Carnival: Brazil encourages condom use to prevent disease
With Carnival approaching, the Ministry of Health has reinforced the importance of using condoms and other methods to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs), not only during the festivities but throughout the year.
Using the slogan “Carnival with prevention. Before, during and after the festivities - the Brazilian government on your side,” the campaign is aimed primarily at young people and young adults.
In a statement, the ministry reported that 138 million condoms were distributed to all Brazilian states over the past three months, including internal and external condoms, as well as two new versions that began to be used in Brazil’s public healthcare network, the SUS, in 2025: textured and ultra-thin.
“The new initiative aims to increase adherence to condom use, an effective method for preventing HIV, viral hepatitis, syphilis, other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and unplanned pregnancies,” the ministry said.
Government data indicate that 60 percent of the Brazilian population does not use condoms during sexual intercourse.
The campaign also reinforces the full range of protection against sexually transmitted infections offered by the SUS and highlights that prevention can be combined: in addition to condom use, there is vaccination against hepatitis, rapid testing, and the use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP).
Decline in condom use
In the statement, the ministry emphasized that diversifying condom options aims to encourage continuous and correct use, making the product more appealing and meeting the population’s different preferences.
“This action responds to challenges identified in recent years: the decline in condom use, especially among young people.”
The latest edition of the National Health Survey (PNS), conducted in 2019 by the Brazilian government’s statistics agency IBGE with people aged 18 and over, showed that in the 12 months prior to the survey, 22.8 percent reported using condoms in all sexual relations, while 17.1 percent said they used them sometimes and 59 percent never used them.
“The decline follows a global trend. In 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) released a report conducted in several European countries pointing to a reduction in condom use among young people,” the ministry’s statement reads.
