# What are the physical effects of working as a prostitute? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 5, 2007, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803 "2007-04-05T01:11:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2007, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/21 "2007-04-05T14:39:00Z")
I’ve been reading[this SF Chronicle series](http://sfgate.com/sextrafficking/) for the past couple of days, you might find some good information there. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2007, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/22 "2007-04-05T15:05:47Z")
[QUOTE=Kalhoun] There are prostitutes and there are prostitutes. Some get into the business because of drug habits. Others are high-end “escorts” who live lavish lifestyles and only “date” wealthy men. They dine at the best restaurants, travel in style, and are more than just a fuck; they’re companions. They run some of the risks of low-end whores, but in general, they’re more like fancy dates who put out. [/QUOTE] The distinction between types of prostitute is a good one. The type of acts practiced can make a difference on the type of wear and tear. There are specialty bars here where, while full sex is often also available, a specific act is the house specialty. For instance, our blowjob bars. Some, like [Lolitas](http://lolitasbangkok.com), will take you to a private area, while others will service you right at the bar while you’re enjoying a cold brew and chatting with your buddy. Their knees might give out, but there’s less wear and tear on the vagina. I’m wondering about throat problems, too. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2007, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/23 "2007-04-05T15:15:34Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] **Siam Sam,** are most Thai prostitutes self-employed, or slaves of pimps? [/QUOTE] A slight side note following up on the girls in the bars being able to quit the bar whenever they please. Occasionally, a newbie to Thailand and the bar scene will fall head over heels in love with one of the bargirls and want to marry her or “rescue” her from her life of debauchery. There’s a neat little scam that occurs occasionally in which the girl will tell her boyfriend that gee, she really wants to leave the bar, but she can’t until she pays the owner a specific sum. I’ve heard everything from 10,000-100,000 baht (US$286 to US$2860 at the current rate of exchange.) Well, this is ludicrous and a total scam. The girl often gets a cut of that kicked back to her. Anytime I or someone else hears of this, we always advise the poor guy to keep on looking, that he’s being scammed. Since this is a fair indication of just how the girl views her “boyfriend” – and I’ve had some of the girls tell me about how they’re getting some poor sucker to buy them from the bar, laughing the whole time – you can imagine how long the relationship lasts. And he’s often lucky to keep the shirt on his back in the end. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2007, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/24 "2007-04-05T17:07:10Z")
[QUOTE=Siam Sam] Now Cambodia is pretty bad. There’s some very sad practices going on over there, every bit as bad as you could want to read. [/QUOTE] No surprise. I should think brutal treatment of prostitutes is the **least** of that poor country’s troubles. ---
**Author:** ![enigm4tic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@enigm4tic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enigm4tic)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2007, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/25 "2007-04-05T19:40:10Z")
> [@](#): > > What is a “rectal prolapse” a good name for a band, duh :: d+r :: ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2007, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/26 "2007-04-05T20:00:14Z")
I wonder of gay guys (or non-hooker women who are really into anal) have this “rectal prolapse” problem? Surprised to hear it’s a problem with porn stars. I should think even the hardest-working porn star takes it up the ass much less frequently than a streetwalker. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2007, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/27 "2007-04-05T20:13:48Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] I wonder of gay guys (or non-hooker women who are really into anal) have this “rectal prolapse” problem? [/QUOTE] No idea, but I would imagine that, frequency aside, there’s the issue of treatment. Porn sex is concerned with how stuff looks on camera, rather than how comfortable or pleasurable it is for the actors. So I would suspect that porn-type pumping would be a factor that you would need to consider that wouldn’t be there for people who have real sex. ---
**Author:** ![OBJECTION](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/fbc32d/32.png) [@OBJECTION](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OBJECTION)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/28 "2007-04-06T01:06:45Z")
[QUOTE=Kalhoun] Others are high-end “escorts” who live lavish lifestyles and only “date” wealthy men. They dine at the best restaurants, travel in style, and are more than just a fuck; they’re **companions**. They run some of the risks of low-end whores, but in general, they’re more like fancy dates who put out. [/QUOTE] I assume the _Firefly_ terminology was intentional? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/29 "2007-04-06T04:15:57Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] No surprise. I should think brutal treatment of prostitutes is the **least** of that poor country’s troubles. [/QUOTE] This part of the world is chock-full of contradictions like that. The Cambodians are possibly the gentlest people I’ve personally ever encountered, but then they turn around and do things like that, not to mention that whole Khmer Rouge thing. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/30 "2007-04-06T04:25:52Z")
