According to a study published in the Journal of Adolescent Science in October 2017, teenage girls (between 14 and 18 years old) are completely oblivious to the sexual risk factors when having same-sex intercourse. The study focused on the 14-18-year-old girls who were either bisexual or lesbian and included 160 participants via focus groups.
All participants were asked specific questions from neutral moderators, and their subsequent answers were then recorded and analyzed. The results of which were astounding and researchers believe they have pinpointed the root of the problem: sex education.
As an adult, you’re probably thinking, “How on Earth is this even possible? Sex is sex, and there’s always a risk when no protection is used whether you (or your partner) are male or female.” Yes, adults tend to see more regarding the risks anyone takes on when having unprotected sex but adolescents don’t think like adults, hence the difference.
Due to the answers provided by the teen girls, the researchers believe an incomplete sexual education may be to blame for these girls’ assumptions that same-sex intercourse is safer than heterosexual sex. One primary concern is that the majority of sexual education classes received by teens today focus specifically on heterosexual activities and the consequences.
Since the primary sex ed curriculum doesn’t teach anything about same-sex activities or the consequences that can arise from engaging in them, the average teen girl assumes the risk factors ‘must be’ less. Necessarily, most are lead to believe that male intimate partners are far more likely to be infected with an STI and that they are the risk, not the sex act itself, which is HIGHLY inaccurate.
They have also noted that lesbian and bisexual teens in this age group are at a much higher risk to contract sexually transmitted diseases and infections due to these beliefs. Also, as ironic as it seems, they are at a much higher risk of experiencing teenage pregnancy. There are plenty of remedies to this disturbing problem that can easily be applied, and it starts in the school system.
Many parents tend to take issue with anything that has to do with gay or bisexual sexual activities being taught in schools. Most are simply too close-minded to see that our youth needs to be educated on these dangers, regardless of parental personal beliefs, because it affects us all no matter your personal sexual preferences.
School systems need to incorporate sex ed courses that include an option for the young teens to learn about the dangers of gay or lesbian sexual encounters, in addition to the current curriculum. This will help to dispose of the myths the teens are left to assume upon and will lead to positive results including fewer teen pregnancies and STI occurrences.
Another remedy to help with this growing problem will need to take place on a personal level: at home. Topics that include sex of any kind will always make for any parent to be uncomfortable but how comfortable will you be when you’re helping your 16-year-old daughter take care of a newborn? Or how about the comfort level with the constant trips to the doctor needed to treat a venereal disease or something even worse, such as HIV?
Talk to your teens no matter their sexual preferences, whether they are sexually active or not, and put aside any contradicting personal beliefs. Teens need to be educated on everything because it’s all out there in the real world and, as parents, it’s our job to prepare them for the real world.
