Latinos More Likely To Be Wrong About Perceived Infertility

Depending on one’s life plans, this may come as a pleasant or unpleasant surprise to all the young couples having unprotected sex out there: They’re not as infertile as they think.

According to a study by the Guttmacher Institute cleverly titled “Missed Conceptions or Misconceptions: Perceived Infertility Among Unmarried Young Adults In the United States,” almost one-fifth of women and 13% of men between the ages of 18-29 who were polled perceived themselves to be infertile. The authors of the define perceived infertility as, “an individual’s belief that she or he is unable to conceive or impregnate, regardless of whether this belief is medically accurate.”

Turns out, a lot of those people are wrong. Particularly those who identified as Hispanic. According to an excerpt from the study:

Hispanic women and women who had received public assistance in the past year had elevated odds of perceived infertility (odds ratios, 3.4 and 3.0, respectively), as did Hispanic men and men of other racial or ethnic minorities, except blacks (2.5 and 6.1, respectively).

The reality is that only about 6% within the age group tested are considered to be infertile. The authors of the study also point out that men who believed themselves to be infertile were less likely to use contraceptives.

Instead of self-diagnosing, young adults need to be better informed on matters of reproductive health. Or, at the very least, always use condoms or some form of birth control if they aren’t planning on having kids.