ST. LOUIS | Not many individuals see themselves making a career out of talking to people about sex.

Made famous by the radio and television show “Loveline” alongside Adam Carolla, Dr. Drew Pinsky did just that; answering questions about sex and problems that stem from it. When it comes to college students, Pinsky feels it is particularly important to learn about these issues and to keep them in the mind’s eye.

Last Thursday, Dr. Drew spoke in St. Louis to college journalists from around the country about the sexual health of young people.

“It is absolutely critical to shed light on this major sexual health issue,” Dr. Drew told a room full of future media members. “Anyone who is, or ever has been, sexually active is at risk. It’s important that people are armed with the information they need.”

When he began his career as an internist at a psychiatric hospital, Dr. Drew didn’t foresee the direction his career would eventually take. In 1982, a California radio station called KROQ hosted a show on which Pinsky made a guest appearance to answer medical questions from listeners.

“They thought I was gonna be on just that one night,” Pinsky said.

As it turned out, Dr. Drew the “sexpert” was quite a hit with younger listeners who Pinsky said likely had no other avenue to take regarding these private, oft embarrassing sexual issues. But listeners weren’t the only ones who enjoyed this new section of the show.

“I was hooked immediately,” Dr. Drew said of taking calls and answering questions.

The show evolved into “Loveline,” on the radio at first and then on television. Shortly after the show launched on MTV in the late ‘90s, Dr. Drew and co-host Adam Carolla went on a college tour to speak to and answer questions from college students from around the country. The second school they ever visited was NIU.

“Adam Carolla and I joke to this day about how the only things from DeKalb are barbed wire and Cindy Crawford,” Dr. Drew said.

Not only did Dr. Drew build a career out of answering questions about sexual health, he never strayed from that mission.

Helping other human beings deal with and address these intense medical issues has kept me doing this for such a long time, Pinsky said.

Still practicing and teaching psychiatry in Southern California, Dr. Drew recently helped launch HPVConfidential.com, to address a lack of awareness of human papillomavirus and its assumed connection to genital warts.

“At HPVConfidential.com, you can access the facts and tools to take control of this serious yet manageable health issue and move on,” Pinsky said.

Young people don’t usually have to worry about things like heart disease and cancer; what’s important for young people to be aware of is sexual health, Dr. Drew said.