Bringing infertility prevention into focus for young people: “I guess I’m naïve and don’t think it can happen to me”

This project surveyed a sample of 280 male and female secondary students from Melbourne between the ages of 14 and 18 concerning their knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about infertility. Many do not feel personally susceptible to future infertility problems, and most are optimistic about medical advances to alleviate fertility problems in the future. Sexuality education structured with infertility prevention in mind needs to ensure that students have a framework for thinking about the topic of prevention. The framework should include information from a range of perspectives. These would include a basic but accurate structural understanding of human reproductive systems; a realistic picture of human reproduction within a context of change across the lifespan and the social context of infertility.