Health

Youth Virginity Rates Take Sharp Hike Upward

ATLANTA (AP/The Blaze) — Fewer teens and young adults are having sex, a government survey shows, and theories abound for why they’re doing it less.

Experts say this generation may be more cautious than their predecessors, more aware of sexually spread diseases. Or perhaps emphasis on abstinence in the past decade has had some influence.

Or maybe they’re just too busy.

“It’s not even on my radar,” said 17-year-old Abbey King of Hinsdale, Ill., a competitive swimmer who starts her day at 5 a.m. and falls into bed at 10:30 p.m. after swimming, school, weight lifting, running, more swimming, homework and a volunteer gig working with service dogs for the disabled.Youth Virginity Rates Take Sharp Hike Upward

The study, released Thursday, is based on interviews of about 5,300 young people, ages 15 to 24. It shows the proportion in that age group who said they’d never had oral, vaginal or anal sex rose in the past decade from 22 percent to about 28 percent.

“Many parents and adults look at teens and sex and see nothing but a blur of bare midriffs. They think things are terrible and getting worse,” said Bill Albert, chief program officer for the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

Parents also worry that the media may glorify risque behavior and teen pregnancy, including hit shows like MTV’s “16 and Pregnant” which chronicle the lives of young mothers struggling to balance high school and high chairs.

“There is no fear and shame in teen pregnancy anymore,” says Michelle Hankins, who runs a Young Moms support group in Rome, Ga. “Seeing all these teen moms in the media, it makes them less fearful. It’s desensitized them, there’s just an immunity to the shock value of it.”

There are other surveys of sexual behavior, but this is considered the largest and most reliable. “It’s the gold standard,” Albert said.

Health scientist Anjani Chandra of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention described the decline in sex as small but significant. She declined to speculate on the reasons. It’s difficult to look for a trend earlier than 2002 because previous surveys did not gather as much detail about various types of sex, she added.

However, data over the years on vaginal intercourse among never-married adolescents shows a steady decline since 1988. That seems to be in sync with other CDC studies showing an overall drop in teen pregnancy.

That the trend began in the late 1980s seems to undermine the idea that abstinence-only sex education — heavily emphasized during the 2001-2009 presidency of George W. Bush — is the explanation, Albert said.

But it is possible those messages contributed, he added.

Comprehensive sex education — which includes abstinence but also teaches contraception and safer sex skills — didn’t go away during the Bush years, said Elizabeth Schroeder, executive director of Answer, a national sex education organization at Rutgers University.

“We have been redoubling efforts and it has made an impact on these statistics,” Schroeder said.

Sam Dercon, a 17-year-old high school junior from Princeton, N.J., said he’s learned to worry about the consequences of having sex.

“I do think that sexual education is taking away that idea that you are invincible,” said Dercon, who is also a contributing writer to www.sexetc.org, a project of Rutgers-based Answer.

“There’s always that fear of something going wrong with consequences that could screw up your future,” he said.

The leading influence on sexual activity among young adults is what parents teach and what peers are doing, experts said. And for whatever reason, smaller proportions are “doing it” than in the past.

King, the busy Illinois teen, said she broke up with a boyfriend because “we didn’t have time to hang out as much as we wanted to. We were both swimmers and the majority of the time we saw each other was at practice.”

She is on the junior board for Robert Crown Center for Health Education, a nonprofit organization that teaches sex ed to students in the Chicago area.

She sees sex, alcohol, smoking and drugs as distractions to her goal of getting a college scholarship in swimming, she said.

“This generation is very focused on their future and not necessarily getting laid,” agreed Washington, D.C.-based sex educator Yvonne Fulbright.

But she also suggested that some young men aren’t making time for relationships.

“Some guys, at the end of the day, they’d rather channel their energy into music, playing their guitar or playing computer games,” Fulbright said. “That’s immediate gratification. People forget it takes work to woo somebody and keep her happy.”

The study showed that 27 percent of young men and 29 percent of young women reported no sexual contact.

It looked at older adults, too. It was based on in-person interviews of about 13,500 men and women ages 15 to 44, conducted in the years 2006 through 2008. The results were compared with those of a similar survey done in 2002.

Participants were offered $40 for sitting for the interview, which usually lasted an hour and included answering very specific questions on a computer about oral sex, anal sex and other sexual activities.

