Women and Men in the Caribbean Community

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Women and Men in the Caribbean CommunityOne area that has been lacking in research is that of mental health. This field is ripe for study,given high suicide rates in some countries, such as Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana, wheresuicide is among the top ten leading causes of death among adolescents, (CAREC MortalityDatabase). For the latest year for which data are available, suicide was the second leadingcause of death among females, and the third among males aged 15-24 years (Government ofTrinidad and Tobago, 1997). At this stage of their life course, adolescents are at risk, not onlyfrom diseases, but also from negative influences of their peers.Box 3.1HEALTH STATUS AND RISKS AMONG ADOLESCENTS AND YOUNG ADULTSIn a regional study of adolescents conducted in several CARICOM countries in 2000 (Halcon,Beurhring and Blum, 2001), young people were asked a number of questions regarding their generalhealth status, lifestyle and emotional health. The sample comprised adolescents aged ten to 18years in the following CARICOM countries and with the respective sample sizes: Antigua (2,158),The Bahamas (1,787), Barbados (1,819), Dominica (2,719), Grenada (1,255), Guyana (1,396),Jamaica (2,635) and Saint Lucia (1,526), as well as the British Virgin Islands (400).Adolescents are at that stage of their lives when they are most likely to engage in exploratorybehaviours that often endanger their own health. Among these risky behaviours are the use ofsubstances and initiation into sexual activity. The results from the Adolescent Health Surveyrevealed that boys are more likely than girls to engage in risky behaviours, such as smoking anddrinking alcohol (table 3.11). Sixty-two (62) per cent of adolescent males and 48 per cent of girlshad used a substance, such as marijuana, speed, cocaine, hallucinogens, heroin, sedatives,steroids, alcohol and cigarettes at some point in their life. Forty (40) per cent of girls and 54 per centof boys reported using alcohol at some time in their lives, while 15 per cent of boys, and 9 per centof girls had smoked cigarettes. Twice the proportion of boys (2 per cent) as girls (1 per cent)reported ever using cocaine. Marijuana was the third most used substance, with 4 per cent of girlsand 9 per cent of boys having ever used it. One caveat in interpreting these data is that because ofsocial desirability bias, they may be under-reported.Another indicator of the extent to which adolescents engage in risky behaviours is the proportion ofyouth who report that they have consumed more than four drinks on a single occasion, as well asriding with someone who was high on alcohol or drugs. Boys were more likely to report both typesof risky behaviours than their female counterparts. Approximately 9 per cent of boys and threeper cent of girls indicated that they had consumed at least four drinks on one occasion, while higherproportions of adolescents reported that they had ridden with someone who was high on alcohol(19 per cent of boys and 14 per cent girls).Sexual Activity among AdolescentsWhile fewer adolescent girls are found to be sexually active than their male counterparts,early sexual activity can have a greater negative impact on girls than boys. When girls maketheir sexual debut, it is usually with a partner who is older and, therefore, more experiencedthan they are (Government of Jamaica, 1997). For example, in the regional study (Box 3.1),more than half the boys interviewed had their first sexual intercourse before reaching age tenyears, and more than three quarters before age 13 years.38
Chapter 3: HEALTHThis puts girls at greater risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections such as HIV andsyphilis. Unwanted pregnancies resulting from such sexual encounters may sometimes beterminated with unsafe abortions, since abortion carried out solely for the prevention of childbirthis illegal in most Caribbean countries (United Nations, 2001a and 2001b). Young girlsand women are, therefore, more vulnerable to health hazards of unsafe sexual activity. In thesurvey, a startling 24 per cent of girls reported that they had their sexual initiation below theage of ten years. Yet, substantially higher proportion of boys, 55 per cent, first had sex at anage below ten years (table 3.11). Most girls in the survey, however, made their sexual debutbetween the ages of 13 and 15 (45 per cent).Table 3.11 Lifestyle behaviours of adolescents in Trinidad and Tobago, 2000(Percentage of respondents reporting phenomenon or behaviour )Health risk behaviour Women MenSubstance Use - Ever Used:Cigarettes 9 15Alcohol 40 54Marijuana 4 9Speed 4 5Hallucinogens 2 3Cocaine 1 2Heroin 1 3Injected Drugs 1 2Sedatives 1 3Steroids 5 8Youths who report having four or more drinks at one time 3 9Youths who report riding after drinking/drugs use 4 10Youths who report ever riding with someone high on alcohol or drugs 14 19Sexual BehaviourEver had sexual intercourse 22 52Age at first intercourse
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