Important Study Released by CDC
In a culture that is saturated with sexual images and ideologies, many adults fall into the assumption that a majority of our teenagers are involved with the activity. With this mindset, we approach the topic of teenage sexuality from a “safe sex” standpoint, instead of investing into the truth that many teenagers desire to wait. A recently released study from the Center for Disease Control finds that a majority of high schools students are virgins. With this knowledge, we continue seeing the importance of teaching our students applicable principles of waiting, refusal skills, the benefits of abstinence, and much more. For students that have already engaged in sexual activity, choosing to wait is always an option despite past decisions. Below are some of the highlights of the CDC report.
- In 2006-2008, the proportion of never-married females aged 15-19 who had ever had sexual intercourse was 42%. This was not a statistically significant change from 2002 when 46% of never-married teenaged females had ever had sexual intercourse. (Table 1 and Figure 1). The percent sexually experienced has, however, declined steadily since 1988, when it was 51%. (This was a statistically significant decline).
- In 2006-2008, the percent of never-married males aged 15-19 who ever had sexual intercourse, 43%, did not change significantly from 2002. This follows a significant decline among males from 1995 (55%) to 2002 (46%). (Table 2 and Figure 1)
- Both female and male teenagers whose mothers had their first birth as a teen, and those who did not live with both parents at age 14, were more likely to be sexually experienced than those whose mothers had their first birth at age 20 or older, and those who lived with both parents at age 14 (Table 1 and 2).
- The vast majority of never-married teenagers had not had intercourse in the month before the interview (76% of females and 79% of males, unchanged from 2002), but 12% of female and 10% of male teens had had sex 4 or more times in the month before the interview. (Table 5 and Figure 3)
- Teenagers’ most common first sexual partners are someone with whom they are “going steady” (72% of females and 56% of males) as opposed to someone in a less-involved relationship (e.g., going out once in a while). The second most common relationship with the first sexual partner is having just met, and this is more common for males than females (25% males and 14% females) (Table 8 and Figure 5).
- Regarding total number of lifetime partners, 26% of females and 29% of males had had 2 or more partners. Teenaged females who were younger at first sex were much more likely to have had higher numbers of total partners (Tables 11 and Figure 7). No changes occurred in number of partners since 2002, for males and females.
- The condom is the most commonly used method among sexually experienced teen females: 95% had used the condom at least once. The second most common method was withdrawal, with 58% having ever used this method, followed by the pill, at 55%. Use of periodic abstinence, or the calendar rhythm method, has increased since 2002 – in 2006-2008 17% of teens had ever used this method (Table 13 and Figure 8).
- Among never-married sexually experienced female teens, 79% used a contraceptive method at first intercourse, 68% used the condom, and 15% used the pill. There were no significant changes since 2002 in contraceptive use at first intercourse for female teens (Figure 9). Among never-married males, a significantly higher percent used the condom (81%) compared to 2002 (71%), but overall use of any method at first intercourse did not change significantly (Table 14).