New Teen STD Articles on TeenHelp.com

The series of new teen STD articles posted on TeenHelp.com regarding STD information, facts, prevention tips and STD statistics are meant to help teens and their parents looking for information on sexually transmitted diseases and infections.

The articles are updated regularly featuring comprehensive information on some of the most commonly spread STIs among sexually active teens including chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, HIV/AIDS as well as others.

With about 65 percent of all teens engaging in sexual activities and intercourse by the time they graduate from high school, it is important for teens to understand the risk they are taking when having sex unprotected. About 9 million teens and young adults from ages 15 to 24 are diagnosed with a new STD each year. One in four teens will contract an STD before adulthood. Facts like these as well as information on some of the most common types of STDs among teens are featured in this new series of teen STD articles on TeenHelp.com.

STD Facts:

• Chlamydia statistics indicate that Chlamydia is one of the most common types of sexually transmitted infections among teens totalling about 40 percent of the infected population.
• Only about 42 percent of teen females express interest in learning more about STDs with a health care professional. Because many public schools focus primarily on abstinence-only sex education, STD information and risks during sex are often overlooked when it comes to the school curriculum.
• Minorities, primarily Hispanic and African American are the most common at-risk groups for HIV/AIDS as well as other types of STDs. Females also account for a large number of the potential infected teens with STDs and STIs.

The new series of teen STD articles also features information to clear up misconceptions about STDs and how they can be transferred from person to person. Many types of STIs can be transferred through other sexual acts aside from intercourse.

STD information and misconceptions:

• Many STDs can be transferred without directly having sex. For example, syphilis can be easily transferred through any kind of sexual contact when there is direct contact with an exposed syphilis sore, which can be found on the mouth, genitals, anus or rectum.
• Another misconception about STDs is that many teens believe that if there are not symptoms, they are not infected. With the majority of STDs, most of the time it takes months or even years for symptoms to show, if they ever do. However, even if there are not any visible symptoms, damage can still be done to the body internally.

New informative articles are added regularly to the TeenHelp.com website complete with plenty of information about many of the most commonly transferred STDs among teens.

Sources: avert.org, cdc.gov

Teen Condom Use Statistics

Nationally, 66% of 18 year old females and 68% of 18 year old males have had sexual intercourse. Close to 2800 teens get pregnant everyday, while 1 in 4 of them become infected with an STD every year. Many schools are teaching safe sex as part of their curriculum, stepping on the toes of some parents who prefer to encourage abstinence. However, where teen sex is creating public health issues and teen pregnancy is costing our nation, it has people searching for a solutions to avoid a crisis.

It is a controversial topic in today's society. Should condoms be readily accessible to teens? Or does promoting their use also promote sexual activity? One study showed that 98% of all teens who have had sex, have used a condom. They understand it's function. However, about half of that same group also admitted to having teen sex at sometime without one. Although many places are making condoms available to teens, the condom strategy is not having the impact that was intended. Teens still are not using them every time they are having intercourse.

Overall, 71% of teens report having discussed condom use at home with a parent. Statistically, these teens were more likely to use a condom than others. However, condom use only had a dramatic increase in the teens who's parents spoke with them about condoms before their first sexual encounter. These results indicate that early discussion of safe sex is critical. In addition, females who used a condom at first intercourse were 20 times more likely to use one in future sexual activity. Although in an ideal world all teens would practice abstinence, there will always be some who participate in sex at early ages. Talk to your teen about pregnancy, STDs and safe sex.