Sex education is NOT cutting rates of STIs or pregnancies, but cash could work

November 8, 2016

School-based programmes targeting HIV had no impact on reducing rates
But encouraging students to put studies first cut the rate of pregnancies
There was also a reduction in STIs as a result of the financial incentives

Stephen Matthews For Mailonline

Published:
12:35 EST, 8 November 2016

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Updated:
13:08 EST, 8 November 2016

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Sex education is failing to improve teenage sexual health or cut pregnancies, scientists warn.

School-based initiatives targeting HIV and a range of other sexually-transmitted infections (STIs) had no impact on reducing rates.

But cash payments to encourage students to stay on at school and put their studies before partying could help, new research suggests.

School-based initiatives targeting HIV and a range of other sexually-transmitted infections had no impact on reducing rates, new research found

In the first review of its kind, researchers studied eight trials involving more than 55,000 pupils from England, Scotland, South Africa, Chile, Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Malawi.

They found school-based initiatives targeting STIs and underage pregnancies had no impact on cutting rates.

However, they did find monthly cash payments to encourage pupils to continue their education did ‘significantly’ reduce the number of pregnancies.

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Researchers also found there was a slight reduction in STIs as a result of the financial incentives.

Pupils in England used to be paid £30 a week to stay on in school after their GCSE studies had finished.

But the Educational Maintenance Allowance was dropped for them in 2010 and replaced with a £180m bursary system designed to benefit poorer families.

But cash payments to encourage students to stay on at school and put their studies before partying could help, scientists claim

Lead researcher Dr Amanda Mason-Jones, from York University, said: ‘Previous studies have focused on self-reported outcomes only – this is the first review and meta-analysis to look at only measurable biological outcomes.

‘As they are currently designed, sex education programmes alone probably have no effect on the number of young people infected with HIV, other STIs or the number of pregnancies.’

They said this link was even more so if condoms and contraceptives are not freely available to young people.

Dr Mason-Jones continued: ‘It is clear that there needs to be further high quality research undertaken in this area so that policy makers can be better informed about keeping young people, especially girls, in education for longer.

‘Sexually active adolescents in some countries, particularly girls, are at highrisk of contracting HIV and other STIs; while early, unintended pregnancy canhave a major impact on their lives.’

She added that schools may provide information about healthy sexual relationships, but they need to combine with services that meet the needs of young people.