Christian Purity Expert Expresses Concern as Unsafe Sex Among Youth Increases Sharply
The number of young people across the globe having unprotected sex has risen sharply according to the results of a multinational survey released on Monday, which is also World Contraception Day.
The survey, commissioned by Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals showed an increase among sexually active teenagers in the United States and in European countries such as France who were failing to use contraception with a new partner.
In the last three years, reports that the number of young people having unsafe sex with a new partner increased by 111 percent in France, 39 percent in the USA and 19 percent in Britain.
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The Christian Post reached out to Dannah Gresh, author of “What Are You Waiting For: The One Thing No One Ever Tells You About Sex” and co-founder of Pure Freedom, an organization that provides resources in the form of books and live events to equip men and women of all ages to live lives of purity.
“I have no warm fuzzies for studies such as these. I think they are incomprehensive in their efforts to be comprehensive,” says Gresh.
“It’s the fallacy of those in the safe sex camp that believe that getting people to the marriage age or marriage bed without an unplanned pregnancy or sexually transmitted disease is a success. What condom can you give them for their hearts?” asks Gresh who is a strong advocate for comprehensive data that includes protection from the physical and mental repercussions of sex before marriage.
“To be successful in our programs, we have to take into account the emotion and spirit of a person. If you don’t take all three into effect, you don’t have the ability to be successful, “ said Gresh.
The level of unplanned pregnancies among young people is a major global issue, campaigners say, and the rise in unprotected sex in several countries has sparked concern about the quality of sex education available to young people.
Although she recognizes the extreme example, Gresh equates contraception-based outreach to sending a solider to war.
“He or she might come back alive but with a few less body parts and the potential for posttraumatic stress,” said Gresh who is alluding to the fact that the deep, emotional affect premarital sex has on a teen’s emotional and mental health remains even if he or she escapes the other harms of sex before marriage.
The study results are relevant as recent research from Stanford University says that the majority of college co-eds are still having sex, with an average 9.7 sexual partners for men and 7.1 for women during adolescent years.
"No matter where you are in the world, barriers exist which prevent teenagers from receiving trustworthy information about sex and contraception, which is probably why myths and misconceptions remain so widespread even today," a member of the WCD task force, Denise Keller, said in a statement with the results of the study.
The survey, endorsed by 11 international non-governmental organizations, questioned more than 6,000 young people from 26 countries including Chile, Poland and China, on their attitudes toward sex and contraception.
Many respondents also said that they felt too embarrassed to ask a healthcare professional for contraception.
"What young people are telling us is that they are not receiving enough sex education or the wrong type of information about sex and sexuality," spokeswoman for the International Planned Parenthood Federation, Jennifer Woodside said in a statement.
