Youth Period and Its Problems
The youth period, which is the most beautiful, strongest and hopeful period of human life, can also be called a period of crisis or depression. In fact, every change carries its own difficulty, as the transition from one situation to another requires getting rid of old habits and adapting to new conditions, and therefore it can be called a period of crisis or depression. It is a very important period of human life when the person reaches maturity and the transition from childhood to adulthood is achieved. The World Health Organization defines the ages of 10-19 as adolescence, the ages of 15-24 as the youth period, and defines the individual between the ages of 10-24 as “Young Person”.
Adolescence can be examined in three stages:
Early Adolescence Stage
It covers the ages of 11-13 for girls and 14-15 for boys. Sexual and physical growth is very rapid during this stage. The adolescent who has difficulty adapting to change feels confusion and anxiety. He has sudden outbursts to the environment and thinks that the environment does not understand him and that he is not loved. Thinking that he has an imaginary audience, the adolescent tries to find the answer to the question "How do I look?"
Middle Adolescence
15– Covers ages 18 and up. In this phase, growth slows down. Reactive behavior is replaced by thoughtful behavior and attitudes. In this period, when interest in the opposite sex begins, roles related to sexual identity are also acquired. His desire to be free and the importance he gives to his friends increases. They begin to model and imitate adults, and negative substances such as cigarettes and alcohol may be chosen. During this period, answers to the question "who am I" are sought.
Late Adolescence
It covers the ages of 18-24. In this phase, growth and development are completed and anxiety disappears. Sexual identity has been acquired and the question of who I am has been answered. The young person, who has reached the social maturity to make decisions about the future, has gained the skills to choose a spouse and a job. He communicates easily with his environment and tries to answer the question "what will I become?"
Why Are Young People Important?
❖ Young people are the locomotives that ensure the economic and social development of societies.
❖ Behaviors formed during youth affect both the entire life of the individual and the entire society.
❖ The most that a country can do for its future One of the important investments is to adequately take into account the health and development needs of young people and allocate resources.
What Problems Await Young People?
30% of the world's population(1 ½ Billion) 85%of young people live in developing countries. In Turkey, 50% of the population is aged 25 and under.
A world of poverty, inadequate education, unemployment and sexuality-related problems awaits young people.
Poverty
Inadequate education
115 million children do not attend school at all, 60%% of them are girls.
According to 2000 data, approximately 82 million young women and 51 million young men are illiterate.
Unemployment
Child laborers can be used in illegal and dangerous jobs, and 50% of the unemployed in the world and 80% in developing countries are young people. 73 million adolescents between the ages of 10 and 14 are working in the world.
Sexuality-Related Problems
The mothers of approximately 15 million children born in a year in the world are of adolescence age, and each 4 million (25%) of the unhealthy abortions that occur every year belong to the adolescence age group. Again, one in every 20 adolescents has a Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) other than HIV/AIDS. Half of the new HIV/AIDS cases are in the 10-24 age group.
There are many problems waiting for young people, and young people may have to cope with these life-related problems as well as the problems specific to their period. .
Main Problems of Youth Period
As young people grow and develop physically and spiritually, some risks and new situations may arise. Challenge the world with what they have done and what they will do, saying "I am here too" It is not at all difficult to take risks for a teenager trying to read. Sometimes things that start with simple curiosity can eventually turn into a show of strength. Young people who think that they are in a cocoon and that the cocoon will protect them can easily take risks and encounter problems. Some of the problems seen in this period and developing due to taking risks are as follows;
❖ Accidents and Injuries
❖ Wrong Nutrition Habit
❖ Problems Resulting from Sedentary Life
❖ Personal Hygiene Problems
❖ Sexual Behavior and Reproductive Health Problems
❖ Cigarette, Alcohol and Substance Addiction
❖ Identity Problem
❖ Psychological Problems
Accidents and Injuries
It is seen that young people may encounter more accidents and injuries than adults. It is possible to evaluate accidents and injuries in two separate groups. These; unintentional injuries and intentional injuries-violence.
❖ Unintentional Injuries:
Not using seat belts, accidents caused by drunk driving, sports injuries, drowning, fever Gun injuries and poisoning are frequently seen in young people.
