Sexuality is the need to receive and express affection and contact, resulting in pleasurable sensations. Therefore, it is not just sex; it is much more complex. It is shaped by the relationships that the individual establishes with himself and with others from birth, changing shape according to the stages of life and remaining throughout existence.

The need for touch, hugs and affectionate gestures, which in childhood are met by parents, is transferred in adolescence to the social group, from where, in most cases, someone emerges who awakens feelings never experienced before. It is the time of discovery of sexual dreams, desires and excitement, which lead to masturbation and sexual initiation. This way of expressing sexuality will join the experiences acquired previously, forming adult sexuality.

The exercise of sexuality can be a source of immense pleasure and expression of deep feelings typical of a romantic encounter, but it can also generate serious disorders in the individual’s personal and social life. During adolescence, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and pregnancy are proven facts that reinforce the hypothesis that misinformation, repression, silence, fear and other negative feelings seem to limit young people’s choices regarding sexual and reproductive life, creating situations that make it difficult for parents and professionals who deal with them to act.

Women’s achievements throughout the 20th century have made them increasingly independent, acquiring the right to study, work and freely exercise their sexuality (due to the use of contraceptive methods). However, they are currently also becoming the main victims of STDs/AIDS.

In recent years, there has been a lot of talk about sexual health, with the topic having gained a lot of space in the media. Thus, interest has arisen in evaluating how the print media has been handling articles related to the subject and whether it is fulfilling its role in disseminating scientific information. In developing this study, we sought to unite two lines of research that complement each other in terms of information on sexual health. To this end, we combined the knowledge of a gynecologist with extensive experience in treating adolescents with that of a journalist working in the health field.

“The greatest marriage between science and journalism occurs when the former, which seeks to understand reality through an understanding of the nature of things, finds in the latter a faithful translator, that is, journalism that uses scientific information to interpret knowledge of reality” (1).

Oliveira(1) discusses the idea that journalists should try to translate information and research produced by the scientific community into clear and didactic language. By doing so, the media becomes capable of helping health specialists through the power of communication in the tasks of guidance, prevention, planning and treatment.

“Communication implies the existence of a transmitter, who elaborates the message from signals taken from a channel, through which it is transferred through space and time, and a receiver, who receives the message and deciphers it, with the help of the signals stored in his own repertoire”(2).

In this work, the transmitter-channel-receiver chain occurs through the doctor-journalist-reader relationship, proposing a reflection on the main paths to be followed to guide the population, emphasizing the importance of trust in the doctor-patient relationship and the support of the press, which can play the role of a secret Santa in providing information on these issues.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We used as study material the Science and Health sections of the newspaper O Dia and Science and Life sections of the newspaper O Globo for the months of February and March 2004, which were chosen due to the festive dates that surround them. Vacations, summer and Carnival are times when social interaction and sexual contact seem to be more frequent, since people are more uninhibited, spontaneous and sensual, in addition to an increase in the consumption of alcoholic beverages and drugs. February, in addition to being the month of school vacations, is the month of the biggest popular festival, Carnival, when young people in particular celebrate the five days of festivities, often without considering the consequences. March was chosen because it is after February and, therefore, still has repercussions from the end of vacations and Carnival.

The inclusion criterion for the study was that it be an article about sexual health, and all articles that addressed the subject were selected. This is a descriptive observational prevalence study in which, through quantitative assessment, information on sexually transmitted diseases, disease and pregnancy prevention, sexual behavior, public assistance services and women’s health were recorded.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

STDs AS NEWS

“The minimum condition for an individual to protect themselves against STDs/AIDS is to become an active subject of their own health, adopting protective and supportive behaviors”(3).

In the analysis of the editorials, Ciência e Saúde presented 14 articles, and Ciência e Vida , 11 articles on sexual health. Among them, the newspaper O Diadevoted only 2.6% of its total articles to HPV and the same percentage to hepatitis B. The newspaper O Globo did not publish any articles on the human papillomavirus (HPV) and 4.2% of the total was devoted to hepatitis B.