Among other findings:

—More than half of young people who had oral sex said they did that before vaginal intercourse; that pattern was much more common in whites than blacks or Hispanics.

—Among young adults, the proportion who had had vaginal or oral sex declined. But the proportion who had anal sex held steady, at about 21 percent.

—For all ages in the study, women were more than twice as likely to have had sex with a same-gender partner than men were. That was true despite the fact that about the same proportion of male and female survey respondents described themselves as homosexual.

The explanation for that finding seems to be that women are much more willing to describe themselves as bisexual, or to at least acknowledge they find others of their gender attractive.

That may have a lot to do with television shows and other pop culture, which at times seems to celebrate woman-on-woman sexual contact, but not the same kind of behavior among men, said Michael Reece, director of Indiana University’s Center for Sexual Health Promotion.

“My guess is women are just more likely to feel that’s OK,” he added.

There is an assumption that sex between females is more common among more educated women, perhaps experimenting with their sexuality during their college years. But the CDC study found that such behavior was more common among less educated women, Chandra said.

Comments (60)

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  • NormanDeArmond
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 1:26pm

    Ananji Chandra: 6 divided by 22 is above twenty seven percent decrease, not small, huge! AP/Blaze 2008 minus 2002 is not a decade it is a haxade or someting like that. progress that 27% increase 30 years and the number of chaste young adults exceeds 92%. These young people don’t want to share the guilt of abortion unmarried ******* sex carries with it? do they? Do they? We old folks may have to keep that societal deficit all to ourselves. Did you hear about the flashmob at the NARAL PP demonstration in Chicago. They were all young people. Bunch of Old Prunes at the smaller NARAL demo. Ot is at Lifenews. Hey the article didn’t even segregate out married vs. unmarried 18-24 out of this 15-24 can get a marriage license and start having huge amounts of recommended fabulous sex af all kinds. What is up with the categories in the study, *******, anal and oral. Come on govt. make it real.

    Report Post » NormanDeArmond  
  • NormanDeArmond
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 1:17pm

    Add your comments

    Report Post » NormanDeArmond  
  • jim
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 11:53am

    Austere times breeds austerity.

    Report Post » jim  
  • onegodinkansas
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 11:32am

    Redefine “sex”, get more desirable numbers. Modify formula for calculating unemployment & inflation, behold Panacea!

    Report Post »  
  • TeaParty_InTheSky
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:59am

    19 and a virgin. its mostly my faith in god to wait for the one who is right for me along with i dont want to screw up my life getting an STD, AIDS, or getting a girl pregnant. pre marital sex isnt worth the shame or the risk because so much could go wrong.

    Report Post » TeaParty_InTheSky  
    • NICE NICE TACO
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 12:55pm

      Good for you! Keep doing the right thing and you will be rewarded.

      Report Post »  
    • sing it out
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 3:43pm

      As a girl your age, I love to hear that coming from a guy! I am waiting for marraige, too, and I know I won’t regret it.

      Report Post » sing it out  
  • ThisIsJackBauer
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:05am

    It’s prolly porn that helps and its wide use on the internet now… although i know multiple people who have never had sex that are 23-24, including myself. waiting till marriage is dumb tho but i do only wanna share the experience with one girl ever…..though i work at a pharmacy and we sell lots of plan b, and we are near a college campus.

    Report Post »  
  • AlexJonesRules
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:04am

    One bit of good news.

    Report Post »  
  • Sinista Mace
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 9:41am

    It’s a lie.

    The kids are simply better liars now and the parents are now dumber.

    Fact.

    Report Post » V-MAN MACE  
    • EqualJustice
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:16am

      OR they has resorted oral sex, which they do not consider sex? I would like to see a survey about THAT!

      Report Post » EqualJustice  
    • Sinista Mace
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:28am

      I’ve also heard that argument, Equal.

      Report Post » V-MAN MACE  
    • REETZBEE
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 4:08pm

      I don’t believe it either. I guess they didn’t take into account the 90 girls that all got pregnant at the same at one school in Tennessee. What about all the recent reports that grade school kids think oral sex is okay.

      Report Post » REETZBEE  
  • 123abc
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 9:38am

    This is because the boys are happy getting regular lewinsky’s.

