Abstract

PIP: European countries have significantly lower incidences of teen pregnancy, births, abortions, and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). To determine why some countries have so much better success helping adolescents develop into sexually healthy adults, Advocates for Youth and the University of North Carolina developed a European study tour on adolescent sexual behavior and responsibility during summer 1998. The specific goal was to explore which factors contribute to better sexual health among adolescents in the Netherlands, Germany, and France. The differences between countries are exemplified in the recent age-specific birth data; for every 1000 girls aged 15-19 years, the birth rate is 64 in the US, 13 in Germany, 9 in France, and 7 in the Netherlands. Evidence was found during the trip that the promotion of sexual health and responsible choices can be as effective in the US as it is in Europe. Promoting contraceptives and making them available to teens are the norm in the countries studied, and such ready availability of contraceptives and explicit sexual education has not increased teens' levels of sexual activity. In fact, the median age at first intercourse is 16.4 years in the US, 17 in Germany, 17.4 in France, and 17.8 in the Netherlands. Politics have unfortunately polarized and frustrated sexuality education in the US.