Kevin Fenton of Centers for Disease Controlß and Prevention challenged campus students to get tested for sexually transmitted diseases during a press conference April 7 to mark the kick-off of April as National STD Awareness Month.
Fenton is the director of the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention at the CDC.
MTV has partnered with CDC to reach young people through the award-winning campaign, “GYT: Get Yourself Tested.”
The campaign encourages Americans under the age of 25 to talk with their health care providers and partners about getting tested for STD’s.
Fenton said that according to statistics, women are more susceptible to infection than men.
In 2008, the highest number of infected women fell between the ages of 15-19, followed by 20-24.
That year alone, 7.5 million women between the ages of 14-24 had HPV.
“Testing is one of the most successful ways to prevent infection,” Fenton said.
According to the CDC, people under the age of 25 represent half of the estimated 19 million people with STD’s in the United States each year.
Other estimates suggest, one in every two sexually active young people will contract an STD by the age of 25—and most won’t even know it.
A lack of information, misconceptions and social stigma keep many people from getting tested.
Others mistakenly think they have been tested as part of routine health care.
Since many STD’s have no symptoms, most of those who are infected are not aware they have contracted an STD.
When left untreated, STDs can lead to an increased risk of HIV infection, infertility and cancer.
Jason Rzepka, MTV’s Pro-Social vice president, said GYT is rolling out a series of new initiatives on-air, online, on college campuses and in more than 4,000 health centers and clinics across the nation to encourage students to go for testing.
GYT has partnered with celebrities such as Paris Hilton to draw attention to this cause.
“Top priority is to connect with young people wherever they are,” Rzepka said.
HIV testing at SMU has been scheduled for April 22.
SMU civil engineering major Matt Bridgeman said most students already know that they should protect themselves if they engage in sexual intercourse.
Daniel Stewart, a political science major said the most effective way to avoid STD’s is to practice abstinence, but if you choose to have sex, then you should use protection.
Stewart added that while abstinence is encouraged in Texas high schools, the reality that students make the decision to have sex anyway suggests that they should also be taught how to protect themselves.
The Web site www.itsyoursexlife.com features a campus challenge to win an all-expenses–paid trip with backstage passes to see Cobra Starship, Travis McCoy and many more in summer 2010.
MTV is also partnering with Planned Parenthood Federation of America and its network of health centers, the Kaiser Family Foundation and several other organizations, to alert the student population to the need for testing and protection against STD’s.
