Salt-N-Pepa put it all on the table back in 1990 and got straight to the point: Let’s talk about sex, baby! 21 years later, Americans are still chanting those words, but the country of China has yet to get their dash of Salt-N-Pepa. China remain largely tight-lipped about subjects surrounding sex (e.g., STD testing), but that certainly doesn’t mean Chinese teens aren’t engaging in risky sexual activities. The data speaks for itself:
- 22.4% of young adults in China, ages 15 to 24, engage in premarital sex. This equates to 35.8 million people.
- Over 50% of those sexually active adolescents did not use birth control or condoms during their first time.
- Over 20% of those females have been pregnant and 90.9% of those pregnancies result in abortion.
- Approximately 740,000 people in China are HIV-positive.
Salt-N-Pepa encourages everyone to “talk about all the good things and the bad things that may be, let’s talk about sex!” China certainly has a lot to talk about with their youth, such the need for sex education and STD testing, but unfortunately this subject is viewed as highly taboo in their culture.
There’s no formal sex education and nearly three-fourths of families avoid talking about sex with their teens. As seen from the numbers, a lack of education has devastating effects such as unintended pregnancy and a dire need for STD testing.
Sexual health experts in China agree that knowledge is key and breaking the silence can help—so China, let’s talk about sex!
Source: chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2011-11/08/content_14053901.htm