    Report Post »  
    • EqualJustice
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:15am

      I hate to agree with you, but even on the middle school busses here, the boys EXPECT the girls to do this, and they DO! It happens as much as kissing when making out now. They even do what they call a “DOUBLE HEADER” (2 girls or two guys) having oral sex. For some reason they do NOT consider this having “SEX” and they don’t think anything of it. Thanks Billy Boy….

      Report Post » EqualJustice  
  • mrsmileyface
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 9:23am

    Coming soon to X-box! Masterbaition Master! Use your imagination on how it works.

    Report Post » mrsmileyface  
  • BubbaCoop
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 9:18am

    In completely unrelated news….kids lie.

    Report Post »  
  • freeedomusapa
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 9:13am

    i am glad that more teens are abstaining from sex. i pray that most of them are doing it because they have faith in God and want to honor Him. We has parents must bring our children in the way of the LKoes, if we do that we ill have a more moral nation and then also we will be blessed b y God and not judged by Him

    Report Post »  
  • Taxed_N_Spent
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 8:45am

    Funny how anytime the media starts being scrutinized for increasingly risque programming and commercials, magically there’s a study that says “oh no, things are actually BETTER, parents just have the wrong perception”. I’ve got news….parents see it EVERYWHERE. The tv shows are more sexually graphic, the music, the clothing, movies, etc. I see and hear teens behaving and talking in ways that they can’t possibly grasp the full consequences of. Take survey results with a grain of sand.

    Report Post » Taxed_N_Spent  
  • rivertree
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 7:59am

    I think this generation is getting it if this a valid survey. I think they have lived the chaos that such loose morals and felt its force of stealing away life. And now they are determined to do something about it. I have a good bit of interaction in what I do with this generation, really seek them out…and I see much hope for our future with our values and principles in this generation. But I am also intelligent enough to know it will be opposed and a struggle to restore those important truths once again.

    Report Post » rivertree  
  • DeepSouthernMan
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 7:48am

    I used to think that “slinging IT everywhere” was my right, my mission…Nothing has made more of an unfulfilling life than that selfish notion…Love is meant for whom is special to you…no one else…

    Report Post »  
    • Grandmadar
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 9:08am

      Yes, I agree. I was looking for love in all the wrong places. And found out it wasn’t love anyway! Have been married 35 yrs. to same person! Maybe the youth today are realizing more what the consequenses of their decisions are.

      Report Post »  
  • awizard
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 7:46am

    Alright, maybe not “killed Me” … but several young girl’s parents would have … and nobody got
    “Hurt”, we just grew up … healthy, I still “talk” to a couple we all have families, and have a good laugh about “The Old Days” …

    Report Post » awizard  
  • awizard
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 7:16am

    How could anyone possibly come to any conclusions using skewed data such as that presented here?.. You‘re taking high end ’driven‘ kids and asking them about stuff they’ve been told to avoid anyway … Try getting down in the street, most towns have “neighborhoods”, groups of kids that don’t /won‘t tell an adult what they’re doing for anything anyway … I’m rural and old, but it’s built in … kids are Supposed to be curious about “Sex”, there’s something wrong if they are not … There is no “Shame” in exploration. Abstinence, while laudable(I guess) is not really practical with “Humans”!..

    Maybe I don’t understand the point of the article(or maybe I’m just “Old”), but from my day I still have fond memories of “exploring the unknown” … even though my parents would have killed me if they had known …

    Report Post » awizard  
    • mck05002
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:33am

      I was completely abstinent until I was married to my husband 4 years ago! It is possible and though we have tendencies towards “the natural man”, God has yet to revoke the 7th commandment. It is possible with a little willpower! It’s special for us to know that we saved ourselves for eachother. I’m not trying to be holier-than-thou but to say we can’t stay chaste because we are human is a cop out!

      Report Post »  
  • sleazyhippo
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 7:14am

    Great News – Its due to Planned Parenthood! and Public Broadcasting!

    Report Post » MONICNE  
  • teddrunk
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 7:12am

    If this is true, Planned Parenthood will be having emergency meetings to try to find a way to stem this moral tide and increase profits in the abortion industry.

    Report Post »  
  • DanSt
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 6:56am

    That’s because a lot of boys these days resemble Glenn Beck…:-)

    Report Post »  
  • NickDeringer
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 6:52am

    Wow. An upside to video games.

    Report Post » NickDeringer  
  • the hawk
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 6:47am

    must B XBOX! ! ! !

    Report Post »  
    • Gonzo
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 8:19am

      Does it have anything to do with X-Box maybe?

