Newly Released Studies Show that Young
People Don't Know Much about Sexual
Health, but that's Not Stopping Them
A Kaiser Family Foundation study released
in May reports that many young people are
uninformed about sexual health issues.
Another report released by the National
Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy found
that one in five young people have had
sexual intercourse by the time they turn
15. Unfortunately, young people's lack of
information is not translating into a lack
of sexual activity.
Included in the Kaiser study:
* more than one-third of 15 to17
year-olds reported having had oral sex,
but one in five did not know that sexually
transmitted diseases (STDs) could be
transmitted through oral sex.
* Almost half of 15 to 17 year-olds do
not think that oral sex is "as big of a
deal as intercourse" and 40 percent of
teens think that oral sex is "safer sex."
* 37 percent of 15 to 17 year-olds
have had sexual intercourse and, according
to other studies, 66 percent of young
people have had sex by the time they
graduate high school. Moreover, the Kaiser
study found that 24 percent of adolescents
and young adults say that drugs or alcohol
influenced their decision to have sex and
70 percent say that their peers do not use
condoms when drugs or alcohol are
involved.
* 20 percent of people ages 13 to 24
said that they believed that birth control
pills protect against STDs and AIDS, and
ten percent believe that condoms are only
necessary if "you have a lot of sexual
partners."
* Half of young people said they had
been tested for HIV or other STDs, but 30
percent incorrectly assumed that these
tests are performed in routine medical
care.
* About one in three teens reported
having been in a relationship where things
were moving too fast sexually.
* 63 percent of 15 to 17 year-olds
said that "waiting to have sex is a nice
idea but nobody really does it."
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