As I grow older and reflect more on my life, I have grown to understand that you can’t please everybody all of the time. Sure, my parents and after-school specials would try to instill that lesson in me as I was growing up, but, at least for me, it wasn’t until I failed a few times trying TO please everybody that I realized it really was impossible. People in general and teenagers specifically have a tough time with that lesson. So, it wasn’t mind-blowing when I read about a new study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that almost a quarter of all teenagers in the United States with eventually catch a sexually transmitted disease due to a failure in using contraceptives (condoms) correctly and consistently.
The researchers in this study hailed from the Bradley Hasbro Children’s Research Center and had a test group of over 1,400 teenagers (between 15 and 21 in age) who had admitted to having sexual relations without a condom in the previous 3 months. These teens attributed their lack of condom use to a reduction in sexual pleasure when using the contraceptive and a concern that their sexual partner would not want to use a condom. The head researcher for the team, Larry K. Brown, stated, “It’s clear that we have to address these attitudes, fears and concerns that many teens have regarding condom use, if we want to reduce their risk for contracting a sexually transmitted infection. The good news is that these attitudes may be easily influenced and changed through clinical and community-based interventions.”
The test group came from regions in Providence (RI), Miami (FL) and Atlanta (GA) and was comprised of close to 797 females and 613 males. Half of the test group was African American, a quarter was Hispanic and almost 20 percent was white. The questionnaire was computer-based and had questions regarding the teens sexual encounters and their use of condoms from the previous three months. There were also inquiries about the teenagers’ thoughts and stances on the use of condoms, as well as how the issue of contraception was brought up (or not brought up) with sexual partners.
Of the test group, almost 66% of the teenagers admitted to not using a condom during their most recent sexual encounter. The average number of sexual partners amongst the study group was two and the average number of sexual encounters which were unprotected was fifteen during the three month timeframe. Teenagers in the study group admitted to having issues with the lack of pleasure associated with condoms and a worry that their partners would disapprove of contraceptive use. Many teenagers in the group who admitted to not using condoms consistently also were less likely to bring up the issue of condoms at all with their sexual partners. Amongst the ethnic groups, locations and gender, the results of the study were similar. Researchers in this study suggest that physicians can teach teenagers how to approach potential sexual partners about using contraceptives and also how to find condoms that fit correctly so that sensation and pleasure will not be reduced.
译文:
少男少女们不愿使用安全套
当我长大并开始反省我的生活，我渐渐意识到，人不可能无时无刻令所有人满意。当然，随着我的成长，我的父母和校外辅导员都试图让我明白这个道理，但是，对于我个人来说，如果没有做那么多使人失望的事情，我也不会意识到取悦每一个人是如此的异想天开。大多数人，特别是青少年都很难明白这个道理。因此，当我看到一个来自疾病控制预防中心的新的调查时，我相信这一切都是事实。这个调查表明，美国约四分之一的少男少女们由于错误的，不坚持使用避孕药具，会患上性传播疾病。
来自布拉德孩之宝儿童研究中心的调查人员对15至21岁的1400多名青少年进行了调查，他们承认，在过去的三个月内，在进行性交时确实没有使用安全套。这些青少年认为用了安全套会影响性快感，并且有时是性伴侣要求不要使用。调查团队中的头头，Larry K. Brown,说，“如果我们要减少青少年患性传播疾病的风险，我们就要使他们对不使用安全套产生恐惧和担忧，值得庆幸的是，这种想法很容易在临床科学和社会的介入下产生和改变。
被调查的青少年来自于普罗维登斯，迈阿密和亚特兰大等地区，大约由797名女性和613名男性组成。被调查对象中有一半是非裔美国人，四分之一是西班牙人，大约20%为白人。调查问卷是以计算机调查问卷的形式，其涉及的问题都是关于青少年的性经验以及之前几个月使用安全套的情况。也问及了青少年对于使用安全套的想法和态度，还包括避孕措施是如何被另一半提出或不被提出。
在被调查的青少年中，大约66%承认他们在最近的性交中没有使用安全套。在调查对象中，平均每人拥有2个性伴侣，但是在过去的三个月内，没有实施安全措施的性交的平均次数却达到了15次。被调查的青少年承认使用安全套会影响性快感，并且担心他们的性伴侣会不同意他们使用避孕药具。许多在调查中承认不坚持使用安全套的青少年都是因为不知如何开口与性伴侣沟通。在不同的种族，地域和性别调查中，结果都大同小异。调查人员建议医师可以帮助青少年如何与性伴侣沟通使用避孕器具，也可以帮助他们选择合适的安全套，这样就不会影响感官和快感。