If you consider 90% of a population to be normal, then herpes is normal. Most people with herpes have no symptoms, so there’s no way to know if you’re carrying the virus or not.

It’s not unusual to carry herpes, but it is unusual to know that you carry it. Herpes is not included in STD tests, because it is so common. In some countries, like Italy, as much as 93% of people will test positive for the herpes virus in one of its two forms. Herpes is commonly described as being either oral or genital, but in fact the virus that causes coldsores can also cause genital herpes. In most people herpes causes no noticeable symptoms.