Despite all the brouhaha about sex education in schools, the fact that formal sex education among teenagers effectively reduces sexual risk behaviours.
Educated teens are more likely to abstain from sex Vineeta Pandey
NEW DELHI: Despite all the brouhaha about sex education in schools, the fact that formal sex education among teenagers effectively reduces sexual risk behaviours has more scientific validation now. It is important that sex education is provided before the child’s sexual initiation, says a research published in the latest issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health.
Sex education was found to be particularly important for those subgroups that are traditionally at high risk of early initiation sex and of contracting sexually transmitted diseases, say researchers from America’s Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
The study was conducted on America’s 2019 unmarried teenagers between the ages of 15-19 years. Those who received sex education were associated with less sexual activity. Interestingly, while 59 per cent teen girls were less likely to start having sex before age of 15 if they had received sex education, the percentage was impressively as high as 71 per cent among male teens.
School going teenage boys who received sex education were three time more likely to use birth control the first time they had sexual intercourse. However, no such association was found among females.
The research also showed that boys living in single-parent households were more likely to delay sex past the age of 15 if they had attended a sex education class. Though conducted in a different setting, this research may have bearings on Indian conditions as well since a study conducted by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) indicated that teenage sex is a fast emerging trend in India. “Teenagers are usually in an experimental mood when it comes to sex. What is disturbing is the fact that a large number of young men in the age-group of 15-24 engage in casual sex with sex workers,” said an official from NACO.
The ministry of Human Resource Development and NACO had jointly initiated the Adolescent Education Programme in schools. However, the programme faced rough weather in many states over its contents, forcing the government to revise the material and teaching methodology.
p_vineeta@dnaindia.net
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