Estelle - Get Lippy

It seems the younger generation is now more at ease with having sex at a younger age and more liberal regarding the number of sexual partners someone has had, with nearly two-thirds (63%) of 16 to 19 year-olds say it is acceptable to have slept with more than five people by the age of 21, compared to only 40% for people in their early 30s

Other survey findings:

One-in-four (24%) 16-24 year olds say that they could have sex with someone they didn't know/trust

More than 1 in 5 (22%) 16 -24 year olds have lost their virginity before the age of 16

More than 1 in 5 (22%) of 16-24 year olds think sex is merely a physical act

20% of 16-24s have had 6 or more sexual partners

Toby Morgan, Values Manager for The Body Shop UK & RoI, commented: "These survey results prove that young people's behaviour is still not in line with awareness, or their own personal concerns about being infected with HIV. It is vital that we continue to educate and motivate young people to protect themselves against infection. By partnering with MTV our goal is to communicate prevention messages to help young people in understand that AIDS is an issue that affects them."

While many young people believe HIV will never touch their lives, globally over 40 million people live with HIV and AIDS. Shockingly, half of all new HIV infections are among young adults under 25 - it is estimated every 15 seconds a person aged 15-24 becomes infected with HIV/AIDS. page << 1 2 3 >>