Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1994. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Associated Press - Saturday, December 3, 1994
The survey found that risky sexual behavior was just one way college students endanger their health and lives.
Many drink, smoke marijuana and ride with friends who have been drinking.
The survey, conducted by University of Central Florida researchers at eight of the state's public universities, revealed that 87 percent of the respondents have had sexual intercourse.
Despite warnings that unprotected sexual activity can cause AIDS and other diseases, 63 percent of the respondents said they did not use a condom during their most recent sex act.
Of the respondents, 141 had been diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease such as genital herpes, genital warts, chlamydia, syphilis, gonorrhea, AIDS or HIV infection.
Although the college sample was small, it parallels data in other studies.
Last year, the Campaign for Women's Health found that young women are in a state of denial about their chances of contracting a sexually transmitted disease.
An estimated 84 percent said, "It won't happen to me."
"I don't think that they don't care," said the UCF study's principal investigator, Gail B. West. They know the dangers but believe "it isn't going to happen to me," she said.
"Many people in this country think that college students are a privileged group and that we shouldn't worry about their health-risk behaviors," West said. "People tend to think that runaway kids or the less-privileged are the ones engaging in high-risk sex."
Copyright © 1994 - Associated Press. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the AP Permissions Desk.
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