The Health Department is asking residents to have frank conversations about sex this week.The idea is to make the public more aware during Sexual and Reproductive Health Awareness Week.Senior medical officer Cheryl Peek-Ball said: “Parents should have the conversation with their children, health care professionals should have the conversation with their patients, and most importantly, all sexually active individuals should have the conversation with their partners.”Health records show 550 new infections have been diagnosed every year for the last decade.Young adults and women have been more frequently diagnosed, with under-30s accounting for 75 percent of new diagnoses and women representing two-thirds of all cases.The most prevalent sexually transmitted infection (STI) on the Island is chlamydia, with 430 cases being reported last year.A spokeswoman for the Department of Health said early treatment of STIs can prevent their long-term effects, including infertility, pelvic inflammatory disease, neurological damage and transmission during pregnancy.The department regularly provides educational materials, counselling and free STI testing.For more information, talk to your doctor or call the Communicable Disease Clinic on 278-6442 or the Maternal Health Clinic on 278-6441.l Useful website: www.gov.bm.