Condom Use Increases Among Younger Generations
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Condom Use Increases Among Younger Generations

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Sofía Garduño By Sofía Garduño | Journalist & Industry Analyst - Tue, 02/14/2023 - 17:33

The Ministry of Health invited Mexico’s sexually active population to use condoms to protect themselves from sexually transmitted infections (STI) and prevent unplanned pregnancies. To promote its use, CENSIDA delivered over 29 million condoms to the Mexican population in 2022. 

 

Each Feb. 13, the world observes the International Condom Day (ICD) to raise awareness on the benefits of using this contraceptive and to encourage the population to use it for every sexual relation. The use of condoms is essential for public health. For example, its use has prevented 117 million new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections, helping to fight the AIDS pandemic, according to UNAIDS. The ICD was founded in 2008 by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation to encourage the use of this contraceptive method. 

 

In Mexico, between 2018 and 2019, 83% of adolescent men and 70% of adolescent women used a condom during their first sexual intercourse. Meanwhile, 56% of men and 41% or women between 20 and 49 years old reported having used it when they started having sex, according to ENSANUT. 

 

The increased use of condoms among younger populations is essential for Mexico as the country has the highest rate of teen pregnancies in the OECD. In Mexico, one in every five births is attributed to a teen pregnancy. During the pandemic, pregnancies increased by 30% and about 8,876 girls under 14 years old got pregnant during isolation.

 

Aside from preventing pregnancies, the correct use of condoms prevents contagion of HIV and human papillomavirus (HPV). The latter is one of the most common infections of the reproductive system and it is linked to most cervical cancer cases, as reported by MBN.

 

Mexico is working to enhance equal access to information, education and contraceptive methods for reproductive health. The Ministry of Health acknowledges access to condoms as a right and offers them for free in some spaces such as outpatient centers for the prevention and care of AIDS and STI. Through CENSIDA, it also offers guidance on birth control, STI, HIV and hepatitis C. 

 

The Ministry of Health and the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) recently published a guide for the prescription of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) methods for teenagers. The guide was published in observance of the National Day for the Prevention of Unplanned Pregnancy in Adolescents, which is part of the National Strategy for Preventing Teenage Pregnancy (ENAPEA) that aims to avert undesired pregnancies, as reported by MBN

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