Use of contraception on increase

More young people are using contraception the first time they have sex, a new survey has found.

The Irish Contraceptive and Crisis Pregnancy Study 2010, launched this morning, also found adults who received sex education at home or in school were one and a half times more likely to use contraception the first time they had sex compared to those who received education from other sources.

The study, undertaken as part of the Health Service Executive Crisis Pregnancy Programme, surveyed over 3,000 men and women aged 18 to 45 years old. The results were compared to a survey carried out in 2003.

The average age of first sex for men was unchanged since 2003 at 17 and for women it had risen slightly to 18.

The report found consistent use of contraception among 18 to 25 year olds is high and increasing compared to 2003. Some 90 per cent in the age group said they had used contraception the first time they had sex compared to 80 per cent of 26 to 35 year olds. This group also reported receiving more sex education than older people.

Some 86 per cent of 18-25 year olds compared to 76 per cent of 26-35 year olds and 57 per cent of 36-45 year olds received sex education.

The quality of the sex education they received had also increased with 70 per cent of 18-25 year olds saying it was helpful to them in their adult relationships, compared to 60 per cent of 26-35 year olds.

However, the survey found fewer parents are talking to their children about sex. Some 70 per cent of parents said they had spoken to their child about sex and related matters in 2010 compared to 82 per cent in 2003.

The survey also found one in three women in Ireland had experienced a crisis pregnancy.

Director of the HSE Crisis Pregnancy Programme, Dr Stephanie O'Keeffe, said crisis pregnancy is still an issue for women living in Ireland, though perhaps for different reasons than in the past.

The main reason women defined their pregnancy as crisis was because it was unplanned. But more young women in the 2010 survey reported they viewed their pregnancy as a crisis because they were "too young", even though the majority of these pregnancies were occurring to women in their mid-20s. "This may be indicative of cultural changes regarding the most desirable age to have a baby," she said.

The proportion of women reporting that the pregnancy was a crisis for financial reasons also increased from 2 per cent in 2003 to 9 per cent in 2010.