With abstinence education becoming quite commonplace, you would imagine that the risks of catching STDs would be less. Unfortunately, an alarming new insight has come to light.
In a controversial study in South Carolina into abstinence-only education, it was found that abstinence-taught youngsters were more than likely to contract STDs. The alarming discovery revealed that whilst children were told not to have sex – in which followed a contract that they were asked to sign in agreement to this; young people were not told that any alternatives that they sought still posed the same risk.
Abstinence-only education promotes no sexual contact between individuals until their wedding night. No alternatives are shown, but the dangers of STDs are made known to them – to a point.
It meant that teenagers were seeking out other means of intercourse without resorting to penetrative sex. They were not taught the uses of condoms or other contraceptives – most likely because their teachers were telling them not to have sex at all.
This meant that any information on sexually-transmitted diseases were not established properly, following disturbing increases of STDs in young people. Unaware of the dangers, they were able to be involved with a variety of sexual partners without knowing to take precautions with alternative methods such as oral sex.
The study revealed that those who were given information about safe sex, health and behavioural risks and contraceptives were less likely to contract STDs. With the lack of information on contraceptives and safe sex, abstinence-only education is threatening young people’s lives by providing little to no alternative options. With the likelihood that hot-blooded teens will catch disease if they are not taught proper precautions, as well as no information on how to avoid it, the only extremity left to them is putting them more at risk.
Abstinence cannot suppress teenage passions; rather than eradicate the idea of abstinence, it must stand as an option, rather than a rule, teaching young people alternative, safe methods of having sex without resorting to dangerous risks.