Consistent use of condoms offers protection against the human papilloma virus (HPV), the virus that causes warts and cervical cancer. The proof came from a study involving more than 80 college-aged women, all of whom were virgins at the start of the trial. Researchers from the University of Washington followed the sexual habits of these women for three years, and found that women whose partners regularly used condom were 70 percent less likely to contract HPV than women whose partners used condoms less than 5 percent of the time. The findings were published in the June issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

It was long assumed that condoms could not effectively prevent the spread of HPV because men may have sores—or lesions—on their genitals outside the area covered by the condom. However, this research demonstrates that this method of transmission is unlikely, since none of the women who reported that their partners always used condoms developed HPV lesions.

This welcome news comes at the heels of another advance in HPV research. In the beginning of June, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first-ever vaccine for HPV. While the vaccine promises to dramatically reduce the number of cervical cancer cases in the future, it only protects against four different strains of the virus. For more complete protection against HPV and other viruses, always use a condom.