      Report Post » Gonzo  
  • the hawk
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 6:45am

    If It‘s True IT’S xbox! ! ! !

    Report Post »  
  • the hawk
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 6:44am

    iF THIS IS TRUE IT’S XBOX ! ! ! OR World of Warcraft ! ! ! ! !

    Report Post »  
  • walkwithme1966
    Posted on March 4, 2011 at 6:36am

    I have often wondered how surveys such as this can be correct as you are depending on the teenagers to tell the interviewer the truth about their sexual practices. But if it is a valid survey then I guess something in the society it goes in the right direction! http://wp.me/pYLB7-Il

    Report Post » walkwithme1966  
    • grandmaof5
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 7:03am

      My daughter and I were talking about kids in general and she said they seem to be more “goal oriented” now than in the past. All three of her teenage kids know what they want to do, moving forward, and actually have a plan – all 3 are A/B honor roll or all A’s. This is definitely different than my three were growing up. And this is “cool” for the kids their age instead of being labeled a “nerd”. I suspect that this may be a trend places other than FL too which doesn’t leave much time for “fooling around”.

      Report Post »  
    • Gonzo
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 8:00am

      Hey Gandma, that’s good news! If these kids ARE “goal oriented” they will be conservative voters.

      Report Post » Gonzo  
    • grandmaof5
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 8:24am

      I sure hope so, GONZO, as long as some radical professor doesn’t get hold of them. Oldest one has Aspergers but right now he can hold his own. Pray for all our youth for their future is questionable if we don’t succeed.

      Report Post »  
    • HUNITHUNIT
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 9:29am

      @Walkwithme In statistics it is referred to as asking questions with socially desirable answers. It is a major issue when you are dealing with the validity of surveys. As you said it is impossible to know if they are answering truthfully or providing the most socially acceptable answer.

      Report Post »  
    • CaptainKook
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:20am

      @ walkwithme1966
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 6:36am
      re: “I have often wondered how surveys such as this can be correct as you are depending on the teenagers to tell the interviewer the truth about their sexual practices.”

      When I was in high school in the 60s you couldn’t find a teenaged boy who would admit to being a virgin [myself included] – but you couldn’t find a teenaged girl who would admit to ever having had sex.

      Report Post »  
    • Misunderestimated Strategery
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:29am

      I have to agree that kids now (obviously, there are exceptions) seem to be abstaining longer. I have a 15-year-old daughter who’s been dating 16-17 year-old boys and that has made me very nervous – After all, I know what *I* was doing at 17.

      But nope, it’s all on the up-and-up…My, um, surveillance has failed to turn up a single indication of any funny business going on, and believe me – I’ve been diligent!

      Report Post » Misunderestimated Strategery  
    • poverty.sucks
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 10:47am

      But condems of FREE, how can an increase in virginity be possible?

      Report Post » poverty.sucks  
    • teachermitch32
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 1:49pm

      Misunderstood Stradegery,

      Fifteen and dating? that’s playing with fire my friend. My daughter, soon to be 15, will not be dating. Dating is courtship. She is too young, and has too many goals to be distracted with courtship. She will be allowed to go on group dates, with friends, both male and female…but not “dates”. At this point in her decision making growth, she has made this a mission of her own. Did we influence her decision? H…. yes! Will she be able to continue this trend and goal into and through college. I don’t know, but she has a good head start in knowing the truth. Dating is courtship. Hope you can see that and maybe make a course direction regarding your parenting skills and in enabling your daughter to make decisions based on “to distract or not to distract”. I know where my head was when I was your daughters age, and through my early twenties. It was not in the right place. Of course my parents did not have or know the truth, or impart truth and reasons to me…they just had rules that were easily broken with no substance behind those rules, at least to my immature mind and heart.

      Report Post »  
    • Cobra Blue
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 1:58pm

      Better not say this too loud. A decrease in sexual activity means Planned Parenthood’s abortion revenue will be hit the hardest.

      Report Post »  
    • ozz
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 3:56pm

      I suspect there is a direct correlation between more teen virgins and a considerable rise in
      HOME SCHOOLED KIDS!
      I know many who have pulled their out of the indoctrination mills we call public school.

      Report Post » ozz  
    • ozz
      Posted on March 4, 2011 at 3:59pm

      their > kids < out ……insert to correct typo

      Report Post » ozz  
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