Early sex exposes girls to HIV

So far, the issue of underage marriage or early exposure of girls to sex has continued to generate debates in Nigerian landscapes.
But experts are warning that if Nigeria (and other countries for that matter!) must reduce HIV transmission and eventually achieve zero HIV infection and zero HIV death, underage girls must not continue to be exposed to sexual activities, whether in marriage or out of wedlock.
Early sexual exposure may increase women’s risk of HIV infection in four different ways.

• Women who start sex early have a longer duration of sexual activity and are therefore potentially exposed to HIV infection risk for a longer period of time.
• They are more prone to engage in risky sexual behaviours such as high numbers of sexual partners (including premarital, casual partners or sex partners through transactional sex), as well as lower rates of contraceptive and condom use.
• They are more susceptible to HIV infection due to the physiological and immunological immaturity of their reproductive tract.
• They are more likely to have partners who are at higher HIV risk, because these men are often older, or because they are more likely to have multiple sexual partnerships or engage in heavy drinking.

Source: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.