British teens sexually active
(Reuters) Updated: 2006-10-23 14:45
London - British teenagers are the most sexually active in Europe and
children should be taught about contraception to stem the problem of teenage
pregnancies, a report published on Monday said.
A study by the Institute
for Public Policy Research (IPPR) based found that 38 percent of British
15-year-olds had had sex in the period from 2001-2.
That compared to
just 15 percent in Poland, 16 percent in Spain and was also far greater than the
countries with the second highest proportion -- Sweden, Finland and Germany.
In addition Britain had the highest rate of teenage births, an average
of 26 live births per 1,000 women aged 15 to 19.
Sexually related
diseases such as Chlamydia and herpes had also risen amongst young people, with
one in three 15-year-olds admitting they didn't use condoms.
Last month
the British government said it would target "hot spot" areas for teenage
pregnancies and encourage local authorities to focus their efforts on cutting
the numbers.
But the IPPR said despite previous government initiatives,
progress had been slow. It called for all children to be taught about the
importance of contraception in their last year at primary school, when they are
10 or 11 years old.
Julia Margo, senior research fellow for the IPPR,
said there had been a dramatic fall in the last 50 years in the average age
people first had sex.
"The proportion of young people who are sexually
active before the age of consent has risen from less than one percent to 25
percent," she said.
"Our education system must respond in kind and start
teaching children about the risks involved in sex before before they even
consider taking those risks."
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