People often think that today’s teenagers are more sexually active than any past generation. With shows like 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom, it can often seem like teenagers are having sex in record numbers and doing so at earlier ages than ever before.
However, there is good news for parents everywhere: Teen girls are actually delaying first-time sex until after high school. According to a survey led by HerCampus.com, 69 percent of young women surveyed didn’t lose their virginity until they were 18 years old. Meanwhile, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of teens from 15 to 19 years old who have had sex has decreased from 51 percent (in 1988) to 43 percent (from 2006 to 2010).
The good news doesn’t end there. Syphilis rates have decreased for the first time in nearly a decade, and the teen-pregnancy rate is lower than it has been in the past 40 years. In short, we have made great strides in teaching kids about the importance of waiting to have sex and the importance of safer sex. But what exactly is the reason behind all this good news?
Much of it has to do with comprehensive sex education. It differs from abstinence-only education in that it teaches kids the value of abstinence and of delaying sex while still giving them the tools and the resources they need if they do decide to have sex. Everything from condoms to birth control to sexually transmitted infections (STIs, formerly known as STDs, or sexually transmitted diseases) are covered, and it helps ensure that kids have all the information they need should certain situations arise. Often teachers cover crucial topics like “roofies,” aka the date-rape drug, and the importance of protecting yourself when out at parties or on dates. They also instill how important it is not to allow someone to pressure you to have sex before you are ready.
The statistics show the success of these comprehensive sex-education programs. One recent report found that two-thirds of the 48 comprehensive programs studied had positive behavioral effects on the students who attended the classes, while a 2007 congressionally mandated program found that abstinence-only programs were not shown to have any impact on teens’ sexual decisions.
Despite compelling findings such as these, many people still resist comprehensive sex-education programs, primarily because they fear that giving kids information about sex is the same as giving them permission to have sex. Yet this is not the case: Comprehensive sex-education programs can and do highlight the importance of waiting to have sex, including the fact that no sex is totally safe and that the only way to be 100 percent protected from STIs and pregnancy is not to have sex at all. These programs also cover the basics from learning how to negotiate for condom use to saying no effectively. Plus, they include topics many people might not even think of — such as telling kids that it’s okay to say no to sex even if they have already had it. Many teens think, “Well, no going back now”; so they continue to have sex even though they don’t want to, and this can lead to dangerous mental and physical consequences.
The bottom line is that teens are both scared and curious about sex and everything it entails. However, if we give them the tools and the resources they need to safeguard their sexual health, they are likely to continue to make smart sexual choices and continue to delay sex even longer.
Laura Berman, PhD is a leading sex and relationship educator and therapist, popular TV and radio host, New York Times best-selling author, and assistant clinical professor of ob-gyn and psychiatry at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago. She is the star of Couples in Crisis , on the Everyday Health Channel, every Thursday at 1 p.m. EST.
Last Updated: 8/22/2012