Regarding STDs in general, without dealing with a specific disease, the newspaper O Dia devoted 5.3% of its published articles to them, while O Globo devoted only 4.2%. In the case of AIDS, it is easy to see how receptive media editors are to publishing articles on the subject. The newspaper O Dia devoted approximately 23.7% of its articles to it, while O Globo devoted 35%.

We can see that journalists are fulfilling their role of informing the population about AIDS, seeking solutions to the problem, since today there are approximately 42 million people with this disease in the world, half of whom are women(4).

However, other STDs that also affect the population on a large scale and that require early diagnosis and appropriate treatment are included in small percentages in the coverage of diseases by the newspapers analyzed.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), approximately 12 million cases of STDs occur in Brazil each year. However, the number of reported cases is approximately 200,000 cases/year, due to the large number of people who seek treatment in pharmacies or private practices(5).

This fact is alarming, since many STDs can become a threat to an individual’s life, leading to sexual dysfunction, sterility, miscarriage, premature birth, physical or mental disability, some types of cancer and even death. Infected individuals may not be aware that they have them or may not seek medical care due to a lack of adequate information about them. The main STDs are AIDS, HPV, syphilis, genital herpes, chancroid, lymphogranuloma venereum, donovanosis, chlamydia infection, granuloma inguinale and hepatitis B(6).

The presence of an STD increases the risk of contracting and transmitting other diseases, including AIDS, due to wounds and inflammation in the mucous membranes and skin of the genitals. It is believed that only 30% of patients seek health services, although they may have serious health problems and have an increased chance of contracting the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) by up to 18 times(5). Other factors implicated in the spread of these diseases are “excessive partner switching, constant psychological conflicts typical of adolescence and sexual abuse” (7).

The press ends up contributing to the lack of information among the population about STDs, since they are little publicized or even ignored. Through reading the two newspapers surveyed, we noticed that, among the STDs, only AIDS, HPV infection and hepatitis B were mentioned.

In the case of HPV, we know that it is the most common sexually transmitted virus today. Approximately 20% of sexually active adults are infected with one or more of its 120 types (8). The Ministry of Health estimates that approximately 3% of women with HPV may develop cervical cancer if they do not take preventive measures, and warns that, in Brazil, one in four women is infected with this virus. Since sexual initiation usually occurs in youth, the numbers are even higher: almost half of sexually active young women are carriers of HPV, and most of them are even unaware of the existence of the virus(9).

Generally, the immune system of the individual who comes into contact with HPV is able to eliminate it or keep it in a latent (inactive) state. However, manifestations can appear or reappear at any time in life(8). Due to this fact, it is important to seek medical assistance periodically, even without the manifestation of any of the symptoms of the disease.

Another disease mentioned in the newspapers was hepatitis B, despite appearing in only 4.2% of the articles in the newspaper O Globo and in 2.6% of O Dia during the period studied. According to the WHO, there are, in the world, “more than 350 million chronic carriers of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) and more than 1 million deaths occur each year caused by the progression of the disease to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma” (WHO, 2000).

“The transmission routes of HBV include sexual contact, whether heterosexual or homosexual, characterizing it as a sexually transmitted disease, in addition to possible contagion through contact with infected blood or blood products” (11).

We then realized that the newspapers surveyed are concerned with providing information on the most serious STDs. Both HPV and HBV received space in the newspapers, which confirms the press’s concern with sexual health. However, no interest was shown in publicizing the other existing STDs, since they were not mentioned at any time. However, when it comes to AIDS, the media shows great attention in its dissemination.

AIDS: THE MOST TALKED ABOUT STD

Just as men have made and continue to make their own history, AIDS only began to exist as the disease we know and to occupy the pages of newspapers around the world since the 1980s. In fact, many individuals died as a result of the manifestation of HIV even before that decade, but its existence was still unknown. We can see, then, that AIDS has a historical character, since it is interpreted in different ways, depending on the period in which it is being analyzed.

