In a brave new dating world, where tens of millions of people go online to meet a potential mate — or just hook-up — much of the get-to-know-you conversation now begins online.

That’s precisely where public health officials would like to see one particular potentially awkward but all-important topic discussed. Overall, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s most recent analysis suggests that 20 million new sexually transmitted infections occur in the U.S. each year, and 1.2 million people are currently living with HIV — which can lead to AIDS if left untreated. The latest data also shows reported cases of three common sexually transmitted diseases, chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis, have increased for the first time since 2006. Based on the latest figures from the 2014 STD Surveillance Report released last year, there were 1.4 million cases of chlamydia reported, up nearly 3 percent from 2013; while the rates of primary and secondary syphilis — the most infectious stages of the disease — rose by about 15 percent, with nearly 20,000 reported cases. And there were 350,062 reported cases of gonorrhea, up about 5 percent from the year prior.

As STD rates rise, health experts say many people miss a golden opportunity to lower their risk of contracting an STD by simply broaching the subject with a potential partner — like when first chatting online about everything else under the sun. It could start with a general conversation regarding sexual health. “Ask about the last time your partner got tested for HIV and other STDs, and ask about the results of those tests,” said Alberto Santana, a CDC spokesman in the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, in an email. So what might Cupid do to get things started on the right foot — and play it safe? “The key to a good relationship is being able to talk about important but uncomfortable topics like sexual health, even if it seems awkward,” Santana opines. Don’t wait until the heat of the moment, either. Santana says the conversation needn’t even take place face-to-face; it could begin online or by text.

[See: 10 Questions to Ask Your Doctor About Prostate Cancer.]

Know Your Status

“There are some easy ways now to get tested and get those results,” says Whitney Engeran-Cordova, senior director of the public health division for the Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which provides medical care to people with HIV/AIDS worldwide. To quickly deliver HIV test results to patients, AHF partners with another company called Healthvana, also based in Los Angeles, which offers a cloud-based platform for health providers to provide test results to patients in real time and in an easy-to-decipher format. It’s something, Engeran-Cordova says, AHF uses in its STD wellness centers. “People can come in and get tested for HIV and STDs for free, and then the results are delivered to them on [a mobile] app — and then that profile on Healthvana can be shared with potential partners electronically,” he says. Whether you’re able to get results electronically or not, Healthvana’s CEO Ramin Bastani suggests, “Get access to your lab report — if the place where you’re getting tested is willing to give you your actual test results. That way you have it, so you definitively know, and you have a time stamp on when it was you were actually tested.” He adds since a proportion of abnormal health tests are never delivered to patients, no news is not necessarily good news, so it’s important to confirm test results.

Increasingly, people who know their status — like whether they’re HIV positive — are posting that on their dating profile, Engeran-Cordova says. “Being honest about your HIV status, and being upfront — if you can be — I think that’s really the best course both for yourself, and for your potential partner,” he adds.

AHF made headlines last year when it launched an advocacy and awareness campaign focused on sexual health and safety in regards to mobile dating apps that featured advertisements and billboards for free STD testing which also referenced dating apps by name.

The popular app Tinder, which was called out in the AHF campaign, subsequently added a health safety section to its website in January that includes Healthvana’s free HIV and STD testing site locator — following recommendations by AHF. In response, AHF removed billboards and ads mentioning Tinder.

“Online dating services are making a lot of money helping people to connect, and that’s a great thing. But they need to also take responsibility for helping inform their patrons about sexual health issues, and helping them to navigate that,” Engeran-Cordova says. “I think that’s the least that they can do.” He commended Tinder for steps it’s taken, and says he’s encouraged that some other dating sites are also seeking to aid users in protecting their sexual health.

In a statement provided to U.S. News, Tinder notes: “The CDC, who conducted the largest and most credible study on the topic, has never identified any connection that supports the idea that Tinder usage correlates with, let alone causes, an increase in STDs.” The organization says it’s happy to do its part in supporting educational efforts, including providing health and safety tips on its site and linking to Healthvana’s testing site locator.

[See: 7 Ways Technology Can Torpedo Your Health.]

Online Dating and STDs

Currently, the CDC doesn’t have any research evidence showing a link between STDs and dating apps, agency spokesman Brian Katzowitz confirmed in an email. “What we do know is having anonymous partners can make it difficult to offer partner services, like expedited partner therapy, or conduct contact tracing for STDs to interrupt the cycle of transmission,” he says. Through expedited partner therapy, a health provider can offer prescriptions or medications to a patient to take to his or her partner without the doctor first examining the partner. “It’s a powerful tool to curb the spread of chlamydia and gonorrhea, as it can prevent reinfection among women,” Katzowitz says. “As many as one in four young women treated for chlamydia becomes infected again within a year.” In addition, he says contact tracing — or what’s alternatively called contact investigations — are used to locate the sex partners of a person diagnosed with syphilis or HIV to provide appropriate testing and treatment.

The CDC emphasizes the importance of STD testing for those who are sexually active — including talking with a doctor about what tests are appropriate — and it notes young people ages 15 to 24 are still disproportionately affected by STDs, including chlamydia and gonorrhea. But there are signs teens are rejecting risky behaviors, with sexual activity slowing among this group — and only about 4 in 10 high school students reporting they have ever had sex. The agency stresses that adolescents and adults ages 13 to 64 should be tested at least once for HIV. In addition, the CDC advises anyone having unsafe sex or sharing drug equipment — like needles — get tested for HIV at least once a year, adding that sexually active gay and bisexual men may benefit from more frequent screening for HIV and other STDs, such as every 3 to 6 months, to combat higher rates of HIV and other STDs.

“Many of the prevention strategies for HIV can also be applied to other STDs, such as limiting the number of sex partners, using condoms consistently and correctly if sexually active, and getting screened regularly for STDs,” Santana says.

[See: 8 Tips to Ease Gynecologist Appointment Anxieties.]

Talking It Over

As with any dating relationship, it all starts with a conversation.

“Research shows that communication between partners leads to risk reduction behaviors,” Santana says — such as condom use, as well as HIV testing and HIV status disclosure. “Talking openly about HIV status, testing and safer sex builds trust and lets individuals make informed decisions about their sexual health.”

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Making STDs Part of the Dating Conversation originally appeared on usnews.com