Safe Sex
Teenagers who engage in un-protected sex are no longer just practicing ‘unsafe’ sex; they are setting their minds to cruise control through a gateway into hundreds of different diseases and unplanned pregnancies. According to research conducted by Dr. Raymond Bohlin, the executive director at Probe Ministries, “1 in 5 Americans between the ages of 15 to 55 are currently infected with one or more viral STDs, and 12 million Americans are newly infected each year.” In that same year Bohlin reported that, “…almost 750,000 teenage women aged 15 to19 become pregnant.” Both of these two devastating statistics are due in large part to young adults having unprotected sex. Practicing safe sex habits such as using condoms and birth control pills helps prevent sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies. Because of the dire consequences that can be a result of young adults having unsafe sex such as an unwanted pregnancy which often ends in abortion, and STDs like Chlamydia and the life threatening AIDS virus, at least one form of protection should be used by all sexually active teenagers and young adults.

"As children become sexually active at an increasingly younger age, a lack of knowledge about the precautions necessary to have safe sex can easily result in contracting a sexually transmited disease."

Although abstinence is the only way to protect someone completely from an STD or an unplanned pregnancy, there are other ways to have relatively safe sex. Condoms are the most commonly used method of contraception. According to the research conducted by an Advocates for Youth program, “In one year with perfect use (meaning couples use condoms consistently and correctly at every act of sex), 98 percent of women relying on male condoms will remain pregnancy free” (Alford). The second most used form of contraception is ‘The Pill.’ Birth control pills are an oral form of contraception that is to be taken by females daily in order to prevent pregnancy. Using the pill is slightly less effective, according to current research; “While the stated effectiveness is 96-99% in reality this rate is much lower, around 87%,” (Stevenson). The reason for this is because it is very likely, especially for teenagers, that a female would miss a day of taking the contraceptive which then discontinues the safety cycle it originally created. The research described by Sue Alford stated that, “by comparison, only 15 percent of women using no method of contraception in a year will remain pregnancy free." The statistics show a colossal differenece in pregnancy rates for those using contraception versus those who do not. Althoughthe pill is an effective method of birth control;it does not, however, protect the body from STDs. At the same time, using a condom is not a complete guarantee that you won’t get any STD either, but they are currently the best way to avoid getting infected while still having sex. Even the STD HPV, that condoms do not prevent entirely, have reduced transmission rates when condoms are used. Other than abstinence, consistent condom use, which means using a condom every time you have sex with every partner you have, is the best way to prevent STDs.

"There are many different forms of birth control available to help prevent not

only pregnancy but sexually transmitted diseases as well."

Sexually transmitted diseases are running rampant throughout the youth in America. This is due to engaging in sexual activities at an early age normally resulting in multiple partners. According to Bohlin’s research, “…nearly 5% of the entire population of the U.S. [are infected with an STD yearly]! Of these new infections, 63% involve people less than 25 years old.”(Bohiln). The Family First Aid website exclaims that the American Social Health Association (ASHA) reports that half of all new HIV infections occur in teenagers. HIV is a potentially deadly virus that slowly attacks the body’s immune system; once HIV becomes active it evolves into the Auto Immune Deficiency Syndrome, otherwise known as AIDS (Teen STD). Diseases like HIV and AIDS are plaguing not only teens in America, but people of all ages across the world. Although these two STDs are potentially deadly and have no cure yet, there are other STDs spreading that are not quite fatal. According to data collected from the Center of Disease Control (CDC) , “From 2005 to 2006 reported cases of Chlamydia climbed from 976,445 to 1,030,911” (Teen STD). Unfortunately, not only are teenagers more susceptible to contracting diseases like HIV and Chlamydia, but teenage girls in particular have a Chlamydia rate three times higher than teenage boys, reports the CDC. On top of that, “a 15-year-old girl has a 1-in-8 chance of developing pelvic inflammatory disease simply by having sex, whereas a 24-year-old woman has only a 1- in-80 chance in the same situation” (Bohlin). According to information gathered from the Medical Institute for Sexual Health in Austin, Texas; Raymond Bohlin’s same reports, “A single episode of Chlamydia PID can result in a 25% chance of infertility. With a second infection, the chance of infertility rises to 50%.” Both male and female teenagers are also more susceptible to human papilloma virus, HPV. “Rates of HPV infection in teenagers can be as high as 40%, whereas in the adult population, the rate is less than 15%,” (Bohlin). The best defense against STDs is knowledge. Studies have shown that teenagers who are equipped with the education they need to protect themselves are more likely to engage in protective behaviors during sex. For many people, the biggest worry about having sex isn't STDs; it is pregnancy. Many couples choose birth control pills as their primary form of contraception. However; once protected from pregnancy, some people are reluctant to use condoms as part of their sexual routine.

The Family First Aid website reports that, “Thirty-four percent of young women become pregnant at least once before they reach the age of 20 -- about 820,000 a year. Eight in ten of these teen pregnancies are unintended”(Teen Pregnancy).

This chart breaks down the racial percentages of pregnancies
of teenage women from the ages of 15 through 19.

It’s been acknowledged that the teen birth rate has “declined slowly but steadily from 1991 to 2002 with an overall decline of 30 percent for those aged 15 to 19. These recent declines reverse the 23-percent rise in the teenage birth rate from 1986 to 1991” (Teen Pregnancy). A growing body of research suggests that both increased abstinence and changes in contraceptive practice are responsible for recent declines in teenage pregnancy. But for the young women who do become pregnant, many turn to the drastic measure of having an abortion because there are several consequences of having a child at a young age. Some of the consequences included on the Family First Aid website concerning Teen Pregnancy Facts are only one-third of teenage mothers receive a high school diploma and only 1.5% have a college degree by age thirty. The same website states that, “Teen mothers are also more likely to end up on welfare. It has been reported that nearly 80 percent of unmarried teen mothers end up on welfare.” The teenage mother isn’t the only one with consequences; the children of teenage mothers have lower birth weights, are less likely to perform well in school, and are also more likely to be victims of abuse (Teen Pregnancy). Overall, having a child at a young age is not normally a healthy situation for the mother, or the child being born.

Even though the rates of both teenage STDs and pregnancy are declining across the United States, the numbers are still at a baffling high. Programs all across the states have been erected in order to help educate teens about the risks; and advise teenagers who are or plan to become sexually active to use some form of contraception. With fatal consequences such as AIDS and life changing effects such as unwanted pregnancy, young adults who partake in sexual activity should use some form of contraception. Birth control pills may lower the risk of pregnancy, but they do not protect you from STDs. Abstinence is the only way to protect teenagers from the monumental consequences of sex, even though it isn’t the most realistic approach. That is why our youth should be using both condoms as well as some type of birth control pill in order to keep themselves and their partner’s safe.