According to Izolan (12), “AIDS has been treated by the media differently throughout its existence”. In this sense, a retrospective analysis will point to at least three distinct phases. The first was characterized by the need to inform about the disease that was discovered and the death sentence that it implied. In the second, the disease began to be seen as a problem for everyone, and not just for risk groups. The third phase is the one we are currently experiencing, in which AIDS is shown as a matter of responsibility of each individual, distancing the subject from its dark connotations.

Since its emergence, the participation of the press has been quite remarkable, both in disseminating advances in knowledge about the disease and in forming public opinion.

In the reading carried out, little was said about STDs, but AIDS deservedly gained prominence, because, in addition to being considered a reference when talking about STDs, it is also the one that causes the most deaths.

Like HPV, HIV can also have a long latency period, with no symptoms appearing in the first few years of infection. For this reason, HIV testing is recommended for all sexually active individuals, regardless of whether or not they have a steady partner. According to former Health Minister José Serra, “1996 represents a milestone in the history of AIDS. It was the year in which the effectiveness of antiretroviral therapy was proven” (13). Since then, Brazilians with HIV have had free access to therapy. In 2002, approximately 100,000 people were using these medications in Brazil.

Individuals who are unaware of the existence of the virus in their bodies, or who are unaware of it if they are, are not included in this universe of living well with the disease. Without adequate treatment, AIDS can lead to death approximately ten years after infection. It is worth mentioning that there are other ways of contracting the virus besides sex, since it can be transmitted through the use of injectable drugs and needles with contaminated blood, but these will not be discussed in this study (14).

According to the National Coordination of STDs/AIDS, in 2002 there were 237,588 cases of AIDS, that is, people who developed the disease and sought health services. Each year, fewer cases are diagnosed in Brazil: in 1998, 26 thousand new cases were registered; in 1999, 22 thousand; in 2000, 20 thousand; and in 2001, 14 thousand. This success in the fight against AIDS is due to a pioneering program that has become a reference in 120 countries(15).

“Brazil is one of the largest and most populous countries on the planet and needs to fight AIDS on different but complementary fronts: mass communication, educational projects, and communication in the realm of social and community interactions(16). With 163.7 million inhabitants, Brazil is the fifth most populous country in the world. The top four are China, with 1.2 billion; India, with 966.2 million; the United States, with 271.8 million; and Indonesia, with 203.4 million”(16). The Brazilian STD/AIDS control program has been developing policies, strategies, and actions to raise awareness among the population about confronting HIV/AIDS. This awareness-raising work includes all media outlets, including the newspapers researched for the preparation of this work.

However, WHO data show that, even with the existence of treatment, the global situation of combating AIDS is still a major challenge to public health. According to the World Health Report 2004 , released on May 11, 2004, under the title Changing History , there are currently more than 40 million people infected with HIV worldwide, of which only 400,000 have access to the anti-AIDS cocktail(17).

In the report, the WHO calls on governments and private companies to make efforts to ensure that treatment for the disease is available to at least 3 million patients by the end of 2005. According to the WHO, this will only be possible if the entire international community joins forces to combat the disease. If this does not happen, AIDS will destroy any hope of a better life for tens of millions of people who live in miserable conditions.

Current data confirm that combating AIDS means avoiding contact with it. To this end, governments that are committed to this fight are investing in prevention campaigns for sexually active people and treatment for those who have already contracted the virus.

It is worth noting that the media are also involved in this fight against the disease, contributing to the veracity of news about it. However, in order to fulfill the task of educating and guiding the population about health, journalists should also broaden their coverage of other sexual health issues, such as the prevention and treatment of several other STDs, which, although not as serious as AIDS, can cause irreversible consequences. This would make it easier to establish a dialogue with different social groups, aiming at changing behavior and attitudes, safer sexual practices and improving quality of life.

PREVENTION AS SEEN BY THE MEDIA

The media is an excellent way to encourage the purchase of consumer goods, but it does not so easily determine the adoption of desirable behaviors, such as the use of condoms. However, it serves to massively address the issue and to transmit technically correct information about prevention methods and attitudes(12).

