Current Event 11/17
November 18, 2006
veteret796
Study: Condom Use Increasing in Africa
LONDON— Amid all the dire warnings about the AIDS pandemic, researchers announce some good news: Young African women report they are increasingly using condoms with their partners.
The Lancet is the British journal that published this new study. Eighteen different African countries were studied from 1993 to 2001. The study was composed of 132,800 women 15-24 years of age and the changes in their sexual behavior. Although the topic of the study was not focused on abstinence, there were still some (rare) rates that changed (very little). As for condom usage: it more than tripled! From 5.3% in 1993 to 18.8% in 2001. Obviously, this percentage is not high, but the increase is noteworthy – hopefully a trend that will continue to occur. So far, there has been an average increase of 1.4% per year.
“It’s not rapid enough, but if that increase continues or even accelerates, it’s bound to make a dent on HIV transmission” – John Cleland, a professor at London’s School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine who conducted the study along with Dr. Mohamed Ali of the World Health Organization. I believe this statement is true – though it isn’t rapid it is definitely making an impact.
A student at Lagos, Princess Chukwuma, compared condom usage and an insurance policy: “You don’t know about men,” the 24-year-old said. “Maybe they go with other girls behind your back and you can’t tell.” This is not the first time I’ve read anything like this, but every time I do, I am saddened. How is this so? We can only hope that this pattern will not spread — even to the U.S. What ever happened to faithfullness? Abstinence? Moreover, what has happened to this world?
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1.
Art | November 24, 2006 at 1:54 am
It takes reading something like this to remind me about the AIDS epidemic. I feel far removed from it, though I know noone is immune.
2.
mlee09 | November 24, 2006 at 2:43 am
As long as religion is removed from our lives, there will be less and less faithfulness and abstinence. The new dollar coin has removed the words “In God We Trust”. Yet I bet 90% of our military men and women say a prayer before they go out on the battlefield. TV and Movies make sex an open and unintimate/unsacred thing to do. But has this really ever changed? I mean Trojan condoms say the word “Trojan” for a reason and that’s because the whole concept of a condom goes back to that time, don’t ask why I know that, I think my health teacher in HS told the class that. But yea, maybe the people in Africa need to stop having sex and AIDS won’t spread. What a novel idea.
3.
ladya | December 1, 2006 at 2:08 pm
Its not the fact of not having sex. Sex is a human nature thing. There is an epidemic of AIDS in this country too. Tell the people of Africa to stop having sex is like tell Americans to stop having sex. It is a good thing that the condom usage has increased because Knowledge and prevention is the key to not contracting the disease. If you know its out there, you know how to fight it. And with the whole infidelity thing, I do believe that its with the lack of God in America and the growing trend of casual sex. But in saying that, shouldnt love keep u faithful to your partner?