Many TV adverts have tried to raise awareness of STDs. Here are a few of the most unusual ones...

Talking about STDs can be an awkward business, just ask any sex education teacher! But while it may be awkward, it is also necessary – with many countries experiencing rising rates of STDs, it is important that people are aware of the risks and will go for an STD test if they've had unsafe sex.

Increasingly, it isn't just being left to parents and teachers to educate people about the perils of STDs – governments, condom manufacturers and health organisations are increasingly getting involved. TV adverts promoting safe sex and STD awareness are getting more and more common, but it remains a tricky subject to advertise. How do you effectively convey a message about a taboo subject?

Some are serious, some are funny, but one thing is usually guaranteed – STD adverts are amongst the most inventive and memorable television adverts out there! Here are a few of the most well known ones of recent years...

AIDS is a Mass Murderer

This recent advert caused something of a stir when it first aired in Germany. Showing a couple coming back to a flat and beginning to have sex, it is revealed in the very last frame that the man making love to the woman is in fact Adolf Hitler, followed by the slogan "AIDs is a Mass Murderer". AIDs charities objected to the stigmatisation of HIV and AIDs sufferers – most other people seemed to think it was just a funny and bizarre twist to an advert. Whether it will make someone go for an STD test is anyone's guess!

Condom for your Umbrella?

Africa is a continent that has long been troubled by HIV and AIDs, and condom manufacturers have tried to be doubly inventive to promote safe sex. This African advert showed a man meeting a women who is putting away her umbrella, but loses the umbrella cover to the wind. Smiling, the man pulls out a condom, and stretches it the entire length of the umbrella. It was a novel attempt to show that the old excuse ("condoms are too small") really doesn't apply unless you are of truly gargantuan proportions, though the fact that a watching crowd burst into applause during the ‘climax’ lent the advert a somewhat surreal air...

Give Me What You've Got

This NHS advert ingeniously featured a number of couples undressing with the names of STDs written on their underwear, with a rather catchy tune in the background repeating the line "Give me what you got." This somewhat raunchy advert ran into the same problems as a lot of STD adverts (it's quite hard to show people having sex and convince viewers that this is a bad thing!) but it certainly provided some memorable imagery.

Practising safe sex and going for an STD test when necessary are vital steps to maintaining sexual health, but they've also given rise to some truly bizarre ad campaigns. Whatever the future holds for STDs, it's safe to say we'll be seeing plenty more strange adverts in the years to come.