Building confidence, an identity with one’s own body and the need to know more about sexuality have led the medical profession and the media to treat the topic as something normal for human beings, breaking the taboos often found on the subject. This change in relation to information about safe sex encourages people to seek professional help.

As observed in the newspapers surveyed, 39% of all articles on sexual health in the newspaper O Globo and 26.3% of those in the newspaper O Dia focused on prevention as the main way to stop the spread of STDs/AIDS. This data shows that the press is committed to the campaign to prevent STDs/AIDS, highlighting the use of condoms in all articles in which the subject is prevention.

We highlight the article read in the newspaper O Dia, STDs Are Not a Game, on February 8, 2004, in which it is easy to notice the concern for young people in the period leading up to Carnival. The space provided by the newspaper was used to publicize the campaigns launched by the Ministry of Health for 2004 and warned that an unwanted pregnancy may be the least of all possible consequences for those who do not use condoms.

Journalists, as opinion makers, must be aware that they can, through their publications, influence the sexual behavior of their readers. The percentage of the sexually active Brazilian population that does not use condoms is still very high, but the adoption of this method has been increasing, especially among teenagers.

A study conducted at the Cardoso Fontes Hospital in Rio de Janeiro in 2002, with teenagers of both sexes, showed that the use of condoms has been increasing among this group (66%), perhaps due to advertising campaigns against STDs/AIDS. However, it is clear that the idea that condoms interfere with sexual activity persists among boys. A study conducted at the same time among male undergraduate medical students aged 21 to 26 revealed that frequent condom use was limited to 30%. When asked about the reasons for not using condoms routinely, the students reported that they were not accustomed to using them when they first started their sexual lives and that, if they had developed the habit, they would use them today without any problems. Perhaps this is the explanation for the greater use among adolescents(18).

For today’s well-informed young people, it is easier and more natural to incorporate prevention as part of their pleasure than it was for other generations. Without having lived through the initial periods of the spread of AIDS, marked by its association with homosexuality and the lack of information about the disease, young people can more easily view the problem as something that can happen to anyone. In the 21st century, young people have several ways of educating themselves about safe sex, including the media, which give a special approach to the subject. “The media is and should be an important vehicle for increasing the population’s awareness of the importance and concrete possibilities of promoting improved health”(19).

The media is one of the best ways to stimulate public interaction with the information conveyed, as it exposes individual experiences and desires, in addition to contextualizing and favoring the creation of identification mechanisms. In this context, the dissemination of information through mass media has been recognized as an important auxiliary factor for public and private agencies, since, by keeping the issues on the agenda, it can reach part of the population.

We noticed that, when talking about prevention, the topic of AIDS is mentioned again. Table 3 highlights the percentage of articles that address issues such as prevention, sexual behavior and treatment.

Table 3 shows that, among the 14 articles on sexual health extracted from the newspaper O Dia , nine refer only to AIDS. Analyzing only this universe of nine articles, we notice that 47% talk about prevention, 35.3% about sexual behavior, and 17.7% are dedicated to the treatment of AIDS. Using the same method, we notice that, of the 11 articles in the newspaper O Globo , eight talk about AIDS. Of these, 53.9% talk about prevention and 46.1% about the treatment of the disease. Articles about the sexual behavior of the population are non-existent in our research of the newspaper O Globo .

This space given by newspapers to clarify and demystify AIDS is extremely important, since constant dissemination makes the subject more popular and influences people’s sexual behavior. When publishing articles focusing on prevention, the media must be aware that they are primarily speaking to alert young people, a generation that was born and socialized learning that condom use is essential for safe sexual practices.

According to data from the Ministry of Health, Brazil is currently among the countries that have stood out most for achieving positive results in the adoption of condoms. Consumption increased 46.6% in six years, going from 53 million condoms sold in 1992 to 300 million in 1998(20).

Certainly, a good portion of this change in Brazilian sexual behavior can be attributed to prevention campaigns, which have been changing their positioning in relation to messages since their inception. The wide dissemination of clear and objective information about STDs/AIDS, with an emphasis on protective strategies and practices, helps people adopt attitudes that tend to reduce the risks of exposure to HIV and the microorganisms that cause other STDs.

