Young people are a particular group when it comes to contraceptive use. The median age of first sexual intercourse among young people in Europe is around 17–18 years, while the mean age at first birth among women in the European Union has been gradually increasing over the years and stood at 29.4 years in 2019. This means that there is a substantial period of time during which the vast majority of young people are sexually active and do not yet aspire to have children.
Little is known about contraceptive use among young people in Europe. Yet this group is faced with particular challenges when it comes to accessing contraceptives. As students or young professionals, young people often have limited financial means. This is particularly relevant because the vast majority of European countries (72%) do not cover contraceptives in the national health systems for young people.
As only 39% of European countries have a government-supported website with comprehensive information on contraceptives, and only nine countries in the region have sexuality education programmes that can be considered comprehensive, it is likely that there are information gaps concerning contraceptives among young European adults. This may result in misinformation and myths generating distrust in contraceptives. Furthermore, in several European societies, the sexuality of unmarried young people is a taboo subject, which may be a barrier to accessing contraceptives and also result in judgemental attitudes among health care providers.