Abstract
BackgroundEarly initiation of sexual activity affects the sexual and reproductive health of the young population. The youth are at a high risk of risky sexual behaviours, including multiple partners and inconsistent condom use. There has been limited research on the level and determinants of early sexual initiation in Woldia town. Thus, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of early sexual initiation and associated factors among preparatory and high school students in Woldia town, northeast Ethiopia.MethodsAn institution based cross-sectional study was conducted on 723 students selected by the simple random sampling technique on March 7, 2016. A pre-tested and structured self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. Descriptive statistics, bivariate and multivariable logistic regression were computed. Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated to examine the strength of association. In the multivariable analysis, a p-value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.ResultThe prevalence of early sexual initiation among preparatory and high school students in Woldia town was 18.4% (95% CI:15.50,21.30%). Not attending religious programs (AOR = 3.2, 95% CI:1.84,5.44), peer pressure (AOR = 1.9, 95% CI:1.14,3.25), cigarette smoking (AOR = 2.3, 95% CI:1.06,4.85), poor parental monitoring (AOR = 2.8, 95% CI:1.77,4.53), and exposure to pornographic materials (AOR = 2.7, 95% CI:1.68,4.40) were significantly associated with early sexual initiation.ConclusionA large number of students initiated sexual activity at an early age. The practiced is associated with sexual and reproductive health problems. Therefore, raising awareness of students about the risk factors for and implication of early sexual initiation through teachers, religious leaders, and parents is highly recommended.
Highlights
Initiation of sexual activity affects the sexual and reproductive health of the young population
Assessment of school connectedness and knowledge of HIV/AIDS Student school connectedness was assessed using a five-item Likert scale adopted and developed from a previous study [26], such as ‘Do you feel close to people who are at school’, ‘Do you feel happy to be at this school’, ‘Do you feel as if you are a part of this school’, ‘Do school teachers treat students fairly at this school’, and ‘Do you feel safe being at this school’
Knowledge of students on HIV/AIDS was assessed based on the transmission and prevention methods of HIV/AIDS which was adopted from Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) 2011 [23], and the questions included condom use, number of sexual partners, awareness on healthy-looking person may have HIV/AIDS, and rejection of the two most common local misconceptions about HIV/AIDS that (HIV/AIDS can be transmitted by mosquito bite and supernatural means)
Summary
Initiation of sexual activity affects the sexual and reproductive health of the young population. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines youth as a group of people between the ages of 15 to 24 years which is characterized by a rapid progression from the appearance of secondary sexual characteristics to sexual and reproductive maturation. Youth who begin early sexual activity are more likely to practice risky sexual behaviours, such as multiple sexual partners and incorrect or inconsistent condom use. As a result, they increase the risk of sexually transmitted infection (STIs), including HIV/ AIDS, unwanted pregnancy, unsafe abortion, early childbirth, and psychosocial problems. These problems are the greatest threats to health and wellbeing of the youth [3, 4]
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