Understanding Comprehensive Sexuality Education: A Worldwide Narrative Review
- PMID: 39737310
- PMCID: PMC11683015
- DOI: 10.7759/cureus.74788
Understanding Comprehensive Sexuality Education: A Worldwide Narrative Review
Abstract
Comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) is curriculum-based teaching and learning of various dimensions of sexuality. By equipping young people with accurate information on sexual and reproductive health, CSE promotes healthier populations and fosters a more informed workforce, contributing positively to national economies. Although known to have many benefits, CSE is not universally accepted or implemented. The risks of HIV/AIDS, teenage pregnancy, gender-based violence, child abuse, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), unsafe abortion, mental health challenges, gender inequality, economic burden, and persisting taboo and stigma can be minimized by providing age-accurate and culturally sensitive CSE. This review delves into the definitions and importance of sexuality and CSE, emphasizing CSE's critical need in today's society to promote informed, healthy decisions and well-being. It explores the optimal age groups for introducing CSE, addressing age-appropriate content designed to equip young people with essential knowledge on body awareness, emotional development, relationships, and sexual health. The review further outlines the key benefits of CSE, such as reducing rates of STIs, unintended pregnancies, and gender-based violence. Finally, it provides a comprehensive overview of CSE's global status, examining diverse regional approaches, policy frameworks, and implementation challenges.
Keywords: adolescent and sexual health; narrative review; public-health education; sex education; sexuality.
Copyright © 2024, Albert Sekhar et al.
Conflict of interest statement
Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.
Similar articles
-
Comprehensive sexuality education linked to sexual and reproductive health services reduces early and unintended pregnancies among in-school adolescent girls in Zambia.BMC Public Health. 2023 Feb 16;23(1):348. doi: 10.1186/s12889-023-15023-0. BMC Public Health. 2023. PMID: 36797703 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.
-
Why teach sexuality education in school? Teacher discretion in implementing comprehensive sexuality education in rural Zambia.Int J Equity Health. 2019 Sep 27;18(1):116. doi: 10.1186/s12939-019-1023-1. Int J Equity Health. 2019. PMID: 31558168 Free PMC article.
-
"Not just the consequences, but also the pleasurable sex": a review of the content of comprehensive sexuality education for early adolescents in Rwanda.BMC Public Health. 2023 Jan 7;23(1):49. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-14966-0. BMC Public Health. 2023. PMID: 36609366 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Comprehensive sexuality education for the most disadvantaged young people: findings from formative research in Ethiopia.Sex Reprod Health Matters. 2023 Dec;31(2):2195140. doi: 10.1080/26410397.2023.2195140. Sex Reprod Health Matters. 2023. PMID: 37017582 Free PMC article.
-
School-based comprehensive sexuality education for prevention of adolescent pregnancy: a scoping review.BMC Womens Health. 2024 Feb 21;24(1):137. doi: 10.1186/s12905-024-02963-x. BMC Womens Health. 2024. PMID: 38383384 Free PMC article.
Cited by
-
Community Stakeholders' Perspectives on Recruiting Young Adolescents (Age 10-14) in Sexual Health Research.Healthcare (Basel). 2025 Jul 16;13(14):1711. doi: 10.3390/healthcare13141711. Healthcare (Basel). 2025. PMID: 40724736 Free PMC article.
References
-
- Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States - SIECUS Position Paper. [ Jun; 2024 ]. 2024. https://siecus.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Position-Statements-2018-2... https://siecus.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Position-Statements-2018-2...
-
- UNESCO UNESCO, Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, United Nations Children’s Fund, United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, World Health Organization. Paris, France: UNESCO; 2018. International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education: An Evidence-Informed Approach.
-
- Greenberg JS, Bruess CE, Oswalt SB. 6th ed. Jones & Bartlett (ed. Vol. 15. Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett Learning ; 2017. Exploring the Dimensions of Human Sexuality, 6th Edn; p. 2010.
-
- Bolin A, Whelehan P, Vernon M, Antoine K. New York: Routledge; 2009. Human Sexuality: Biological, Psychological, and Cultural Understandings ; pp. 10017–12021.
Publication types
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources