What Works in Youth HIV
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Choosing Not to Be Sexually Active Right Now [1]

Youth who choose to avoid sexual activity eliminate their risk of getting sexually transmitted HIV for as long as they remain abstinent. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), choosing to go without anal, vaginal, or oral sex is the only 100% effective method of protection against sexually transmitted HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). While this could seem obvious, youth might need to be reminded that choosing to forego sexual activities is the most reliable form of protection against HIV.

Different types of sexual activity [2] have different levels of HIV risk [3] and youth might choose to avoid some or all of them to avoid getting HIV. As described by I Wanna Know! [4], limiting some sexual activity is known as selective abstinence. A selectively abstinent person's risk of HIV infection depends on which sexual activities he or she chooses to engage in. It is also worth reminding adolescents that it is possible to contract HIV through nonsexual activities that abstaining from sex fully or selectively will not protect against.

Statistics on Sexual Activity

While most teens think "everyone is doing it," the statistics show that is not quite accurate. According to the 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Survey [5], youth in the U.S. are delaying the onset of sexual activity. From 1991-2013, the survey showed a significant decrease in the prevalence of youth who ever had sexual intercourse:

  • Fifty-three [6] percent of U.S. high school students reported never having had sex
  • The prevalence of having ever had sexual intercourse was higher among Black (60.6%) than White (43.7%) and Hispanic (49.2%) students
  • Thirty-four percent had sexual intercourse during the 3 months before the survey (i.e., currently sexually active)

Strategies to Teach Abstinence

Despite the increase in delayed initiation of sexual activity, adolescents might still need help refining beliefs and skills related to choosing not to be sexually active.

  • Advocates for Youth [7] encourages people working with youth to acknowledge the role of both abstinence and condoms [8] in preventing HIV infection among adolescents, an inclusive sex education [9] approach.
  • The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) supports school-based comprehensive sex education that includes information for youth about how to avoid premature sexual activity. For advocates and educators in states that require abstinence-only education, SIECUS has put together a list of 7 abstinence-only programs that do not include messages of fear and shame related to sexual activity [10]. These programs only contain scientifically accurate information and are all inclusive of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth.
  • CDC [11] reports that implementing condom distribution programs as structural-level interventions has been successful in promoting abstinence among youth.
Lesson Plan [12]
Lesson Plan Resource [13]

Teaching Abstinence as a Part of Comprehensive Sex Education: What Is Abstinence? [13]

Educators can use this 50-minute lesson plan from Advocates for Youth to teach youth what sexual abstinence is and how it can prevent unplanned pregnancies, STIs, and HIV infections.

Messages about Abstinence for Youth

Helping youth choose to avoid sexual activity in the moment (i.e., in the absence of a condom [8]) is also important. Even those who have had sex in the past can choose to not engage in a sexual activity in order to prevent HIV infection. There are a number of resources geared toward adolescents that explain and encourage abstinence.

Implementation Resources: 
Webpage [14]
Webpage Resource

Young Men's Health - Abstinence [15]

The Young Men's Health Abstinence webpage provides answers to questions that teenage boys and young men might have about what abstinence is, why it is beneficial, and how to practice it.

Webpage [14]
Webpage Resource

Young Women's Health - Abstinence [16]

This Center for Young Women's Health webpage provides answers to questions that teenage girls and young women might have about what abstinence is, why it is beneficial, and how to practice it.

Webpage [14]
Webpage Resource

Why waiting to have sex makes sense [17]

This Girlshealth.gov webpage on delaying sexual initiation is written for girls. It describes the benefits of abstinence, explains how abstinence is the safest way to avoid STIs, and offers strategies for abstaining from sex.

What Works in Youth HIV is operated by JSI, a public health management consulting and research organization dedicated to improving the health of individuals and communities around the world. From July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2018, the Adolescent HIV/AIDS Prevention National Resource Center was provided financial support through a cooperative agreement awarded by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Adolescent Health (OAH) under grant number MAIAH000001-01-00, with funding from the HHS Secretary’s Minority AIDS Initiative Fund. The content and conclusions on this website are those of the author/s and do not necessarily represent the official positions or policies of OAH, HHS, or the U.S. Government.

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Source URL: https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/youth-hiv/youth-sexual-health/choosing-not-be-sexually-active-right-now

Links
[1] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/youth-hiv/youth-sexual-health/choosing-not-be-sexually-active-right-now
[2] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/youth-hiv/youth-sexual-health/sexual-anatomy-sex
[3] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/youth-hiv/hiv-prevention-treatment/hiv-risk-factors
[4] http://www.iwannaknow.org/teens/glossary_a_d.html#abstinence
[5] http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/yrbs/pdf/trends/us_sexual_trend_yrbs.pdf
[6] http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6304a1.htm?s_cid=ss6304a1_w
[7] http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/topics-issues/abstinence
[8] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/youth-hiv/youth-sexual-health/condoms
[9] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/youth-hiv/youth-sexual-health/adolescence-puberty
[10] http://www.siecus.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Page.ViewPage&PageID=1169
[11] http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/prevention/programs/condoms/
[12] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/search/?field_resource_type_tid%5B%5D=13
[13] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/resource/teaching-abstinence-part-comprehensive-sex-education-what-abstinence
[14] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/search/?field_resource_type_tid%5B%5D=83
[15] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/resource/young-mens-health-abstinence
[16] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/resource/young-womens-health-abstinence
[17] https://whatworksinyouthhiv.org/resource/why-waiting-have-sex-makes-sense