Comparing United States to Other Countries

April 12, 2010




Teenage sex is a growing threat to adolescent sexual and reproductive health. Nevertheless, the adolescent sexual rate is lower in other countries than in the United States. For instance, according Michelle Rotermann, among Canada’s teens that are sexually active, 36 % are 16 to 17-year-olds, 13 percent are 14 to 15-year-olds, and two percent are under 14 years old. However, according to Rice (2008), 49% of American teenagers have engaged in sexual intercourse. Furthermore, 5 to 10% are 13 year-old girls. By age 15, 20% of girls have had sexual intercourse. By the tenth grade, 40% of girls and 45% of boys have had sexual intercourse. However, Yuri Amirkhanian, Dennis Tiunov, and Jeffrey Kelly (2001) state that in Russia, 39% of teens had engaged in sexual intercourse.

Kuortti and Kosunen (2009), state that teens are at risk for contracting sexually transmitted diseases, and in the United States 50% of all sexually transmitted disease cases are from adolescents and young adults (Rice, 2008). Among adolescents, gonorrhea is the second most common sexually transmitted disease in the United States. Gonorrhea is 33 times greater in the United States than in the Netherlands. Adolescence in the United States are 19 times more likely to be infected with chlamydia than teenagers in the Netherlands. Syphilis infections among teens in the United States are twice those found in teens in the Netherlands (Berne and Huberman, 1999).

In addition teenage pregnancy is another risk factor for teenagers engaging in sexual intercourse. The United States teen birth rate is higher than in European countries. According to Berne and Huberman (1999), the United States teen pregnancy rate is six times that of the Netherlands, and almost four times that of Germany and three time that of France (USA 72.2%, France 25.7%, Germany 18.8% and the Netherlands 11.8%). In fact, the US abortion rate is more than twice that of Germany and the Netherlands. The United States birth rate is nine times higher than the Netherlands, six times higher than France, and four times higher than Germany's.

Amirkhanian, Y. A., Tiunov, D. V., & Kelly, J. A. (2001). Risk factor for HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases among adolescents in St. Petersburg, Russia. Family Planning Perspectives, 33(3), 106-12.

Berne, L., and B. Huberman. "European Approach to Adolescents Sexual Behavior and Responsibility." Advocates for Youth (1999): 1-38. Internet Explorer. Web. 8 Apr. 2010.

Kuortti, M., & Kosunen, E. (2009). Risk-taking behavior is more frequent in teenage girls with multiple sex partners. Scandinavian Journal of Primary Healthcare, 27, 47-52.

Rice, F. P. (2008). The adolescent (12th addition ed.). United States of America: Pearson.

Rotermann, M. "Trends in Teen Sexual Behavior and Condom Use." Health Report 19.3 (2008): 53-7. Print.

By Janice

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