Fewer young people are having sex, but the teens and young adults who are sexually active aren’t using condoms as regularly, if at all. And people ages 15 to 24 made up half of new chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis cases in 2022.

The downward trend in condom usage is due to a few things: medical advancements like long-term birth control options and drugs that prevent sexually transmitted infections; a fading fear of contracting HIV; and widely varying degrees of sex education in high schools.

Is this the end of condoms? Not exactly. But it does have some public health experts thinking about how to help younger generations have safe sex, be aware of their options — condoms included — and get tested for STIs regularly.

  • Capt. Wolf
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    2412 months ago

    Who’d have thought banning sex ed in schools would result in unsafe sex amongst teens!?

    • @[email protected]
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      422 months ago

      No one could have predicted it. It was completely out of left field. Unheard of. I’m saying that this is unprecedented. We couldn’t have known! Lé sigh.

    • MeatPilot
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      372 months ago

      Back when they used to teach Sex Ed. All of us (boys and girls) had to try to put a condom on a banana. The kicker was we were wearing goggles with vaseline smeared on the lens and had thick rubber gloves on.

      This was to simulate trying to put on a condom well under the influence.

      • @[email protected]
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        172 months ago

        Just do it with the mouth 👄 😺

        Crazy stuff though to force you to do that, good but crazy.

      • @[email protected]
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        2 months ago

        Well that’s not effective training at all. They should have gotten you drunk and simulated a wedding reception.