[QUOTE=Siam Sam] This part of the world is chock-full of contradictions like that. The Cambodians are possibly the gentlest people I’ve personally ever encountered, but then they turn around and do things like that, not to mention that whole Khmer Rouge thing. [/QUOTE] I once, in some magazine, read an interview with Prince (earlier, and later, King) Sihanouk. He explained that while the Cambodian people are gentle, they are also liable occasionally to a collective destructive madness, like when elephants, those gentle creatures, run “amok.” ---
**Author:** ![threemae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f9b8f/32.png) [@threemae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/threemae)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/31 "2007-04-06T04:28:29Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] I wonder of gay guys (or non-hooker women who are really into anal) have this “rectal prolapse” problem? [/QUOTE] No idea about gay men but typically rectal prolapse occurs in older women from hard stools and too much straining while defecating rather than anal sex. Not to make it any less glamorous, but it’s more likely to strike your grandmother, I’d guess, than a Thai prostitute. > **[Rectal Prolapse: Practice Essentials, Anatomy, Pathophysiology](https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/2026460-overview)** > > Rectal prolapse was described as early as 1500 BC. Rectal prolapse occurs when a mucosal or full-thickness layer of rectal tissue protrudes through the anal orifice. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/32 "2007-04-06T04:29:54Z")
[QUOTE=threemae] No idea about gay men but typically rectal prolapse occurs in older women from hard stools and too much straining while defecating rather than anal sex. Not to make it any less glamorous, but it’s more likely to strike your grandmother, I’d guess, than a Thai prostitute. > **[Rectal Prolapse: Practice Essentials, Anatomy, Pathophysiology](https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/2026460-overview)** > > Rectal prolapse was described as early as 1500 BC. Rectal prolapse occurs when a mucosal or full-thickness layer of rectal tissue protrudes through the anal orifice. [/QUOTE] ☹ [dick wilts] ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/33 "2007-04-06T04:36:55Z")
[QUOTE=Siam Sam] This part of the world is chock-full of contradictions like that. The Cambodians are possibly the gentlest people I’ve personally ever encountered, but then they turn around and do things like that, not to mention that whole Khmer Rouge thing. [/QUOTE] BTW, I’m sure you’ve seen _Swimming to Cambodia_ . . . Poor Spalding Grey! ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/34 "2007-04-06T13:19:36Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] BTW, I’m sure you’ve seen _Swimming to Cambodia_ . . . Poor Spalding Grey! ☹ [/QUOTE] Yes. He found out the hard way you can’t really swim to Cambodia. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/35 "2007-04-06T15:34:24Z")
[QUOTE=Siam Sam] Many of the girls somehow never seem to lose their freshness. [/QUOTE] Well, the sulfites help. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/36 "2007-04-06T16:35:37Z")
[QUOTE=Siam Sam] Neither. Employees of bars and massage parlors, able to leave anytime they want. [/QUOTE] Likewise here in Panama, where prostitution is legal. Prostitutes are licensed and must undergo regular medical examinations. They mostly work for strip clubs, massage parlors, and escort services. The house gets a cut, but the girls work their own deals with customers for other services (although prices are fairly standardized at each locality). Locals can quit whenever they want, but most prostitutes here are from Colombia (where pay scales are much lower) on short-term contracts with the businesses. While some unlicensed free-lancers work as street girls or hang out in bars, this is illegal and subject to periodic police crack-downs. Prostitution is going to exist whether it is legal or illegal. In general, working conditions and the health of those who choose to engage in it seem to be a lot better where it is legal and regulated than where it is illegal. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2007, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/37 "2007-04-06T16:41:47Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] ☹ [dick wilts] [/QUOTE] “One night in Bangkok and the hard guys crumble…” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803/38 "2007-04-07T00:16:27Z")
[QUOTE=BrainGlutton] BTW, I’m sure you’ve seen _Swimming to Cambodia_ . . . Poor Spalding Grey! ☹ [/QUOTE] BTW: If you’ve only seen the movie and not read the book, I urge you to read the book. The movie covers only about the first half of the book; there’s more to read. The second half is not about Thailand or Cambodia, but still good. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-physical-effects-of-working-as-a-prostitute/398803.md?page=1)