Study shows decline in risk behaviors among CAR youth
BAGUIO CITY - Less and less young people in the Cordillera
region are engaged in vices and other risk behaviors, results from a study by
the University of the Philippines Population Institute (UPPI) show.
The 2013 Young Adult Fertility Study (YAFS), a study which
gathers data on sexual and non-sexual risk behaviors from Filipino youth aged
15-24 years old and which was recently presented in this city, shows that the
proportion of youth in the Cordillera region who are currently smoking is among
the lowest in the country at 14.9%. Compared to the last two YAFS rounds (2002
and 1994), the proportion of youth currently smoking declined both nationally
and regionally. YAFS 2002 showed that 24% of CAR youth had been currently
smoking, but the number has now dropped by almost ten percent.
The study also shows that almost two out of five or 37.4% CAR
youth are drinking, which decreased from the 45.4% of currently drinking CAR
youth surveyed for the YAFS 2002.
The proportion of CAR youth who ever used drugs, which is
2.4%, is below the national level of 3.9%. The trend of the proportion of CAR
youth who ever used drugs follow the national pattern, which decreased from the
previous YAFS results.
Besides surveying vices among youth, the YAFS also looks into
other risk behaviors of youth such as suicide, physical violence, and
harassment. Between 2002 and 2013, the proportion of CAR youth who ever thought
of committing suicide declined, from 23.6 to 8.7. The region’s proportion of
youth who ever thought of committing suicide (8.1%) is below the national level
proportion of 8.7%. Also declined is the percent of youth who attempted suicide
in past decade, which went from 3.9% to 1.8% in the region. This is a bigger
decrease compared to the national decline of 3.4% to 3.2%. CAR, alongside
Region XII, has the smallest proportion (1.6%) of youth who ever attempted to
commit suicide.
The proportion of the region’s youth who physically who hurt
someone is the second highest in the country at 27.6%, but the proportion who
were physically hurt by someone is considerably less at 16.8%. The proportion
of CAR who youths have experienced harassment using technology (4.1%) is also
below the national average of 4.9%.
Tomas Osias, a consultant for the Commission and Population
and a reactor during UPPI’s presentation, commented that the increase prices of
commodities for vices due to the Sin Tax Law or R.A. No. 10351 may have
contributed to the decline of vices among the youth.
Osias added that there may be a change in behavioral pattern
among young people in relation to vices and sexuality, referring to a study by
the Research Development Fund which says that there is a progressive
correlation between vices and sexuality. Risk behavior starts from smoking,
drinking, drugs, and eventually sex. He also inferred from the results that CAR
youth are health-conscious for they do not engage themselves much in vices.
The general objective of the Young Adult Fertility Study 2013
is “to provide updated information on a broad framework of adolescent sexuality
and reproductive health issues, their antecedents, and manifestations that will
be useful in the design of interventions to safeguard the health and welfare of
Filipino adolescents.” (JDP/Pryce Quintos- PIA CAR)
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