Teen pregnancy trends alarming!
More Than 40% of U.S. Teens Have Had Sex
June 2, 2010: More than 40 percent of unmarried U.S. teenagers — or 4.3 million teen males and females — have had sex at least once, according to the report by the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics.
.These figures reflect a flattening trend of teen pregnancies seen since 2002 and capping of downward trend witnessed between 1995 and 2002.
“One of the great success stories of the past two decades has been the extraordinary declines in teen pregnancy and childbearing,” said Bill Albert, chief program officer at the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. “This progress has recently stalled out.”
What is quite alarming is that 1 in 5 teen girls and 1 in 4 teen boys who had had sex said they would be pleased if they or their partner got pregnant.
The study, which analyzed data from the 2006-2008 National Survey of Family Growth, also found that
· about one-quarter of female teens and 29 percent of males reported two or more sexual partners, the same as 2002. Females who started having sex when they were younger were more likely to accumulate more partners.
· While most teens had not had intercourse in the month before being asked about this (76 percent of females and 79 percent of males, the same as 2002), 12 percent of females and 10 percent of males reported having sex in the prior month.
· The majority of teens had used some form of contraception during their first intercourse: 79 percent of females and 87 percent of males. And condom use is on the rise. As in 2002, it ranked as the most common form of birth control and was used at least once by 95 percent of teens.
· The next favored form of birth control was withdrawal (58 percent), then the pill (55 percent).
· Seventeen percent of teens said they had used the rhythm method, as compared to 11 percent in 2002.
· Seventy-one percent of female teens in 2006-2008 “agreed” or “strongly agreed” that “it is OK for an unmarried female to have a child,” about the same proportion as 2002. But now 64 percent of males agreed with the statement, up from 50 percent in 2002.
· Fourteen percent of females and 18 percent of males interviewed said they would be “a little pleased” or “very pleased” if they or their partner got pregnant. On the flip side, 58 percent of never-married female teens and 47 percent of males said they would be “very upset” if this happened, pointing to the importance of motivation in not getting pregnant.
“With nearly half of all teenagers stating that they are sexually active, we cannot afford to keep our heads in the sand about ensuring that our young people have access to comprehensive sex education,” said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. “While it’s encouraging to hear that a majority of them are using some form of birth control, many of the attitudes revealed in this report tell us that there is plenty of room for more comprehensive sex education that includes information about abstinence, contraception, healthy relationships, and responsible decision-making.”
The full report is available at National Center for Health Statistics, part of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Source: http://news.health.com/2010/06/02/more-than-40-of-u-s-teens-have-had-sex/#more-36058
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