The campaigns aim to convince people that it is possible to live without AIDS, and that prevention through basic care is enough. These mass campaigns serve to periodically reinforce the numerous social mobilization projects that operate throughout the country.

Young people are the prime target audience for education and information campaigns. Since they are in a learning stage, they are more receptive to information and proposals for behavioral changes. Another important point is that, since they are in the sexual initiation and sexuality formation stage, they constitute a strategic target audience for prevention campaigns.

Currently, one of the great challenges for public health is to facilitate access to more information and assistance for the young population, as well as to help them obtain medical and psychological guidance, as well as male and female condoms.

THE ROLE OF INFORMATION SPECIALISTS

“The quality of journalistic coverage on a given topic is not the sole responsibility of media professionals. Sources play a fundamental role in this process. They must be aware that information is a public good that needs to be shared with society” (19).

According to the WHO, “health is a right that goes far beyond simply the absence of disease. It is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being” (WHO, 2000). Therefore, all scientific concepts and guidance for studies and care for young people must have health promotion as their central paradigm. It is therefore up to doctors and communicators to make the best use of the space provided by the media, treating it seriously and engagingly, without turning it into mere professional/personal marketing .

The Ministry of Health has been adopting several measures aimed at preventing, promoting and restoring the health of the population, especially in relation to young people and women. The publication of articles in the printed newspapers analyzed also contributes to informing and raising awareness among the population about the risks that unprotected sexual behavior can cause to health.

The high vulnerability of young people to the STD/AIDS epidemic and the high rates of unwanted early pregnancy still represent a major challenge for public health services in serving the population. This often occurs due to the difficulty in accessing individualized information about sex, health and behavior, due to the shortcomings of the Unified Health System (SUS).

Public health services are part of the SUS and rely on the help of professionals trained in dealing with STD/AIDS. They may or may not have laboratory facilities, promoting clinical care and appropriate treatment, prevention, provision of condoms and counseling for HIV testing. Magluta(21) highlights in his study that, despite efforts and advances towards decentralization of management, with population participation and expansion of access to health services, important health management problems still persist. He also emphasizes that the result in terms of improving the quality of care and population satisfaction with the system still constitutes a challenge.

Regarding the services offered for the treatment of STDs/AIDS, the newspapers surveyed did not effectively fulfill their role of informing the population. Only 4.2% of the articles in the newspaper O Globo mentioned a health service that offers treatment for AIDS, while 5.3% of those in O Dia focused on the subject. It is worth noting that, among the small portion of articles that publicized services, the one entitled Bem-Estar em Pleno Palco

stood out., published in the newspaper O Dia on February 26, 2004, which used doctors and psychologists to discuss the relationship between alcohol consumption, prevention and AIDS. The article promotes Teatro Vida, a Rio de Janeiro-based project that provides information on prevention issues on stage.

The lack of information about how and where to obtain free treatment can be considered a barrier even for people who are aware of the seriousness of the problem and wish to seek treatment. Often, when a low-income patient manages to access medication, the disease has already progressed to more serious conditions, which can make treatment difficult or impossible. It is worth mentioning that the lack of communication on this subject is not solely the responsibility of newspaper editors, since a large part of the Brazilian population has little education and does not fit the profile of the reading public.

Another fact that makes the lack of guidance about services an even more serious problem is the high frequency of STDs, associated with high rates of self-medication. Waiting in long lines, the possibility of scheduling an appointment for another day, the short time for the appointment and the frequent unavailability of medications lead to people seeking care directly from the pharmacy assistant. Furthermore, the relationship between the doctor and the patient is a key factor for successful treatment, since the patient’s difficulty in revealing their doubts and concerns about sex to the health professional can harm the effectiveness of this relationship.

