Science, Teaching
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To be considered ‘‘safe,’’ individuals are free from danger and harm. When individuals engage in ‘‘safe sex,’’ they are trying to minimize the odds of contracting sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS). Safe sex minimizes the exchange of body fluids, semen, vaginal secretions, and blood. Safe sex is defined as using latex barriers such as condoms and dental dams for intercourse and oral sex, and/or by limiting sexual practices to less risky ones, with abstinence providing the highest form of safety. Safe sex can also be defined as a sexual practice designed to reduce the risk of catching a sexually transmitted disease: any sexual practice that does not involve the exchange of bodily fluids, including blood, sperm, vaginal secretions, and saliva. These practices minimize the risk of contracting HIV/AIDS and other STDs: sex without penetration or sex using condoms and nonoxynol-9 spermicide, and/or vaginal dams with consistency. According to Advocates for Youth, a recent study attributed 75% of the decline in United States (U.S.) teen pregnancy rates to teens’ better use of contraception and 25% of the decline to teens’ increased abstinence (see studies cited under Advocates for Youth in the Suggested Resources section). Although U.S. teens are increasingly adopting protective sexual behaviors, they face barriers to consistent use. Advocates for Youth reports show that in 1991, 49% of high-school teenage females said they had never had sex, compared with 55% in 2003. Among males in 1991, 43% reported never having sex, compared with 52% in 2003. Teens may be abstaining from or engaging in less sexual intercourse, but that does not mean that they are having safe sex. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, sexual activity among teens has declined by 14% since 1995. However, the survey did not ask about oral sex, which has led teens to believe that sex without penetration is ‘‘safe sex.’’ According to the Kaiser Foundation, 20% of 12- to 17-year-old youth believe that oral sex is safe sex. Advocates for Youth researched these beliefs and found that 12- to 17-year-old youth who had abstinence education explained that ‘‘abstinence’’ actually included many sexual behaviors. In a similar study of college freshman,
37% described oral sex and 24% described anal sex as abstinent behaviors. Each year an estimated 3 million adolescents are infected with an STD. This accounts for 25% of the estimated 12 million new STDs occurring annually in the U.S. According to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, what is understood about safe sex is that individuals need to examine honestly the risks they take, decide which risks to take, and find ways to make sex as safe as possible. The availability of condoms has proven to decrease the amount of STDs and HIV. Programs of condom availability also reduce risky behaviors. According to Advocates for Youth, studies show that availability programs do not encourage teens to initia
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