More than 60 percent of people aged 18 to 35 do not use contraception, and 80 percent do not ask their temporary partners if they have sexually transmitted diseases (STD), a survey released on Thursday showed.
The survey, called Contradictions between Action and Concept of Sex, was jointly conducted by the Taiwan AIDS Society, the Taiwan AIDS Nurses Association and the Harmony Home Association.
It surveyed 1,110 men and women nationwide aged 18 to 35 who are sexually active.
The poll showed that nearly 80 percent of respondents do not ask if their partners have STD, with 77 percent saying they found it difficult to ask the question.
Among those who asked their partners, only 5.4 percent said they were certain their partners undergo regular health examinations for HIV or other STDs, while the rest simply ask, observe or choose to take their partner’s word, the poll showed.
The poll also found that 63 percent of people aged 18 to 35 do not use contraception, with the ratio rising to 70 percent among 18-to-25-year-olds.
About 60 percent of respondents said they have had one-night stands, of which more than 65 percent said they did not use protection every time.
People are placing themselves at risk by having sex with strangers and not using protection, Taiwan AIDS Nurses Association director Chiu Piao-yi (邱飄逸) said.
The age profile of people with HIV is getting younger, said Taiwan AIDS Society secretary-general Yang Chia-jui (楊家瑞), who is also a doctor at Far Eastern Memorial Hospital.
Yang attributed the trend to a lack of understanding of the need for protection or how to tell whether one’s partner has STD.
The use of condoms during intercourse is the only effective method against contracting STD, Yang said, adding that people should undergo regular examinations to safeguard not only themselves, but their partners too.
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