*According to a new study, “more than 3.3 million American women ages 18 to 44 were raped the first time they had sexual intercourse, and “all demographic groups reported substantial roles of forced sexual initiation,” per ktla.com. The medical journal JAMA Internal Medicine published the study on Monday.
“We feel it is accurate to describe these events as rape,” said Dr. Laura Hawks, a primary care physician and research fellow at Harvard Medical School who co-authored the study.
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My first publication as a fellow was a tough project to complete. 1 in 16 women report rape as their first sexual encounter and this traumatic exposure is associated with a wide range of health consequences. https://t.co/MICnTRLfZu
— Laura Hawks (@_LauraHawks) September 16, 2019
Findings In this cross-sectional, nationally representative study of 13 310 American women aged 18 to 44 years, 6.5% reported forced sexual initiation (mean age at forced sexual initiation, 15.6 years). Forced sexual initiation appeared to be associated with multiple adverse reproductive, gynecologic, and general health outcomes after adjustment for demographic confounders.
A few highlights from the study:
The study says that 6.5% of women surveyed had an unwanted first sexual intercourse that was forced or coerced and it “appears to be common.”
The average age of women who experienced forced sexual initiation was 15.6. The average age of the partner or assailant at the time was 6 years older.
More than 30% said they had an unwanted first pregnancy.
Survivors faced long-term consequences, such as increased rates of HIV, sexually transmitted diseases, pelvic inflammatory disease, endometriosis and menstrual problems.
“A practicing physician is likely to see several patients each week who have experienced this form of trauma,” the authors wrote in the study.
Read the full study here.
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