Young adults and Nudism
The arguments placed for children of course are also valid for teens - but their case deserves special study since for a long time, young adult age groups have been by far the lowest participants in social nudity. Surprisingly this is also common amongst nudist children who "dress up" in their teenage years only to finally "rediscover" Nudism in their '30s or '40s. There are quite a few major factors working against young adults' being nudists;
1.) Peer group pressure.
As teenage years begin, suddenly it is very important to be accepted by your peers. More often than not these peers will be textiles, and since their ideals conflict with nudism it's usually the nudist ideals which lag behind. Modern western society and culture teaches the extreme importance of "the right look". Only a very brave teenager will buck the beliefs of their peers and retain their previous nudist ideals they had as a child.
2.) Sexual confusion.
Modern culture teaches young adults that nudity is a sex switch, but Nudism teaches that this is false. This adds to the confusion of puberty enormously, especially when teemed up with peer pressure.
3.) False body image.
Textile society teaches that body shape is important; Nudism teaches the opposite. More confusion.
4.) Lack of teenagers in established Nudist cultures
The existing lack of young adult nudists at our nudist facilities itself works against the introduction of more new young adults. It's a lonely life for most teenagers at a nudist facility unless they're into drinking, smoking, playing old farts' games like pentanque and miniten, and listening to worn out 1970s disco music. Hardly a conducive environment to entice potentials into the fold! Most of the (few) young adult nudists today can be found at venues like Confest (Australia), Burning Man (California) or involved with "disorganised social nudity" on the beaches and at a handful of the larger and more progressive nudist resorts.
5.) The Single Male problem.
As discussed elsewhere, Single Males have an especially hard time being a nudist. Their effective "lock out" from most of the organised nudist groups leads to an excess of single males in places they are accepted, such as resorts and beaches. This in turn can scare away females, making the problem worse.
6.) Financial reasons.
It costs alot of money to be a Nudist. Our resorts and beaches are in far flung, off the beaten track locations, There's memberships, site fees, and dozens of other financial commitments involved. A car is essential, and probably a good 4WD at that. And yet young adults represent those least likely to have any disposable income at all (if they even have a job it's likely to be a low paid dead end one..) and many cannot rely on the support of their peers or parents. A young adult really needs commitment if he or she is going to try out Nudism for the first time.
So you might think that it's hopeless : that there's no way out. Fortunately young nudists do have advantages all their own too: