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National Survey Reveals Alarming Lack of Knowledge in Teens' Sexual Behaviours |
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Written by Wire Services
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Tuesday, 21 February 2006 |
According to a new national survey by the Canadian Association for Adolescent Health (CAAH) and Ipsos, 24 per cent of sexually active Canadian teens between the ages of 14 and 17 did not use any protection against sexually transmitted infections (STIs) the last time they had sex. And 68 per cent have engaged in oral sex, although many are
unaware that STIs can be transmitted through this particular sexual activity.
"The goal of this major study was to help the CAAH determine if teenagers need more information on sex and sexual health, to identify exactly what they need, and to find ways to provide this needed information," said Dr. Jean-Yves Frappier, President of the CAAH, paediatrician and Head of the Adolescent Division at Sainte-Justine Hospital in Montreal. "After a first review, it appears that more information needs to be produced and effectively communicated to Canadian teens and their parents."
Other survey results indicate that Canada's half million sexually active teens between the ages of 14 and 17:
-Have had three sexual partners on average and 38% of them engage in casual sex;
-16% admit that their partner had other sexual partners while dating them, while half of condom users never check to see if their condoms remain intact after sex.
-90% of Canadian teens claim to be very (19%) or somewhat (71%) knowledgeable about sex and sexual health. Not only does this claim run counter to their actual behaviour, considering the increasing prevalence of STIs, it is also undermined by their widespread lack of knowledge of the most common sexually transmitted infection;
-Only 19% have ever heard of HPV, the cause of genital warts and cervical cancer.
HIV, on the other hand, is reported most often by teens as a common STI, despite its very low prevalence compared to all the others;
-Canadian teens also appear to be unaware of the consequences of STIs. For example, only 20% mention cancer as a possible consequence of HPV and only 37% mention infertility as a possible consequence of chlamydia.
Teens' lack of knowledge about STIs and their consequences is unfortunately exacerbated by the difficulties in obtaining sexual health information and 62% said they faced obstacles to getting answers on sexual health, such as their own discomfort in talking about sex. As for sex education in schools, only 23% of teens feel it is very useful.
Vocabulary can be a barrier too. For example, 22 per cent of Canadian teens and 30 per cent of mothers include mutual masturbation in their definition of "sexual intercourse". And when asked to define sexual abstinence, for 26 per cent of teens, it appears that practicing oral sex is compatible with abstinence. These differences in interpretation might prevent some teenagers from getting the sex information they need.
Parents will be surprised to learn that THEY are in fact the real teen role models when it comes to sex, not movie, music, sport and TV stars. Parents are also considered a major source of information on sex and sexual health by their teenagers (63%) and nearly half (43%) consider their parents to be the most useful and valuable source of information. Unfortunately, 38% of teens have not discussed sex and sexuality with their mothers.
"One of the most surprising results of the study was how parents underestimate their importance and the role teens expect them to play when it comes to their sexuality and sexual health," said Dr. Miriam Kaufman, a CAAH spokesperson and paediatrician at the Adolescent Division at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.
"Canadian teens look up to their parents and consider them a valuable source of information. We are hoping that by making this information widely known, parents will feel more comfortable breaking the wall of silence that too often exists when it comes to discussing sexuality with their children." |
