Study of teen sex finds more education needed on transmitted diseases

Source: The Canadian Press

TORONTO - Most teens are responsible when it comes to sexuality, but lack of knowledge about sexually transmitted infections and their consequences is a concern, says a new study.

The research, published in the January issue of Pediatrics and Child Health [abstract], found that 27 per cent of teens were sexually active at a mean age of 15 years. The last time that they had sex, 76 per cent had used a condom, according to the findings.

"They don't know about many of the STIs that are common and they don't know about the consequences of the STIs," author Dr. Jean-Yves Frappier, head of the Adolescent Medicine Division at Sainte-Justine University Health Centre, said Monday in an interview from Montreal.

Five per cent of the sexually active teens said they had been diagnosed with an STI.

The teens surveyed overestimated the prevalence of HIV compared to other sexually transmitted infections, Frappier said.

"They don't know about chlamydia, which is much much more common," he said.

"Very few teens will be HIV positive but a certain percentage will be chlamydia positive in their teens. And that, they don't mention it."

Sixty-nine per cent of teens surveyed could not find information they were looking for about sex, and 62 per cent reported obstacles in getting information.

Online interviews were conducted in October 2005 by Ipsos Reid with 1,171 Canadian teenagers aged 14 to 17. As well, 1,139 mothers of teenagers were interviewed, but these weren't the mothers of the teens who were surveyed. The results are considered accurate to within 2.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.


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