Sex is a normal and healthy part of intimate relationships. Yet young people in particular may be at risk of getting diseases through sexual contact. In Canada, a teenager is nine times more likely to get a sexually transmitted disease (STD) than an adult aged 30–39¹. Chlamydia especially is common in the NWT².

However, STDs are preventable. People need to know how to avoid or deal with STDs because:

• it is mostly younger people who get STDs
• if STDs are not treated, they may affect people’s ability to have children later in life
• if STDs are not treated, they may have a serious effect on people’s health later in life
• women, even if they have no symptoms, can pass STDs on to their babies, in the womb, at birth or through breastfeeding

People who are having sex, or thinking about it, need to know how to protect themselves and people they care for from STDs.

Instructors can help learners make healthy sexual choices by:

• providing them with information about STDs
• discussing risky sexual behaviours and their effects
• discussing safer sex practices
• helping them identify myths about STDs
• providing them with sources of information and support about STDs or safer sex

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¹ Health Canada What you need to know about sexually transmitted diseases
² Yellowknife Public Health Unit Sexually Transmitted Diseases Part 1