About Us

BananaGuide supports safer sex in porn. That means we think it's better to see condoms on guys when they're fucking in a porno. We understand that you might enjoy bareback porn and may not understand why we believe it is important for porn models to practice safer sex, so we've put together a FAQ on this important issue.

Why does BananaGuide care?
Because we believe it is the responsibity of the gay adult industry to protect the health of its models. Even with vastly improved treatments, HIV/AIDS remains the single greatest threat to gay men's health today. Though manageable, AIDS is still a chronic, incurable condition with serious health consequences. And the use of condoms when fucking is the single most effective way to prevent HIV transmission during sex.

Don't studios and websites take precautions to make sure models paired for a condomless fuck have the same HIV status?
Some do and some don't. There is no consistent policy among bareback producers for pairing models. Some try to use only models that are HIV positive; others try to use only models that are HIV negative. Some test their models; others do not. Some ask their models what their HIV status is; others do not. Furthermore, some studios may state that they have a screening or testing policy, when in reality they do not. With all of these "ifs" it's impossible to gage the true risk level when we see condomless fucking onscreen.

What if both models have tested negative?
There is a very big problem with HIV screening. During the earliest phase of HIV infection the body's immune system has not kicked in to produce antibodies that can be detected in a blood test. Therefore someone who is recently infected can test negative yet still pass the virus to his partner. True screening requires that a model test negative, wait for four months (without having high-risk sex) and then test negative again. This is impractical because it depends on a model who is planning on having unprotected sex onscreen not having high-risk sex for four months.

What if both models have tested positive?
While many HIV positive men choose to have unprotected sex with partners they know are also HIV positive, the problem with bareback porn is that we have no way of knowing if this is actually what is happening onscreen. For model privacy reasons, studios never make a statement that their models are all HIV+.

What about "committed boyfriends?"
Many questions arise when the models paired for a condomless fuck are "boyfriends." How long have they been boyfriends? What is their agreed arrangement regarding sex outside of the relationship? Have they both kept to that arrangement? Have they both been tested for HIV? Are they truthful with their partner? And why are committed boyfriends making a porno anyway?

What about straight guys?
There are some illogical assumptions made about "straight" models. Since they aren't "gay" they can't get HIV? And since they can't get HIV they don't need to bother with condoms? Men who have sex with men but do not identify as gay are just as likely to be HIV+.

What about "virgins" or "first timers"?
There is no way to verify that a model hasn't had anal sex before and is therefore probably HIV-. Sometimes models tell fibs and sometimes porn producers just want to create a fantasy for their viewers.

Can't 18 year-old models decide for themselves?
While twink bareback may appeal to the "young and innocent" fantasy, young people are more likely to take higher risks and are easier to manipulate. Young models may be getting into situations without fully weighing the consequences of their actions.

There are some bareback producers who stoop to luring young models into having unprotected sex by providing drugs to lower their inhibitions and then "forgetting" to bring condoms to the shoot.

As for twink bareback originating from Eastern Europe and Russia, hungry young men will do what they have to for money. Throw in a few more bucks and an impoverished model will be willing to have condomless sex. And if he is infected with HIV his prospects for obtaining proper medical care and community support are poor.

Can watching porn affect people's attitudes or sexual behavior?
We think that individual attitudes and behaviors are affected by media, including entertainment; safer sex on the screen reinforces the idea that sex with condoms is hot.

What can I do?
Porn is market-driven. As a consumer be aware that your choices do make a difference. Even if you do enjoy viewing bareback porn, try not to write off all the other great porn available to you just because of a little latex.

ABOUT THE SAFERATING

What does SafeRated mean?

SafeRated "High" - the site protect its models through the appropriate use of condoms.

SafedRated "Medium" - the site carries third-party bareback content (ie plug-ins) or a very small number of original bareback video scenes.

SafeRated "Low" - the site carries a significant amount of bareback video.

Do you take other types of higher risk sex, such as cumming in the mouth, into consideration?
All sex has some risk to it. While cumming in the mouth is definitely considered a higher risk activity the unsafest sex by far is fucking without a condom. The SafeRating applies only to whether condoms are used during anal sex scenes.

Does the SafeRating affect the total score a site receives?
No. The SafeRating is a separate rating and does not contribute to the total score out of 100 that we rank sites on.

Does the SafeRating affect how BananaGuide promotes sites?
Yes. While we treat all sites equally within the review section of BananaGuide, sites that are SafeRated "High" and score well out of 100 do receive significantly more promotion throughout the site.

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