All He Talks About is Sex(Page 2)How did Bouer become Brazil's number-one sex guru?  His first big break came in late 1998, when MTV Brazil invited him to do a four-hour program on sex called Erotica. But his wide celebrity has much to do with his appearances on the kind of popular music and entertainment programs that many of his professional peers might disdain. For Bouer, following an act with long-legged, scantily clad dancers provides the perfect opportunity to remind some 30 million viewers that they really need to take care of themselves. "One of a physician's main duties is to provide information. If you can do that on a large scale, you're doing more to promote prevention," he says. Bouer works for and with young people, and he adapts his language to their tastes. In his radio program Oral Sex (a double entendre in Portuguese that also means "spoken sex"), Bouer and his guests talk about condoms as the passport to happiness. "That's why you have to carry one with you everywhere and make sure you check the expiration date," says his drag queen cohost, Nany People. The show receives a constant stream of calls from listeners, some weighing in on the day's opinion poll about "the best car to have sex in," others asking questions like, "Can any fluid from the penis make you pregnant?" "The questions this decade haven't changed," notes Bouer. "It's a new generation of kids, and they're better informed, with fewer prejudices and taboos. But they still have the same concerns as they start their sexual careers." With the anonymity of radio or the Internet, people readily shed their inhibitions and say whatever they want, without embarrassment. Bouer's casual style makes young people feel he's someone they can confide in. But for more conservative minds, couldn't he be perceived as dangerous? "I've never had problems," he insists. "I've gotten letters from people who don't agree with my advice, but nothing that isn't civilized. I often go to schools, including religious ones, and only once a Catholic radio station refused to air us because they didn't like what we said about masturbation. I really think parents are too worried about AIDS and teenage pregnancy to try and block the flow of information. You have to get it into kids' heads that it's their decision—from taking drugs to using a condom—but they should make it responsibly." Research in Brazil shows that the public has access to ample information about preventing sexually transmitted infections. "But it's never too much to give clear explanations, especially when they're directed at the neediest populations," Bouer says. "You have to make the information accessible, that's the first step. After that, you have to find ways to get people to use that information. You have to invest in responsible autonomy. We can't keep having one in four pregnancies being teenagers'." One of Bouer's biggest challenges is his self-set goal of increasing the rate of consistent condom use among young Brazilians. Although 60 percent of Brazilians say they used condoms their "first time," rates of use decline after that, especially among females. Men tend to be more careful than women, who tend to place more faith in the stability of their relationships. 
Tackling issues like these requires connecting well with both young men and young women. But while teenagers often want formulas, Bouer says he doesn't have them. Instead, he encourages young people to think reflectively and perceptively about what's happening to them. "At that moment when they put a condom on, or say that they won't have sex without one, they are in some sense alone. It's clear that they need to know how to think for themselves." As he talks about sex, it becomes abundantly clear that Bouer is one of those lucky few who not only love what they do but are successful at it and, through their success, have a positive effect on others' lives. Sounding just for a moment more like a psychiatrist than a sex guru, Bouer describes his calling: "Adolescence is a very important phase of life, involving both physical and psychological transformation. Accompanying them in this phase creates the possibility of influencing them in certain aspects that will stay with them and provide a point of reference for the rest of their lives." Roxana Tabakman is a biologist and journalist who specializes in health. She lives in São Paulo.
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