Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #115875

John Santelli, MD, MPH, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 60 Haven Avenue, New York, NY 10032, 212-304-5634, js2637@columbia.edu

American teenagers face considerable risk to their reproductive health from unintended pregnancy and STIs including HIV. Theoretically abstinence from sexual intercourse is fully protective against pregnancy and disease, however program evaluations of find little evidence of efficacy. Few Americans remain abstinent until marriage and most initiate sexual intercourse as adolescents. Data from the 2002 NSFG and 2000 US Census find a gap of 8 to 10 years between median age at first intercourse and median age at first marriage. “Abstinence only” and “abstinence until marriage” policies raise serious human rights concerns. Access to accurate health information is a human right. Governments have an obligation to provide accurate information to their citizens and to eschew the provision of misinformation. Such obligations extend to state-supported health education and clinical counseling. The emphasis on abstinence-only education has resulted in declines in comprehensive sexuality education in public schools and has become a basis for suppression of free speech in schools. Mandates to promote abstinence have had adverse impacts on global efforts to prevent HIV. In clinical practice, where patient care is founded on notions of informed consent and free choice, abstinence-only programs are inherently coercive, providing misinformation and withholding information needed to make informed choices. Abstinence-only education programs, specifically, provide incomplete and misleading information about contraceptives. These programs are often insensitive to sexually active, sexually abused teenagers, and gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. Abstinence-only as a basis for health policy should be abandoned.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, participants will be able to

• Identify four examples where abstinence-only educational programs raise human rights concerns.
• Articulate concerns about human rights in discussing local abstinence-only policies and programs.
• Develop two strategies to counter local efforts to impose coercive and inaccurate educational programs.

Keywords: Adolescent Health, Human Rights

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.