Stigma surrounding STDs may be keeping kids from getting tested

Educating teens on the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) can be difficult, and it's not just parents and teachers who are struggling to explain the importance of safer sex to young people. Recently, the Kansas City Star reported that youth organizations are having trouble getting their peers to listen when it comes to discussing STDs. 

The news source spoke to members of Generation Y, a youth group that spreads awareness of STD prevention and the importance of getting tested. The organization said that they are having trouble getting their peers to take this issue seriously.

The Star spoke to Raul Posas, social marketing manager at Metro Teen AIDS in Washington, D.C, who said that many kids don't want to get tested because of the stigma surrounding HIV and other diseases.

"They don't want to be judged. God forbid, if they do become HIV-positive, they'd rather just not know," said Posas, quoted by the news source.

DoSomething.Org, a website that offers teens ways to make changes in their communities states that 19 million new STD cases are found each year, and half of them are reported by people between the ages of 15-24. The news site encourages young people to take action to protect themselves against these infections.