Sex abstinence programmes do not stop risky sexual behaviour or help in the prevention of unwanted pregnancy ...

Thursday, 2 August 2007, | No-sex programmes 'not working'

Sex abstinence programmes do not stop risky sexual behaviour or help in the prevention of unwanted pregnancy, a research team has concluded.

The Oxford University team reviewed 13 US trials involving over 15,000 people aged 10 to 21.

They found abstinence programmes had no negative or positive impact on the rates of sex infections or unprotected sex, the British Medical Journal said.
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Researchers found none of the abstinence-only programmes had an impact on the age at which individuals lost their virginity, whether they had unprotected sex, the number of sexual partners, the rates of sexually transmitted diseases or the number of pregnancies.
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Lead author Kristen Underhill said: "Our analysis suggests that abstinence-only programmes that aim to prevent HIV are not effective.
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But abstinence-only programmes don't work because they provide no safety net for those young people who do have a sexual relationship - and research shows that many do." ...