (or the affected areas) also promotes the spread of the virus. So remember to exercise appropriate caution before indulging in any such contact.

In recent times medicines has been found to protect women from the strains of HPV that cause 70% of all cervical cancers and 90% of all genital warts. Medicines are now prescribed to women ranging in age from 9 to 26. Vaccines are also being researched to administer them before an actual contamination. Currently research is underway to bring out a version of the vaccine that can be used in males as well.

Till then, we may just have to keep on using plain common sense to save ourselves from HPV. General risk factors, if avoided, will help in genital warts prevention. These include smoking, having multiple sexual partners, practicing unprotected sex and exposure to the other sexually transmitted infections.

Weakened immune systems also pose a great risk and quickly invite infection. This underlines yet another benefit of having a healthy lifestyle. Stay healthy, practice safe sex and avoid unnecessary contact. By following these simple guidelines, genital warts prevention can become surprisingly easy.