❖ Intentional Injuries-Violence:
Children and young people are exposed to gang-mafia-traditions, depending on age being a mitigating factor. It can be used in murders.
Young people are among the target groups of terrorist organizations. The sense of belonging, the desire to be a hero and challenging behavior are sufficient reasons for terrorist organizations to choose young people.
Violence in relationships can also be seen among young people. Especially girls are forced into a relationship they don't want and cannot say no, for fear of losing their friend. In this type of relationship, the child becomes vulnerable to sexual abuse.
Wrong Nutrition Habit
Adequate nutrition is needed to complete growth and development, sustain life, prevent diseases and protect health. Balanced nutrition is important.
In today's society, children and young people are the target audience of many consumption-based sectors. Both the food and beauty industries use all their marketing opportunities for these groups. On the one hand, it is a popular fast food with plenty of calories. While food chains cause imbalance in eating habits, on the other hand, the understanding of mass media that reduces beauty to centimeters constantly puts young people under pressure.
When the curiosity of the adolescent to deal with his own body is added to this, diets that can almost be considered as starvation are in the adolescent culture. It can be understood more easily when it becomes a part of the child.
The period in which eating disorders are most common is adolescence. There may be periods when the adolescent misjudges his body image, perceives himself as fat, refuses to eat, and therefore loses excessive weight. Methods such as diet programs that lead to starvation, making oneself vomit, doing excessive sports, and using diuretics and laxatives can be observed frequently.
As the young person's intense preoccupation with his body makes it difficult for him to focus on other areas, it can also cause disruptions in his relationships and educational life.
In order to be beautiful or handsome, it is necessary to be healthy, and to be healthy, it is necessary to have an adequate and balanced diet.
In addition, if being beautiful is reduced to physical characteristics only, human values, personality traits and behaviors may be perceived as unimportant. However, being a "beautiful person" is only possible with a strong personality. The same attention given to the body should also be given to personal development.
Problems Resulting from Sedentary Life
Sedentary life can cause physical and psychological problems for children and young people. They are literally drawn into life in front of the screen. Meeting with friends in virtual environments and playing computer games are made attractive. An unhealthy diet and a sedentary lifestyle can cause serious health problems for young people. Physical activity should be encouraged and transformed into a lifestyle. Physical activities can serve multiple purposes. Heart health, endurance of muscles and bones, weight loss, staying in shape and coping with stress are among the benefits of physical exercise.
Personal Hygiene:
What young people can neglect, Issues that families frequently complain about One of them is the hygiene problem. Hygiene, which is under the control of the parents during childhood, passes under the control of the young person during adolescence. Like every person, young people are responsible for their own cleanliness.
The most important tool to protect everyone's health, especially one's own health, is cleanliness. It should not be forgotten that it is important not only to clean the body, but also to leave everything used and every environment clean.
With personal cleansing of the body, diarrheal diseases, colds, microbial diseases of the skin and some allergic diseases can be prevented.
Breast cleaning and care, cleaning of external genital organs, menstrual period cleaning, hair cleaning and care, face, eye and ear cleaning, oral and dental health, hand, foot and nail cleaning, and healthy dressing are very important.
Especially young people living in a dormitory environment need to be more meticulous about maintaining their care and keeping themselves and the areas they use clean. Tattooing and piercing practices, which have become common among young people, can be dangerous when not done under hygienic conditions and in areas of the body that may pose a risk (such as the mouth, tongue, around the eyes and belly).
Sexual Behavior and Reproductive Health Problems
Research conducted with young people in our country reveals that they have incomplete and incorrect information about sexual and reproductive health. From the answers given by the young people participating in the research, it was seen that they did not know what sexually transmitted infections are, how they are transmitted, what their symptoms may be and, most importantly, how they should be protected.
Due to the fact that sexuality-related issues are taboo, this issue has been neglected for many years. Young people are often left alone when it comes to getting information. The occurrence of early puberty and the shift in the age of marriage to later years may cause early sexual activity. Along with risk-taking behavior in young people, unprotected or unconscious sexual life during this period can lead to serious problems. Unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections threaten young people.
In addition, problems related to sexual abuse and the frequency of abuse are not fully reported because not all cases are reported.
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