SD STI cases reach record highs in 2008

 

 

by Karina
Web Editor
Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund

The numbers on STI cases were released yesterday by the South Dakota State Health Department, and the news isn't good:

Chlamydia cases reached an all-time high of 2,948, up 328 from 2007, provisional data in the report indicate. Reports of gonorrhea rose 29.4 percent to 370 - the highest since 1988.

Though the increase is probably due to a combination of variables, it seems clear that the lack of a comprehensive approach to sexual education is likely a major factor. Comprehensive sex ed stresses abstinence first, but then goes on to give the information one needs to prevent STIS and unintended pregnancies should one choose to be sexually active.

And guess what? Comp sex ed works! Study after study shows that teens who receive abstinence-only education do not delay the initiation of sex, and that students receiving comprehensive sex ed were less likely to become pregnant. Additionally, teens who receive comp sex ed are more likely to discuss preventative measures like condoms, birth control, and abstinence.

South Dakotans want to focus on prevention this year and from the looks of this report, not a minute too soon