“Doctors are aware that the main cause of complaints from users of health services is related to problems in communication between patients and doctors. There are two fundamental aspects for this dialogue to occur. The first is related to the reason why people decide whether or not to see a doctor when they are sick. People have different notions of health and illness that include social, behavioral and emotional elements. The second aspect is related to what happens during the consultation. At this time, previous experiences, expectations, cultural assumptions, social, religious, racial and gender prejudices are involved”(22).

The formation of a bond of trust facilitates the acquisition of information about the patient and their sexual contacts and the latter’s compliance with medical guidelines and prescriptions. This counseling process includes health education components that arise from the relationship between the interlocutors. Since this relationship is not standardized, since it varies from person to person, it can provide support for defining prevention messages that are compatible with the client, in addition to identifying and working on personal difficulties in adopting safer practices in relation to HIV infection and other STDs.

Regarding issues related to an individual’s sexuality, health and communication professionals should treat them with the utmost seriousness, since, through reliable information, they can prevent and even save many lives. It is worth noting that the articles published in the media should only be used as a first contact with the disease. In order to know whether or not an individual is infected and ensure good health, it is necessary to seek medical assistance.

“Every care must be taken when discussing medications and health care. The Code of Medical Ethics prohibits the dissemination of medical prescriptions in the media. Almost the majority of medications, and even contraceptives – the exception is female and male condoms – require a doctor’s evaluation before they can be used. And all of them have restrictions and contraindications, so it is necessary to talk about consequences and emphasize the need for medical monitoring” (19).

Given the precarious public health care in terms of the little time available to provide more detailed information about the disease, the press can be an accessible means of obtaining information about some of the population’s doubts, mainly regarding behavior and prevention.

In the case of newspapers, well-written health articles can provoke enthusiastic reactions from readers who find answers to their personal problems in the general text. Reactions like this, however, are only possible when the press schedules topics and develops a language specific to health coverage.

Quality news coverage must go beyond mere reporting. This means including assessments and proposals for the problem being raised in the texts. When news reports lack this type of text, it may be a sign that there is also a lack of professionals specialized in the topic to conduct the coverage. “Without background information, journalists more easily become exclusive hostages to the perspective that the source of the information has on the subject” (19).

We know that, today, with media coverage, people have access to countless information about health and medicine, encouraging greater care and awareness about the conduct to be followed.

The mass media, due to their scope and penetration among the public, can act positively as auxiliaries to health education, strengthening preventive actions in the field of public health. Therefore, when health issues are brought up as a result of a discussion or personal experiences, this knowledge helps to shape the way individuals react to the situations they have to face throughout their lives.

CONCERN FOR WOMEN’S HEALTH

“Even with spaces already conquered in previous centuries, most women have difficulty building their own destiny. Aristotle (384-322 BC) considered women to be a defect of nature, a mutilated male; Plato, in The Republic (v.5), stated that women were the reincarnation of cowardly and unjust men, being vulnerable and unreliable; Rousseau (1712-1778) directed women towards the mission of marriage and motherhood; and Kant (1724-1804) considered women to be intellectually poor, morally weak and with few charms” (23).

In the mid-20th century, a series of changes occurred that influenced the set of economic, social, political and scientific factors and that also affected women’s social condition. Women were conquering more and more space and fighting for the same rights as men, which includes sexual freedom.

Before the 1960s, fear of pregnancy was the main obstacle to female sexual liberation. Virginity was highly valued by conservative families, and many young women did not have sexual contact before marriage because they feared their family would discover a possible unwanted pregnancy. “The pill, followed by other contraceptive methods, managed to almost definitively separate the meaning of sexuality from motherhood and, with it, from femininity itself”(24).

Currently, it is estimated that there are around 100 million users of the contraceptive pill worldwide(25), causing a major impact on people’s lives, since it is part of the daily lives of a large percentage of women of childbearing age. It is worth noting that “more than 50% of them live in developing countries, especially in Latin America. In fact, oral hormonal contraception has allowed women to freely exercise their sexuality, without the penalty of an unplanned pregnancy”(24).

