Sex too early creates risk of disease and pregnancy

YOUNG PEOPLE will be urged to delay having sex for the first time to reduce their risk of contracting a sexually transmitted infection (STI) or having a crisis pregnancy, in an initiative by the Crisis Pregnancy Programme (CPP).

Formerly the Crisis Pregnancy Agency and now incorporated into the HSE, the programme outlined its “b4u decide” initiative yesterday, with information for young people along with resources for teachers and youth workers.

According to Dr Stephanie O’Keeffe, acting director of the CPP, the educational programme has been developed in response to research, which found young people were having sex at an earlier age than in previous generations.

“Young people who experience first sexual intercourse before 17 years of age are 70 per cent more likely to experience crisis pregnancy in their lifetime, three times more likely to report having a STI and three times more likely to experience abortion,” she said.

“Those who had sex before 17 were also more likely to wish they had waited longer before having sex.”

Minister for Children Frances Fitzgerald said the nurturing of “rounded, creative and confident minds” was essential if we were to expect young people to “make informed decisions”, and they needed guidance and support in achieving this.

“Teenagers and indeed younger children are exposed to more sexual messaging than at any time in the past,” she said.

“In this context, young people need good, clear information from their parents, schools and youth work settings on how to establish and conduct happy, safe, loving relationships and how to avoid crisis pregnancy and STIs.

“We also need to ensure that parents, teachers and youth workers are supported in taking an effective role in delivering relationships and sexuality education.”

The Crisis Pregnancy Programme also published its 2010 annual report yesterday, in which Dr O’Keeffe described last year as one “of challenge, change and adaptation . . . the first year of working within a new organisational structure”.

The report described barriers to the full implementation of the Relationship and Sex Education (RSE) in schools. Among findings from research last year was that 40 per cent of the schools used “outside facilitators” to teach the RSE programme, while 80 per cent felt more outside facilitators would enhance delivery of the programme.

The publication of a number of research projects undertaken in 2010 is expected later this year, including one on the knowledge and attitudes of the Irish population to contraception, and another on the experiences of minority ethnic women accessing sexual health and pregnancy services here.