A warning over risks associated with "safe sex" practices among Thai teens was on Monday issued after new figures showed a rise in HIV-positive youngsters.
According to Dr Achara Nithiaphinyasakul, acting director-general of the Department of Health, the department plans to spread awareness of safe sexual relationship practices among the young.
Dr Ekachai Piensriwatchara, the department’s deputy director-general, added that gender respect and conscientiousness are also important to prevent non-consensual sexual activity, while high-efficiency birth control methods, particularly when combined with a condom, can prevent unwanted pregnancies.
The warning came after the Department of Disease Control (DDC) recently released information on Thailand's HIV situation, which stated that 9,230 new HIV-positive cases were detected in 2022.
Of those, most were aged between 15 and 24 years old, and just 22.4% were receiving hospital treatment.
For other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), 14,534 cases of syphilis and gonorrhoea were detected that year. The study also found that just 80% of couples used condoms during intercourse.
As using condoms prevents both unwanted pregnancies and STDs the government encourages people to pick them up for free at any health service unit. Moreover, as part of the National Health Security Service, they can receive free HIV tests using the PaoTang mobile application, according to the DDC.