The article “Young People Value Virginity ”, published on March 25, 2004 in the newspaper O Dia , is about a survey entitled “Young People and Sex” , which aimed to identify the habits and attitudes of Brazilians between the ages of 18 and 25. The survey interviewed 2,000 young people from different social classes throughout the country, revealing that 88% of those between the ages of 18 and 25 have already had sexual intercourse and that the contraceptive pill is the second most used contraceptive method by them, behind only the condom , which is used by 49%. The gynecologists interviewed stated that the use of condoms combined with the contraceptive pill is a guarantee of safe sex and that, in addition, the pill can bring other benefits to women’s health.

However, we have observed that many women in the 21st century are experiencing serious health problems due to not using condoms. Ignoring the danger they face or being embarrassed to demand protection, married women or women with a steady partner are today among the greatest victims of AIDS(26).

From the beginning of the 1980s until September 2003, the Ministry of Health reported 277,154 cases of AIDS in Brazil. Of this total, 197,340 were in men and 79,814 in women. However, in 2003, 5,762 new cases of the epidemic were reported, 2,069 of which were in women, showing that the epidemic is currently growing more among women(27).

Another equally worrying fact is the growing incidence of AIDS among female adolescents between the ages of 13 and 19. This fact is explained by the early onset of sexual activity, usually among men with more sexual experience and, therefore, more exposed to the risk of contamination by STDs/AIDS(27).

In an article published on March 10, 2004 in the newspaper O Dia , entitled AIDS More Serious among Women , the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, states that girls and women account for more than half of the 5 million recent cases of people infected with HIV.

Due to the seriousness of the problem, it is important to raise awareness among the population, especially young women, about the consequences that can arise from unprotected sexual intercourse. Male adolescents should be educated and encouraged to share the responsibility for reproductive health.

Brazil is among the countries that suffer most from the lack of care in public health services, which hinders the monitoring of women’s health. According to data from the Department of Information and Information Technology of the Unified Health System (DATASUS), in recent years there has been a significant increase in the number of prenatal consultations, rising from 1.8 million in 1994 to over 10 million in 2000. However, only ten states in the Federation have reached 50% of pregnant women who make at least six visits to the doctor during pregnancy, the number recommended by the WHO(19).

According to Monteiro(18), “it is important that, in the relationship with the health professional, young women can, through dialogues that lead to reflection, perceive themselves as individuals, responsible for their bodies and their will”. Thus, these young women could protect themselves by preventing or treating diseases.

We know that prevention programs are not reaching the entire population. Although health experts and communicators are making efforts to control these numbers, they alone are not enough, because “every awareness process, through education about safe sexual relationships, should begin within the family and at school, even before puberty. The goal is to give adolescents as much information as possible before they begin their sexual life” (18).

CONCLUSION

Both newspapers were, in some aspects, efficient in communicating through their health editorials. The concern with AIDS and its prevention is clear. However, information about access to public health services and the use of hormonal contraception received little attention. We cannot deny that easy access to this information increases the autonomy of individuals to exercise their sexuality safely.

The participation of the media is undoubtedly important for the success of actions aimed at protecting and promoting citizenship rights. In this way, the media anticipates, supports and multiplies the coverage of the different preventive actions developed by public, private and non-governmental organizations, assuming the role of opinion-former and educator on world issues. Therefore, communicators must be aware of the power of their information, ensuring quality news that is beneficial to the population, as this will enable them to influence the direction of public policies in the health area.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Disseminating and collaborating with health education is a more subtle task than it may seem at first glance. Simply bombarding readers with information does not guarantee the possibility of provoking changes in behavior, since, normally, readers do not react positively to the excessively didactic tone of some health articles and demonstrate disdain for the sensationalism of others.

“The press assumes the task of collecting information and giving it a form. Its function is to make messages intended for mass dissemination more accessible and attractive, that is, to change the packaging without changing the content” (19).

Greater integration of health professionals with journalists may be the ideal way to achieve the goal of promoting public health.

More studies are needed, including other media outlets, such as cinema, television, radio, the Internet, magazines and other newspapers, as well as a longer observation period, so that we can measure the extent of this integration and its effect on the sexual health of our population.